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Understanding Roof Pitch in Plain English

Roof Pitch

Roofers and architects know all about roof pitch, but the way it’s expressed often seems confusing to some people. If you are a building owner and you need help understanding roof pitch and what these professionals are talking about, we have the simple lowdown for you.

Why Understanding Roof Pitch Matters

Understanding roof pitch is important for a couple of reasons. First of all, roof pitch is used to estimate the amount of material for the job. Secondly, you need to know the pitch to know what kind of materials you can actually use on the roof. For example, Endureed synthetic thatch can be installed on any sloped roof that has a 2:12 or greater roof pitch.

What Does 2:12 Roof Pitch Mean?

Pitch, angle, incline, slope are all terms used to describe the steepness of a roof. In the roofing industry, we like to use the term “pitch” and it’s expressed in terms of 12 inches. How many inches does the roof run vertically for every 12 inches it runs horizontally?

If the height rises two inches vertically for every 12 inches of horizontal run, it  has a “2-in-12 pitch” or just a “2 pitch.”

Roof Pitch Expressed In Degrees

Understanding roof pitch might be easier in terms of degrees. Here’s a simple conversion for those of you who can imagine the degrees in an angle better than you can imagine pitch expressed the previous way.

  • 0 pitch = 0:12 = 0 degrees
  • 1 pitch = 1:12 = 4.5 degrees
  • 2 pitch = 2:12 = 9.5 degrees
  • 3 pitch = 3:12 = 14 degrees
  • 4 pitch = 4:12 = 18.5 degrees
  • 5 pitch = 5:12 = 22.5 degrees
  • 6 pitch = 6:12 = 26.5 degrees
  • 7 pitch = 7:12 = 30.5 degrees
  • 8 pitch = 8:12 = 33.75 degrees
  • 9 pitch = 9:12 = 37 degrees
  • 10 pitch = 10:12 = 40 degrees
  • 11 pitch = 11:12 = 42.5 degrees
  • 12 pitch = 12:12 = 45 degrees

Endureed Minimum Pitch

Our roofing system works for any roofs with a pitch 2:12 or greater, as mentioned above. So, for every 12 horizontal feet, the roof must drop at least two feet to install this synthetic thatch product. Still, it’s unlikely that your roof doesn’t fit this requirement. That’s a 9.5 degree slope! Of course, roofs with very low pitches do exist. Some homes built in the 1960’s have very low pitches, for example. Industrial buildings often have a 0:12 pitch or close to it.

You should now be able to take this new knowledge of understanding roof pitch and apply this to your properties.