Hip & ridge details for wood shake & shingle roofs:
This article discusses best roofing practices for hip and ridge installations using wood roof shingles and shakes. This article series discusses best practices in the selection and installation of residential roofing.
Our page top photo shows hip details on a new but questionable (poor shingle offset) wood shingle roof.
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Hip and Ridge Specification Details for Wood Shingle / Shake Roofs
The traditional treatment at hips and ridges is a labor intensive
“woven” cap, consisting of alternating sets of
two beveled shingles. Many installers now use factory assembled
cap pieces that speed up the process.
Wood Shingle/Shake Roof Hips
Lap the underlayment over the hip before installing
the shingles.
Then install a strip of roofing felt or metal
flashing up the hip on top of the shingles before nailing
the caps in place.
Use nails or staples long enough to penetrate
the sheathing by
3/4
inch.
Ridge Details for Wood Shingle / Shake Roofs
For a vented ridge, use a plastic, matrix-type
ridge vent.
Cover the ridge vent with a strip of roofing felt
and install factory-assembled ridge cap pieces.
To prevent
splitting of ridge-cap shingles, it is best to install them with
a pneumatic nailer or stapler.
- - Adapted with permission from Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction (Steve Bliss, J Wiley & Sons) .
Wood Shingle & Shake Hip & Ridge Details & Resources
Above: CSSB detail on wood shingle or shake ridge or hip instllation provided by cedarbureau.org and described in detail in the New Roof Manual cited below.
Excerpting from CSSB's manual (cited below), p. 7
Intersecting roof surfaces at hips and ridges
should be capped to ensure a weather-tight
joint. Site-made or factory-assembled hip and
ridge units may be used, but both types must
have alternate overlaps and concealed nailing
(Figure 8).
When ridge cap and field product
are the same length and grade, the weather
exposure of the ridge cap should be the same
exposure as the field product of the roof.
Nails must be longer than those used on the
field of the roof and of sufficient length to
penetrate 3/4" into or completely through the
sheathing.
Position fasteners approximately
2” above exposure line. Install a strip of felt,
eave protection material or metal over hip or
ridge under the ridge or hip cap. If longer or
shorter ridge cap is used, adjust exposure
accordingly.
The CSSB is a trade association of members who are involved in the cedar shake and shingle industry.
Website: http://www.cedarbureau.org/ information about Certi-Label® Shakes and Shingles, retrieved 2019/08/30, original source: http://www.cedarbureau.org/manuals/imperial/2016/RMI/CSSB-roof-manual-017-March2.pdf Website Excerpt:
This manual is intended for use with Western
Red Cedar and Alaskan Yellow Cedar shake
and shingle application only. Western Red
Cedar and Yellow Cedar products
manufactured by CSSB members are labeled
with the “Certi” brand name. The species is
indicated by either “Yellow” or “Red” Cedar at
the top of the label.
For ease of reference this
manual refers to “Certi-label® Western Cedar”
and the term is understood to include both
Western Red Cedar and Alaskan Yellow Cedar
products manufactured by CSSB members.
Material for this manual has been compiled
from various authoritative sources, and many
of the construction methods shown herein
have been developed by the shake and shingle
specialists in both the United States and
Canada.
The design and application details
and methods of construction reflect current
good building practice. Other options are
possible but ensure that you check with your
local code jurisdiction for approval
Above: Waldun Certi-ridge™ Pre-formed Western Red Cedar Hip & Ridge Caps provided in the U.K. by Silva Timber Co. cited just below. [Click to enlarge any image]
Silva Timber Co., Cheshire (North):Cheshire Unit 4 Albright Road Widnes Cheshire WA8 8FY Tel: 0151 495 3111 Email: enquiries@silvatimber.co.uk or
London (South): West London Unit 7 Skyport Trade Park Skyport Drive Harmondsworth West London UB7 0LB Tel: 0208 150 8055 enquiries@silvatimber.co.uk Website: https://www.silvatimber.co.uk
Silva Timber Company is a U.K. supplier of wood shingles and shakes. The company's product line includes pre-formed wood shingle ridge and hip asseblies shown just above. Website excerpt:
Certi-Ridge™ hip & ridge units are pre-manufactured caps for hips and ridges made from number one grade cedar shingles. Their use makes considerable savings in construction time. Each unit is fastened together by 2 staples which allow sufficient flexibility to accommodate a range of pitches.
Cappings should be laid with alternate bevels and concealed nailing.
Weather exposures should be at the same gauge as the field of the roof. For additional weatherproofing install a strip of Type IF roofing felt under the capping.
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In addition to any citations in the article above, a full list is available on request.
ARMA - Asphalt Roofing Manufacturer's Association - Asphalt Roofing Manufacturer's Association - https://www.asphaltroofing.org/ 750 National Press Building, 529 14th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20045, Tel: 202 / 207-0917
ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA, 19428-2959 USA The ASTM standards listed below can be purchased in fulltext directly from http://www.astm.org/
Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau, CSSB, U.S.: Sumas, WA 98295-1178, Tel: 604-820-7700, In Canada:
Cedar Shake and Shingle Bureau #2 - 7101 Horne Street, Mission, BC V2V 7A2 Tel: (604) 820-7700, E-mail: info@cedarbureau.com , Web: http://www.cedarbureau.org/
U.S. Forest Products Laboratory, US FPL, One Gifford Pinchot Drive, Madison, WI 53726, Tel: (608) 231-9200, Email: mailroom_forest_products_laboratory@fs.fed.us608-231-9200, website: http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/
NRCA - National Roofing Contractors Association - Website: www.nrca.net 10255 W. Higgins Road, Suite 600,
Rosemont, IL 60018-5607, Tel: (847) 299-9070
UL - Underwriters Laboratories - https://www.ul.com/ 2600 N.W. Lake Rd. Camas, WA 98607-8542 Tel: 1.877.854.3577 / Fax: 1.360.817.6278
E-mail: cec.us@us.ul.com
Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.
Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction, by Steven Bliss. John Wiley & Sons, 2006. ISBN-10: 0471648361, ISBN-13: 978-0471648369, Hardcover: 320 pages, available from Amazon.com and also Wiley.com. See our book review of this publication.
Decks and Porches, the JLC Guide to, Best Practices for Outdoor Spaces, Steve Bliss (Editor), The Journal of Light Construction, Williston VT, 2010 ISBN 10: 1-928580-42-4, ISBN 13: 978-1-928580-42-3, available from Amazon.com
Architectural elements: the technological revolution: Galvanized iron roof plates and corrugated sheets; cast iron facades, columns, door and window caps, ... (American historical catalog collection), Diana S Waite, available used out of Amazon.
Building Pathology, Deterioration, Diagnostics, and Intervention, Samuel Y. Harris, P.E., AIA, Esq., ISBN 0-471-33172-4, John Wiley & Sons, 2001 [General building science-DF] ISBN-10: 0471331724
ISBN-13: 978-0471331728
Building Pathology: Principles and Practice, David Watt, Wiley-Blackwell; 2 edition (March 7, 2008)
ISBN-10: 1405161035
ISBN-13: 978-1405161039
Handbook of Building Crafts in Conservation, Jack Bower, Ed.,
Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, NY 1981 ISBN 0-442-2135-3 Library of
Congress Catalog Card Nr. 81-50643.
Historic Preservation Technology: A Primer, Robert A. Young, Wiley (March 21, 2008)
ISBN-10: 0471788368
ISBN-13: 978-0471788362
Problems in Roofing Design, B. Harrison McCampbell, Butterworth Heineman, 1991 ISBN 0-7506-9162-X (available used)
Roofing The Right Way, Steven Bolt, McGraw-Hill Professional; 3rd Ed (1996), ISBN-10: 0070066507, ISBN-13: 978-0070066502
"Weather-Resistive Barriers [copy on file as /interiors/Weather_Resistant_Barriers_DOE.pdf ] - ", how to select and install housewrap and other types of weather resistive barriers, U.S. DOE
Wood Shingle Roofs, Care and Maintenance of wood shingle and shake roofs, (EC), Stanley S. Niemiec (out of print)
In addition to citations & references found in this article, see the research citations given at the end of the related articles found at our suggested
Carson, Dunlop & Associates Ltd., 120 Carlton Street Suite 407, Toronto ON M5A 4K2. Tel: (416) 964-9415 1-800-268-7070 Email: info@carsondunlop.com. Alan Carson is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors.
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