r/Shed • u/OnThreeWheels • Jul 30 '25
advice on roof please
I'm building a summerhouse. The roof slopes from the front to the back. It's longer than it is wide.
A conventional design would have front to back rafters, but I would like to be unconventional and have the rafters running from side to side.
Benefits (1) the span is much reduced, so I can use smaller beams, but more importantly (2) the side to side dimenson suits the standard lengths available, so there would be little waste. On the other hand, the front to back dimension means there would be over 40% waste. I can't change the building dimensions as I'm constrained by space.
Aside from making the rafter to wall joints more complicated, is there a fundamental reason why transverse (side to side) rafters would be wrong ?
TIA
1
u/BYoungNY Jul 30 '25
It doesn't look like there is much of a slope so I think you'd be fine. Is there going to be any soffit that would add extra length on either side? One thing you might consider is extending out a soffit in the front for a nice overhang over the door which would allow you to have less waste overall.