Can a flat roof be built using machined wooden roof trusses?

As its name suggests, a flat roof is a roof that is completely level or has only a very slight slope. In Quebec, many buildings have this type of roof, including multi-residential and commercial buildings. However, a growing number of single-family home models have a flat roof.

As you may already know, using machined wooden roof trusses can save you time and money when completing a construction project, but is it possible to build a flat roof with them?

Flat roof advantages

Before getting to the heart of the matter, it is worth considering the reasons that are driving an increasing number of people to build a flat roof rather than a pitched roof.

First, it should be noted that a flat roof offers additional living space since there is no loss of space in houses with this type of roof, unlike those with a sloped roof and attic space. Moreover, homeowners can install a terrace to enjoy the sun in summer, especially in urban environments.

Furthermore, since the surface area of a flat roof is less than a sloped roof, the covering materials and maintenance costs are generally lower than those of a sloped roof.

Machined roof trusses for flat roof construction

Over the last century, construction techniques have undergone significant changes. For example, machined roof trusses have gradually replaced large solid wood rafters in roof structures, thereby reducing the amount of wood required to build a roof.

Most people imagine that roof trusses are triangular in shape, making them unusable for building a flat roof. The reality is quite different: roof trusses can have different shapes depending on how they are used. Roof trusses specially adapted to flat roof construction have therefore been developed by a number of manufacturers of prefabricated wood structures.

These have parallel lower and upper chords, unlike inclined chord roof trusses where the upper chords meet to form the tip of a triangle. Flat roof trusses can still be manufactured with a low slope to ensure effective roof drainage.

These flat prefabricated roof trusses can therefore be used to build flat roofs and sometimes even floors. Usually, these will cover the shortest distance from the roof plane. Their number and the distance between each of them must be determined according to the loads, particularly snow, that the roof must be able to support.

 UsiHome: Quebec manufacturer of high quality and precision flat roof trusses

After reading this article, you can see that there are many advantages to flat roofs and that they can even be built more easily by using flat roof trusses.

If you would like to know more about flat roof trusses or find out how you should integrate them into your construction project, contact the UsiHome team.