Building a flat roof house9/10/2023 It’s not enough for us simply to refrain from pushing someone off of a roof, we must anticipate and proactively protect against that danger. The parapet requirement provides a practical application of the more abstract principle of –“You shall not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor (Leviticus 19:16).” Beyond demanding that we not perpetrate sins of commission against one another, the Torah now concretely prohibits a sin of omission. This is an intuitive proposition, but we shouldn’t fail to note one innovative implication. We should anticipate that danger and build a railing so no one falls. At a moment in time when houses had flat roofs, the Torah tells us, “When you build a new house, you shall make a parapet for your roof, so that you do not bring bloodguilt on your house if anyone should fall from it.” It’s a simple principle - a flat roof, where family and friends might hang out and barbecue, is an inherently dangerous place. Parashat Ki Teitze offers one of the first instances of building code in human history - the precursor to restrictions on asbestos insulation and circuit breaker requirements. If you need help making the decision between a pitched or flat roof, we invite you to contact us today for a free consultation.Commentary on Parashat Ki Teitzei, Deuteronomy 21:10 - 25:19 You must consider the pros and cons thoroughly before you can decide if a flat roof is the best solution for your Atlanta home or building. There is definitely a time and place for a flat roof, but it does not fit in all situations. Should You Make Your Atlanta Roof a Flat Roof? A common range is 10-15 years.įinally, if a flat roof is not properly maintained and becomes severely damaged, the effort to replace it can be costly. You need to review the options with your roofing contractor to understand how long the materials and flat roof may last. There are many material options for flat roofs, such as modified bitumen, TPO, PVC or EPDM rubber. So, flat roofs should be inspected routinely for ponding water, and should be cleaned and repaired as needed to ensure water can drain properly.įlat roofs can also have shorter life spans than pitched roofs, depending on the type of materials used. If water ponds on a flat roof, even in small areas, it can enter the seams in the roof and cause further damage to the roof and other structures. By nature, a flat roof, has greater potential to hold water than a pitched roof. When Flat Roofs Don't Make Sense - The Consįlat roofs are not the ideal choice in hotter climates, as they absorb more of the sun's heat than a pitched roof and pass it on to the building below.Ī flat roof is also not a good choice if you are not willing to perform periodic maintenance on it. You can also create recreational space on top of a flat roof, if it is designed to support the additional weight. On the other hand, a flat roof allows you to extend your interior ceiling practically all the way to the roof. While a pitched roof adds cost during installation and creates attic space, this space is often not an area that you can occupy. Installing trusses also requires more labor, which drives the cost of a pitched roof up even further.įlat roofs also give you more bang for the buck in terms of livable and usable space. The cost difference in materials, assembled trusses versus straight beams, is significant. A pitched roof requires engineered trusses or rafters, while a flat roof can be supported by simple horizontal beams. In addition, the installation of a flat roof is relatively inexpensive, compared to a pitched roof. As a result, the roof can capture the sun's energy all day, making it a nice heat source for the rest of your home or building during the colder seasons of the year. Regardless of the time of day, the entire flat roof is always exposed to the sun. When Flat Roofs Make Sense - The Prosįlat roofs are a good choice for cooler climates, where space is limited and where installation costs need to be minimized.Ī flat roof is more effective at capturing heat from the sun than a pitched roof. Although some will argue that flat roofs have no redeeming qualities, there are good reasons why so many homes and buildings across Atlanta are covered with flat roofs. Like most things in life, there is a time and place for flat roofs.
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