Getting Accurate Roof Measurements For Your Home
Again, this process is good for general measurement estimates. Prior to ordering any material, its crucial that you hire a professional to do field measurements. When it comes to metal roofing projects, an accurate list of materials is needed to stay on budget and successfully install metal panels.
Western States Metal Roofing offers takeoffs, a full report of material you will need. Every takeoff will include:
- Materials needed.
- Quantity of materials needed.
- A breakdown of pricing per each material type.
In addition to takeoffs and other services, we are a metal roof manufacturer that sells directly to the public and to contractors. This can help you save 15% to 50% percent on all the roofing materials youll need for your house.
Go to the Western States Metal Roofing website to see our catalog and request a quote or metal color sample as there are hundreds of colors to choose from.
Looking for more homeowner guides and step-by-step installation help? You can find everything you need at the Western States Metal Roofing Learning Center to help you have an easy and successful installation.
Understand The Specifics Of Your Chosen Metal Panels
Not all metal panels will measure the same height or width. Before you complete our order, ask your supplier what is the width of the panels you have chosen. Once you know the width of these panels, you will be able to divide the length of the roof by the panels width.
For example, if your roof was 240in wide and the sheets are 24in wide, you will divide 240 by 24. The calculation equals 10, which is the number of panels needed to cover the roof.
How Do I Calculate Roofing Materials
To estimate roofing materials, begin by determining the total square footage of the roof, then divide the number by 100 to estimate the square footage of the roof. As a result, because shingles cover a square in three bundles, you should order three bundles for each square. When subtracting 10% from the number, the waste figure is calculated.
How Many Bundles Of Shingles Are Needed For A Shed Roof?
Most roof shingles, such as asphalt shingles and most other shingles, are typically bundled in threes. Three bundles of shingles are required for each roofing square or 100 square feet of roofing. A shed roof typically has three squares, which equates to 9 bundles of three-tab asphalt shingles or any other starter strip.
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How To Figure Your Roofs Pitch:
In this section I am going to show you how to easily determine your roof pitch, which is also known as roof slope, or steepness/rise of your roof. For simplicity purposes, I am going to classify roof slopes into three basic categories:
Step 3: Determining your Roof Pitch.
Step 4: Multiply the number of ground level Roofing Squares by a roofing multiplier.
For example, lets assume that our roof has a medium pitch of 6:12, and is moderately cut up with an end-wall, and 2 valleys. So we decide to use a middle of the road multiplier factor of 1.35, remember that our average values could range from 1.25 to 1.4 as per table above for medium pitched roofs.
Lets go back to our earlier example where we have a simple rectangular shaped house that measures 30 by 50 feet, which equals to 15 roofing squares. We will now multiply that number of 15 ground level roof squares by a roofing multiplier of 1.35, which equals to approximately 20 squares of actual roofing surface.
The good news is that the rest is easy! The bad news is that it may also be pretty scary, but knowledge is power!
Now that we know our roof size in squares and have a good understanding of the level of difficulty to install a new roof, we can easily estimate how much it may cost to install a new roof on our home.
As a some sort of general guide line I am going to throw in some numbers with the intent to show the calculation process and not the bottom line.
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How Do You Calculate Hip Roof
A hip roof is a roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. To calculate the hip roof, you will need to know the rise and the run of the roof. The rise is the vertical measurement from the peak of the roof to the eaves, while the run is the horizontal measurement from the ridge to the eaves. To calculate the hip roof, you will need to multiply the rise by the run, and then divide by 2. This will give you the area of the hip roof.
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Draw Each Shape Individually Calculate Each Area And The Total Square Footage Of Your Roof
Now we have eight shapes to find the area of six triangles and two rectangles. Instead of breaking out the old textbooks to calculate triangle areas, we like to use a triangle calculator. It makes figuring out the area of triangles a lot simpler.
In the example above, we have two triangles with sides of 30, 20, and 20 feet. Pop those figures in the three-sides calculator and youll get an area of 198. Since we have two of those triangles, multiply by 2 for a running total of 396 square feet.
We have four remaining triangles, all with dimensions of 15, 20, and 25 feet. That same calculator reveals a result of 150 square feet. Since there are four of those triangles, multiply by 4 to get 600 square feet.
Lastly, we have two rectangles of 15 by 30 feet. This one is easy, just width times height for a total of 450 square feet for each one. Multiply by 2 and their total square footage is 900.
Adding all the areas up yields a total of 1896 square feet . Since roofing material comes in 100 square foot squares, youll need at least 19 of them for your roofing project. Itd be wise to get at least 20 to account for mistakes and waste.
Calculating Roof Size And Roofing Materials:
Calculating roof size: Now that you know your roofs ground dimensions, measured your roof pitch and have the pitch multiplier, you can calculate your roof size, as well as the amount of roofing materials that you will need to re-roof your home. If you have a simple gable type roof, like a colonial or a ranch home, calculating roof size will be as easy as two plus two. Simply take your ground dimensions, multiply length by width, and apply the roof pitch multiplier. For example, if your house is 24 x 46 and is 6-pitch, you multiply 24 by 46 and multiply the sum by 1.12, which is a multiplier for 6-pitch roofs. The result will be 1237 sq. ft. roof.
If your roof is more complicated and cut-up than a simple gable roof, you will need to break it into sections and calculate each section separately. For roofs with hips and valleys, or details such as dormers, you will need to apply some basic geometry to get more or less accurate roof sizes. If you have chimneys, skylights, and other large roof penetrations, you should not subtract them from your total roof size, as these are usually negligible, compared to your roofs size , and wont have much effect. Besides, roofing contractors will not subtract these either an average skylight is only about 10 sq. ft in size. You should also realize that working around the skylight will produce a lot of waste and will consume a lot of installation time, and even more so for chimney flashing.
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Is Working With A Professional The Right Choice To Make
Its almost always a better idea to use a professional roofer if you are going to put a roof in your home. First of all, most people dont have the time. Second, you may not have the experience necessary, or the tools that will be necessary in order to complete the job. If it is a substantial pitch to the roof, you are going to be looking at several problems such as maintaining your safety as you are putting the roof on. There is also the problem of getting all of the supplies to the top of the roof so that you can do the work while you are there. Metal can be very happy, therefore you are going to need some type of a crane to get everything to the top. If you have never used one before, then its obvious that you should contact a professional roofing company that can do this for you.
How Far Apart Are The Seams On A Standing Seam Roof
The seams on a standing seam roof are typically 12 to 20 inches apart.
Standing seam metal roofs are made up of a series of panels that are mechanically or visually joined together at the seams. Between 12 and 24 inches, the ribs are usually 12 inches or less in length. Metals can be re-coated for a variety of reasons, which can include corrosion. Barricade, a synthetic underlayment, is a better choice for metal roofing than asphalt felt. Sheet metal roofing panels on a standing roof are arranged vertically, horizontally, and thus secured with concealed fasteners. Standing seam metal roof panels typically cost between $400 and $650 . The panels are attached by clips or fasteners to the underlayment with a metal bond, which allows the metal to expand or contract as the temperature changes.
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Calculate Roof Pitch From The Ground In Three Quick Steps
Roof pitch is one of those things that middle school math and geometry instructors can easily point to, and say, See? Learning how to work with rise over run is fun and useful, right? If at any moment you start having PTSD flashbacks to algebra or geometry class, take a deep breath. Well walk you through this slowly in three simple steps. All you need is a tape measure, and possibly a helper to hold it.
Step One: Grab that tape measure, notepad, and pencil and head outside. Find the slope of your roof youd like to measure, and start measuring the distance from the outer edge of the eave to the point at which the plane of the roof slope is barely visible to your eye. Write that number down in both inches. This figure is the horizontal run.
Step Two: Stand directly underneath the gutter or edge of the roof plane you want to calculate the slope for. Measure the distance from your eye to the top of the drip edge of your roof overhang. Write that number down in inches, too. This figure is the roof rise.
Step Three: Take the roof rise figure in Step Two and divide it by the horizontal run from Step One. In the example above, the rise is 60 inches and the run is 120 inches. This reduces down to a roof pitch of 6/12. Well use this figure in just a bit, so keep it handy.
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Figure Out Your Homes Footprint
If you use the square footage of your home, youll only get a vague idea of what the square footage of your roof is. Thats why you have to figure out your homes footprint.
A person of average height will have a stride somewhere between 2 to 2.5 feet. To figure out your homes footprint, you can step off the dimensions of your roof by counting the steps you take to get the length of your home. You will then step off the width of your home.
After stepping off the length and width of your home, youll multiply the two numbers to get your homes footprint.
Length x width = your homes footprint
Your calculations are going to be off, but measuring this way can give you a basic idea of your homes footprint. Keep in mind, square footage of a house does not equal the square footage of a roof.
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Note Down All The Measurements
Finally, you need to note down all the measurements properly. If you are confused about any measurement, you may take it again. But dont keep any confusion at the measurement stage.
Remember to note down the total weight of the materials too.
After you have successfully measured them all, you are good to start the installation!
How To Find And Assess These Companies
Finding and assessing these companies is very easy to do. Its going to take you a couple of hours to do all of this research. You can check businesses that rank local businesses and see what they are saying about this particular company. Once you have done that, you will have a handful of businesses that you should consider using. The amount of money that you are going to spend can be minimized by working with a company that is going to do this for less. Only after getting the estimates from the roofing companies in your area can you make a determination as to who is going to save you the most money on this job.
Once you have taken the measurements, you will know exactly how much metal roofing that you will need for the job. However, if you dont have the time to do so, or if you lack experience, you can always find a professional roofer that can help you out. The amount of time that it will take will depend upon when they can start, what time of the year it is, and if they have a very busy schedule of their own. Regardless of the situation, its always nice to work with a professional that understands what to do and thats what you get with a local roofer that can install this roof for you.
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Sometimes You Need To Do A Quick Calculation To See If The Numbers Stack Up We Get It
Our table of roof slope factors will help you do the maths when it comes to roof areas, sheet length and hip length. Remember, these methods are for quick estimating purposes only. Accurate measurements must be taken from the actual roof frame before ordering roofing and rainwater products.
As an example, take a typical hipped roof where all four roof sections have the same slope and all hips are of equal length.
Why Should I Measure My Own Roof
If you plan on re-roofing your own home then you will need to calculate materials so you wont waste your own time and money. If youre like most people, youll need to hire a professional.
Knowing your numbers will help you figure out what roofing materials are within your budget and having your square footage handy is a great way to protect yourself from inflated quotes.
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Talk To A Metal Roofing Expert Today
Taking the time to accurately measure a roof prior to the ordering process will save time and money in the long run and lead to faster completion times.
If you have any questions about how to measure a roof for metal roofing or whether a metal roof is right for you, reach out to the team at Great Northern Metal Company. We provide metal roofing and siding options for both commercial buildings and homes, allowing you more choice over the design and efficiency of your building projects. Reach out for a quote today.
Calculate The Area Of Each Section
Weve divided the roof into four sections. The next task is to calculate their areas.
Lets take the two triangles at the top and bottom first coloured red. The formula for the area of a triangle is half base times height. The base is 8, and the height is 9. Plugging that into the formula gives 0.5 x 8 x 9 = 36 square feet.
We have two triangles, so the total area is 36 sq ft x 2 = 72 sq ft.
Now for the other two sections the trapezoids coloured in red on the roof diagram below.
This is relatively easy too. We start with the two triangles indicated by the dashed lines.
Again, we use the formula for triangles: half base times height.
The base of the triangle is half of 16-1, which is 7.5. The area of the triangle, therefore, is 0.5 x 7.5 x 5 = 18.75 sq ft.
Weve got two triangles, so we multiply by two to give 37.5 sq ft. We then just add the remaining square area, which is 1 x 5 = 5 sq ft.
The area of the trapezoid is, therefore, 37.5 + 5= 42.5 sq ft. We have two of them, so we have a total of 85 sq ft.
We can now calculate the entire area of the roof.
You will need to measure your roof in both feet and inches to get an accurate measurement of your total roof area. Multiplying with inches is difficult, so you may find it easier to simply convert to feet with decimal place, when you perform the calculations.
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Determining The Amount Of Metal Roofing You Need
Once youve decided on the type of roofing material you require for your home, its important to determine the quantity youll need to order with your roofing supplier. Measuring the amount of metal roofing you need can be done in a few different ways, depending on the style of your roof. Here are the steps to follow for a basic measurement, fair warning, there is math involved.
