Framing A Roof Over A Bay Window

Installing bay windows are a gorgeous way to fill your house with natural light but unfortunately for the do it yourselfer every bay window must come with a bay window roof on the bright side the bay window roof can be an equally charming addition to the façade of your house but on the downside it certainly takes a little more labor and know how to construct especially in terms of.

Framing a roof over a bay window.

We asked one of our veteran builders to show us how it s done. For as long as architects have been drawing bay windows carpenters have been scratching their heads over how to frame the roofs. To build a roof cab construct a wood frame out of 2 by 4 ft 0 61 by 1 22 m boards that matches the base of your bay window s roof and mirrors the shape at a 90 degree angle on your wall. Most of the time a bay window will have a hip roof that s constructed using 45 degree angles.

Roof skirts must also be built above any window that sticks out beyond an overhanging eave. The complexity of the joints makes it much easier to build the skirt on a work surface rather than on the window itself. But once the window its frame and its cap are in place you can get started framing the roof. Roof framer s bible framing a bay window roof page 206 does not follow the holly grail of roof framing trigonometry and geometry.

Unlike a traditional hip roof the roof over a bay window with 45 degree sides is based on an octagonal roof but most people don t know how to frame an octagonal roof. First the instructions to find the ridge length is wrong. Attach the plywood bottom. It s wrong and just plain ugly.

It looks like diy built the bay window roof. When a bay window is installed on a gabled end or in the middle of a wall and there s no roof overhang right above it a small roof or skirt must be built over it. Attach trim to cover the framing. It s time to finish planning the roof frame.

Framing a hipped roof for a bay window is harder than it looks. Do not use this method to framing bay window roofs. Then miter 4 joists at a 45 degree angle on both sides and install them around the exterior opening of the frame to reinforce it. This article explains how to lay out framing members with the help of full scale graphic templates.

The secret to a good looking roof is having the right proportions. You ll also have to plan for the bay window roof.