What Is Roof Height?

Roof Height Defined

• Roof height is the measurement you get from the lowest point outside to the tallest point on the tallest outside wall. Sometimes referred to as “roof rise,” the number includes gabled roofs that have a high angled steeple pitch. In this case, you’d need to measure from the ground all the way up to the center apex of the point to gain an accurate measurement. If you are taking this measurement, don safety gear when walking across the roof and straddling the gable.

Roof Pitch

• Roof height shouldn’t be confused with roof pitch, a term that refers to the actual degree of decline or slope of a roof on a home or structure. Depending on the design of the home, roof pitches are either very steep or very gradual; no roof on a house is perfectly flat, as there needs to be some degree of pitch to allow water to drain from the roof or through a guttering system.

Precautions

• Although roof height is generally considered to be the height from ground to gable, some building code jurisdictions have varying definitions and interpretations of a building’s roof height. For example, some building codes state that a structure’s roof may not exceed a certain height requirement; you may have a roof height measurement that’s 25 feet tall, but the code’s interpretation measures height from the ground to the eaves, so your home could be in violation of the code.

Calculators

• Many online building sites offer calculators that help you determine your roof height, thus saving you the potentially dangerous job of doing the measuring yourself. By supplying basic measurements of the length and width of the walls, the measurements of the overhangs and the degree of pitch (if known), these sites can estimate roof height based on code norms and the type of trussing system used.