When most homeowners talk about roofing, they talk with careless abandon. But of which, roofs are largely the most important structure a house must have and a good roofing style is an added advantage to the home.
A suitable roofing style will aid the appeal of your home and also ensure the protection of the occupants while in some cases ensure energy efficiency.
Are you an intending homeowner or you are just about revamping your property and are wondering about the roof styles to use? Fret not, this is the best post to consult as this will assist you in choosing the right and most suitable roof for your building.
Below are the best 20 types of roofing styles and designs.
- Gable Roof
Gable roofs are the commonest types of roof. Characterized by its triangular-shaped outlook.
It is formed when two pitched areas of the roof meet. Picture this, one side up and the other side sloping down, like that typical roof sitting on your neighbor’s doghouse.
A Gable roof allows for easy sloping of rainwater and snow thereby the best fit for an area with such conditions.
- Flat Roof
What most people call a flat roof is not an entirely flat roof but rather a low-slopped roof that appears flat but has a bit of sloping to allow for the runoff of rainwater.
Flat roofs have so many usages such as being turn into a garden, installation of solar panel, and also you can put your heating and cooling system on top of a flat roof.
- Hip Roof
After the Gable roof, the most widely used roofing style is Hip roof. It is formed by the coming together of four slides at the top to make a ridge. All the sides have equal length.
Hip roofs are sturdier and durable due to the inward slope of all four sides, unlike other roofing styles. Hip roofing style can also provide for an additional living space.
- Gablet or Dutch Gable Roof
Combining the gable roof and the hip roof is what birthed the Gablet roof. This ensures that the discrepancy found in both are properly dealt with.
The gable roof is placed on top of the hip roof, thereby allowing easy access to the lower portion of the roof while also ensuring the benefits of natural light and extra living space.
- Jerkinhead Roof
A jerkinhead roof also combined the design elements of hip and gable roofs. It is usually seen in the form of a gable roof shortened at the end or a hip roof with two shorter sides.
It is also known as the clipped gable or the English hip roof.
- Mansard Roof
Mansard roof or French roof is made up of four double slopes that meet to form a low pitch in the middle. The lower slope is often much steeper than the top slope. And the sides can either be curved or flat depending on the styles and designs.
Mansard roof provides for additional living space which can double as living space or a full attic popularly known as a garret.
Mansard roof allows future changes to the house as the flexibility it enjoys makes it most sought after by new homeowners intending for future addition.
- Gambrel Roof
The gambrel roof is much more similar to the mansard roof having the same two slopes style. The only difference between the two is that mansard has four sides while gambrel has only two.
Gambrel roofs are mostly seen on barns, farmhouses, and log cabins. They can also be used for outdoor sheds and storage buildings as the additional space it offers will reduce the space needed.
- Skillion Roof
Skillion roofs can also be referred to as shed roofs or lean-to. This is a single sloping roof usually attached to a taller wall and commonly used for home additions, sheds, and porches.
It is now commonly seen in recent modern houses.
It can be described as a halved-pitched roof or more suitably a sloping flat roof.
- Butterfly Roof
A butterfly roof is V-shaped constructed in such a way that the roof is angled up on the outside while the midsection is angled downward to make a valley.
This type of roof allows in natural light and also allows the collection of rainwater in the valley.
The most beneficial part of using a butterfly roof is that it allows easy incorporation of solar panels, natural light, and collection of water as said earlier.
- Bonnet Roof
Bonnet roofs are commonly known as kicked eaves whereby the roof is double sloped. Its lower slope is at a lesser angle than the upper slope. It is just like a reverse mansard roof.
The lower slop hangs over the side of the house, this can be an excellent cover for a porch. While the top slope provides additional living space or attic.
- Saltbox Roof
A saltbox roof comprises two sides or halves that are not the same. One side enjoining a more sloppy flat roof while the other side has a lean roof with gables at both ends.
The slope allows water to run off making it most suitable for areas with heavy rainfall while the difference in design allows for more living space.
- Sawtooth Roof
A sawtooth roof is made up of two or more parallel pitched roofs in which there is an alternation between the sloped and vertical surfaces.
Windows are placed in the vertical spaces of the roof which allows more natural light in the house. Also, the high peaks of the roofs allow a vaulted ceiling or a loft living space.
They were commonly used on commercial buildings but are now enjoying adoption by modern homes alike.
- Rainbow Roof
A rainbow roof is similar to a gambrel roof, the only difference is the usage of an arch instead of two slopes as seen in gambrel roof styles.
Most people have the opinion that a rainbow roof is nothing but a gambrel roof with two different slopes meeting at a ridge.
It is most suitable for a single-story barn or garage as it doesn’t allow for snow buildup, unlike many other roofing styles.
- M-shaped Roof
Just like a rainbow roof having similar designs of different roofing styles, so does an M-shaped roof. Aurora flat roofing contractor argued that an M-shaped roof is nothing but a double gable roof.
M-shaped roof as the name connotes has two sloped sides that meet in the middle with corresponding slopes at both sides. This could be repeated as many times as possible as seen in usage in condominiums and strip malls.
- Clerestory
The clerestory is mostly used for the natural light features it enjoined. It is made up of a gable roof that meets at different angles.
- Curved Roof
A curved roof has features like the skillion but with a curved plane. This type of roof can be used to cover an entire building or a section of the house and are easily customizable to the suit of the homeowner.
- Pyramid Roof
A pyramid roof is a type of hip roof but having all four sides coming to a point at the top with no vertical sides or gables.
- Dome Roof
A dome roof has three or more sides with an inverted bowl shape. Great for adding unique and aesthetic appeals to a home.
- Hexagonal Roof
This roofing style features a hexagonal shape at the top with a sloping feature.
- Combination Roof
A combination roof enjoys a design that incorporates various roofing styles on the same house or structure basically for a practical purpose or adding an exquisite aesthetics appeals to a home.
This can be, for example, a house making use of a hip roof with a gable roof over the dormers and skillion on top of the porch.