Building your own home is such an exciting process! We have already purchased our land, graded it, laid a sturdy foundation and framed the home. Now for Part 3 – Roof sheathing and felting!
Now that the house has been framed and the walls plumbed, the framers can install shear panels on the walls.
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| Sheer panels installed on frame. |
The next step is the roof, which begins with trusses. Trusses are pre-fabricated, triangulated wooden structures used to support the roof. Trusses are usually built and then lifted onto the house with a crane.
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| Crane lifting pre-built truss. |
Trusses not only enrich the look of the home, but also are incredibly strong and allow more features inside the home. Trusses that span a large distance will transmit all of the weight to the exterior walls so that none of the interior walls are “load-bearing”, which opens up more options to the interior design. Trusses also allow interesting features like cathedral ceilings.
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| In the process of adding trusses to the roof. |
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| Example of a truss spanning several walls. |
At our development, Gables Crossing, we use a lot of gable trusses, which are protruding rooms or sections of the house covered by its own individual roof structure.
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| Great view of some Gable Trusses. |
Once the trusses are on, the roof is covered in plywood sheets or OSB (oriented strand board – an engineered wood product formed by layering strands or flakes of wood in specific orientations, known for its superior panel strength, rigidity, uniformity and durability.) Sheathing the roof consists of nailing the sheets of plywood or OSB into place, staggering the seams on different trusses to strengthen the roof.
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| Sheathing the roof in a staggered manner. |
MDD is now using “Cool Attic” roof sheathing with a radiant barrier. The radiant barriers consist of a highly reflective material that reflects or re-emits radiant heat rather than absorbing it. Cool Attic sheathing reflects up to 97% of the sun's radiant heat. It can lower attic temperatures and improve energy efficiency. You can increase indoor comfort while potentially reducing cooling energy costs.
At this point there is a roof nailing inspection done by the city to ensure quality work and that all California codes are followed.
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| View of the intricate trusses from the inside and sheath paneling above. |
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| Roof Sheathing with a radiant barrier. |
Roof felt is rolled out and stapled down to the sheathing. Roof felt acts as a waterproof barrier between the sheathing and the roofing material (shingles or tiles), protecting it from moisture and heat.
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| Felted Roof. |
Watch the 15 second slideshow below to see one home get its roof!
Many of our homes have open beam ceilings which add a lot of character into the home. It is at this time that the beams would be sandblasted to texturize the wood, giving it a more natural look.
Photovoltaic systems are also considered at this time, but we will visit that aspect later!
Our house is already looking like a home, but there is still so much to cover! Stay tuned!
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