SADDLE- A ridge in the
roof deck, whose top divides two
sloping parts of the roof so
that water will be diverted to
the roof drains.
SATURATED FELT- Felt
that has been saturated with
bitumen.
SAW TOOTH ROOF- Where
reviewed from the end, such a
roof serrated or tooth profile
similar to the teeth of a saw.
SCRIM- A woven or
mat-type fabric that is used as
a membrane sandwich between
other material to provide
reinforcement and stretch
resistance.
SCUPPER- An outlet in
the wall of a building or a
parapet wall for drainage of
water from a flat roof.
SEALANT- Generic term
for a multitude of materials
used to seal joints or junctures
against moisture or weather.
SELF-HEALING- A term
used in reference to a material
which melts with the heat from
the sun's rays, and seals over
cracks that were earlier formed
from other causes.
SELF-LEVELING- A
viscous material that is applied
by pouring. In its uncured
state, it spreads out evenly.
SELVAGE- The
unsurfaced strip along a sheet
of roll roofing which forms the
under portion at the lap in the
application of the roof
covering.
SHED ROOF- A roof
having only one slope or pitch,
with only one set of rafters
which fall from a higher to a
lower wall.
SHEATHING- The boards
of sheet type material, plywood
or asphalt saturated sheets,
nailed to studding or roofing
rafters as the base for
application of the roof
covering.
SHINGLE-FASHION- The
pattern formed by laying
parallel felt rolls with lapped
joints so that one longitudinal
edge overlaps the longitudinal
edge on the adjacent felts.
Shingle fashion application
begin at the low point on a roof
so that one ply drains water to
a lower one and so on to a drain
or to the roof edge.
SHINGLES- Small units
of material which are laid in a
series of overlapping rows as a
roof covering on pitched roofs.
SHINGLE WARRANTY-
Shingle warranties are often
confused with “system
warranties.” Shingle warranties
are prorated, and usually carry
a very small value after the
first 5 years of shingle life.
In other words, the warranty
that comes with shingles is
designed to never be redeemed
for new shingles or labor.
SIGN ANCHOR- A
component usually formed with
steel angles which penetrates
the BUR and is fastened to the
deck.
SINGLE PLY- A
descriptive term signifying a
roof membrane composed of only
one layer of material such as
EPDM, TPO or PVC.
SINGLE TEE- The name
given to a type of precast
concrete deck which has one
stiffening rib integrally cast
into slab.
SITE- The physical
grouping of a number of roofs or
buildings at a geographical
location.
SKY DOME- A type of
skylite exhibiting a
characteristic translucent
plastic domed top.
SKYLIGHT- A structure
on a roof that is designed to
admit light and is somewhat
above the plane of the roof
surface.
SLAG- A by-product of
smelting ore such as iron, lead
or copper.
SLATE- A dark gray
stratified stone cut relatively
thin and installed on pitched
roofs in a shingle like fashion.
SLIPPAGE- It is the
sliding, lateral movement
between adjacent to plies of
felt along the plane of the
bitumen film separating them,
which results in a randomly
wrinkled appearance.
SLOPE- Incline or
pitch of roof surface.
SOFFIT- The underside
of a part or member of a
building extending out from the
plane of the building walls.
SOFTENING POINT- The
temperature at which a substance
changes from a hard material to
a softer and more viscous
material.
SMOOTH SURFACE TEXTURE-
In SPF roofing, a relatively
smooth surfaced texture that is
considered ideal for receiving
the base coating.
SMOOTH-SURFACED ROOF-
A roof with no surfacing or with
a smooth surfacing such as
emulsion and/or a reflective
coating.
SNOW GUARD- Devices
secured to the roof to prevent
snow and ice from sliding off of
a roof.
SNOW LOAD- A roof load
resulting from snowfall. Snow
load is a major structural
consideration when roofs are
designed in areas that receive
heavy snow.
SOFFIT- The underside
of a roof overhang.
SOFFIT VENT- An intake
ventilation device located in
the soffit. An exhaust vent
should be installed on or near
the ridge of the roof to work in
conjunction with the soffit vent
in order to properly ventilate
the attic space. The ratio of
intake vent area to exhaust vent
area should be 1-1.
SOFTENING POINT- The
temperature at which bitumen
will begin to flow.
SOFTENING POINT DRIFT-
A change in the softening point
of bitumen.
SOIL STACK- A pipe
that penetrates a roof and is
used to vent a building’s
plumbing.
SOLID MOPPING- To
continuously apply hot asphalt
or coal tar leaving no areas
without bitumen.
SOLVENT- A liquid that
is part of a substance and is
used to make that substance
easier to work with. Once
applied, the solvent evaporates
and leaves the working
characteristics of the
substance. Examples are
solvent-based adhesives and
solvent-based mastics.
SOLVENT WELD- To weld
materials using a liquid
solvent.
SPALLING- The chipping
or flaking of concrete, bricks,
or other masonry where improper
drainage or venting and
freeze/thaw cycling exists.
SPAN- The horizontal
distance between supporting
structures such as beams,
trusses or columns.
SPECIFICATION-
Detailed written instructions
which, when clear and concise,
explain each phase of work to be
done.
SPLITTING- The
formation of long cracks
completely through a roof
membrane. Splits are frequently
associated with lack of
allowance for expansion
stresses. They can also be a
result of deck deflection or
change in deck direction.
SPRAYED POLYURETHANE FOAM
(SPF)- A monolithic
sprayed-on roofing material with
a high R-value; formed when
isocyanate ("A" component) and
resin ("B" component) are mixed
at a 1-1 ratio.
SPRI- Single Ply
Roofing Institute
SQUARE- A term used by
the roof industry to indicate an
amount of roof area equal to 100
square feet.
SPUD- The removal of
gravel or heavy accumulations of
bitumen from roof membranes by
means of chipping or scraping
STACK- A vertical pipe
projecting through a BUR that
carries off smoke or gases.
STACK EFFECT- The
occurrence where air escapes
through opening in the upper
part of a building and is
replaced with outside air that
enters through an opening lower
down. In roofing, the Stack
Effect helps create proper
airflow for attic or roof space
ventilation. The Stack Effect
will be affected by atmospheric
conditions such as temperature
and wind.
STANDING SEAM- A type
of joint often used on metal
roofs.
STARTER STRIPS- In the
construction of the BUR the
narrow strips of roofing felts,
cut from standard width rolls,
that are applied at the
beginning point so as to assure
uniform configuration of the
specified number of plies.
STATIC LOAD- In
roofing the total amount of
permanent non moving weight that
is applied to given surface
areas.
STEEP SLOPE ROOFING-
Generally all slopes higher than
4/12 are considered steep
slopes.
STEP-FLASHING- Metal
flashing pieces installed at
side-walls and chimneys for
weather-proofing.
STYRENE- A colorless
oily liquid, C6H5CH-CH2, the
monomer for polystyrene.
STYRENE BUTADIENE STYRENE
(SBS)- The modifying agent
used in SBS modified asphalt
roofing materials that gives the
material a rubber like quality.
SUBSTRATE A part or substance
which lies below and supports
another.
SUMP- A reservoir
sometimes forming part of a roof
drain. A depression in the roof
deck of a building at a roof and
delivery it to the drain.
SURFACE EROSION- The
effect on a surface after being
worn away from abrasion or
weathering.
SURFACE TEXTURE- The
final appearance and quality of
an SPF surface. SPF surface
textures will be one of the
following- Orange Peel Surface
Texture, Coarse Orange Peel
Surface Texture, Smooth Surface
Texture, Verge of Popcorn
Surface Texture, Popcorn Surface
Texture, and Tree-Bark Surfaced
Texture.
SYSTEM WARRANTY- (see
“Shingle Warranty”) A warranty
that comes with an entire
roofing system installation.
For instance, some shingle
manufacturers offer very strong,
long-term system warranties if
the laborers are
manufacturer-trained and if all
portions of installation adhere
directly to manufacturer’s
specifications. This system
warranty has massive value in
relation to the standard shingle
warranty.
SURFACING- The
top-most layer of the roof
system designed to protect the
system from damage.
TAB- The portion of an
asphalt shingle that is outlined
by the cutouts.
TAR- A brown or black
bituminous material, liquid or
semi-solid in consistency, in
which the predominating
constituents are bitumens
obtained as condensates in the
processing of coal, petroleum,
oil-shale, wood, or other
organic materials.
TAR BOIL- A small
bubble found in the flood coat
of an aggregate-surfaced
built-up roof; usually the
result of trapped moisture
vapor.
TEAR OFF- A term used
to describe the complete removal
of the roof membrane and
insulation down to and exposing
the roof deck.
TELEGRAPHING- When
shingles reflect the uneven
surface beneath them. Shingles
installed over buckled shingles
may show some buckles.
TENSILE STRENGTH- The
amount of longitudinal pulling
stress that a material can
withstand before being pulled
apart.
TERMINATION- The
sealed edges of a roof membrane.
TERMINATION BAR- A
bar, usually metal or vinyl,
used to seal and anchor the free
edges of a roof membrane.
THATCH ROOF- A roof
covering made with straw, palms,
reeds or other natural growths
that are bound together in order
to shed water.
THERMAL RESISTANCE (R)-
The measure of a material’s
ability to resist heat flow. The
formula for Thermal Resistance
is R = L / k where (L) is the
material’s thickness and (k) is
the material’s Thermal
Conductivity constant. The
higher a material’s R-value, the
better it insulates, and
conversely. For more
information, click
here.
THERMAL MOVEMENT- The
measured amount of dimensional
change, a material exhibits as
it is warmed or cooled.
THERMAL SHOCK- The
stress built up by sudden and
appreciable changes in
temperature.
THERMAL STRESS- Stress
to a roof system or component
caused by expansion and / or
contraction from temperature
change.
THERMOPLASTIC MATERIAL-
Solid material which is softened
by increasing temperatures and
hardened by decreasing
temperatures.
TIE-IN- A term used to
describe the joining of a new
roof with the old.
TIE-OFF- A watertight
seal used to terminate roof
membranes at system adjuncts,
terminations, flashings, or
substrates. Can be temporary
(see Night Seal) or permanent.
TILT-UP WALL- Cast
concrete units which are
preformed which, when cured, are
tilted to their vertical
position and secured by
mechanical fasteners to prior
erected structural steel. May be
pre-cast.
TOP MOPPING- The
finished mopping of hot bitumen
on a built-up roof.
TORCHING- Applying
direct flame to a membrane for
the purpose of melting, heating
or adhering.
TREEBARK SURFACE TEXTURE-
An SPF surface deemed
unacceptable for coating. This
surface texture has deep valleys
and is similar in appearance to
rough tree bark.
TRUSS- A major
supporting structure usually
timber for roof decks.
TUCK POINTING- The
re-grouting of defective mortar
joints in a masonry or brick
wall.
