Hi All,
This is my first post to Breaktime. I’ve really enjoyed Fine Homebuilding and have read the excellent posts here in the past.
I am planning a roof for our 8×16 patio and have been debating a couple of points with my wife. For maximum head clearance, we would anchor the roof to the roof of the house, raising clearance to 9-10 feet. The downside of this is putting more holes in the house roof and maybe looking funny. An alternative is to attach the patio roof to the house. I’ve got 7’11” clearance between the patio and the fascia, so with 2×6 beams on which to lay 2×4 rafters, this appears to not be too low a headroom clearance. A third alternative is to make the roof free-standing and having the roof nearly reach the house rain gutters. A bit of rain would come through the gap, but nothing much to worry about.
For the posts, I would like to attach to pier blocks buried flush with the ground rather than set the posts in gravel or concrete. This would save digging and the cost of the longer posts. It would also entail bracing the posts against the main rafters, with attendant loss of head room.
As for the actual roof, we are thinking polycarb, either corrugated or flat, is the way to go.
I would appreciate any thoughts on whether any of the above is reasonable. Of one thing I am sure, my wife would not like it if the whole thing came down under gravity’s gentle influence one day.
Thank you,
Replies
Welcome, Chuck!
There are many considerations and options here. To start things off, I'll ask my usual questions: Where are you and what is your climate like? This has a big influence on the way things need to be built.
Al Mollitor, Sharon MA
I'm with MojoMan... We need more info to really answer your question. Right off though, no way do I think 2 x 4' rafters are enough... I'd use at least 2 x 6's. Not knowing how your house is built, this is a guess: But, I prefer to take off the soffit & facia and tie into the house rafter/trusses. Gets you the height you need and looks like it was built that way origionally. I'd use Simpson post anchors bolted to the slab/footers... there are pictures of 'em elsewhere on this forum.
Thanks for the quick response, been out of contact for a few days myself.
We are in Eugene, OR, where we get plenty of rain in the winter, not so much in the summer. Typically, we do get some snow in the Valley every few years, but not so much that the load is much of a consideration. This may change with the global warming thing though, this past winter we got hit with about 6" of damp snow and then an ice storm.
I never thought of taking off the fascia. We've got continuous aluminum gutters, so I'd have to cut and cap the ends. Sounds like it would make a nice looking addition.
BTW, I'm handy, but by no means greatly experienced in matters of house construction and renovation, hence my request for advice here.
Edited 6/13/2004 5:54 pm ET by Chuck