| The roof of a building is its most important feature, but all too soon after its completion the structure begins to show early signs of deterioration due to the difficulties experienced with the traditional method of constructing roof overhangs. With current timber roof overhangs these difficulties only add to future maintenance costs and if regular maintenance is neglected, as is so often the case, it will soon lead to costly repairs or even to total replacement. The cheapest and least attractive finish to the roof is to terminate it in line with the brickwork. Absence of timber overhangs eliminates maintenance, but the lack of an overhang means that the roof offers no weather protection to the top of the walls. As a result noticeable water staining of the brickwork or render is often found on the gable walls. The major problems which affect the durability and appearance of timber over time are moisture and sunlight. The weather will soon penetrate any surface weakness in the natural timber, at nail heads or along construction joints and also the use of poor quality timber all contribute to the problems associated with timber based roof overhangs. |
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