Timber Clad Roof – Using Timber Cladding for your Roof

Whether you are looking to roof a new building or planning to re-roof an existing structure, now is the time to give serious consideration to all the possibilities out there and weigh up the pros and cons of each. Traditionally in the UK, we opt for slates and tiles, primarily because of their durability and longevity. Slates can be either natural, artificial or zinc whilst tiles are produced either from concrete or clay. Natural slate is often considered the authentic and resistant choice but comes at a hefty price.

With current concerns about climate change as prevalent as they are, increasingly architects and builders are finding themselves searching more and more for sustainable, eco-friendly building products. This is where timber cladding products are becoming the roofing material of choice in so many buildings and structures today.

So, let’s have a look at some of the benefits timber cladding brings, along with some tips on what to consider before you take the plunge.

Benefits of Timber Clad Roofing

1. Wood is nature’s most exceptional, beautiful and versatile building material. Choose it for your roof and you can guarantee the most striking aesthetic imaginable with the wood’s individual graining making it unique. No-one will ever be able to reproduce that finish individual to your building as no other trees have the same graining.
2. So long as the wood is harvested ethically, it is the most sustainable of any other building material. It is environmentally friendly and has the greatest of eco credentials imaginable. It comes as no surprise then that timber cladding is now so popular with architects and builders alike in roofing projects for both domestic and commercial properties.
3. Wood has the lowest carbon footprint of any other mainstream building material. Choosing timber cladding as your roofing material not only lowers the carbon footprint of your property, it also saves more CO2 as far less energy is expended in creating the finished product than in manufacturing other building materials such as concrete, metal or plastic.
4. Wood has excellent natural thermal insulation properties far surpassing that of any other mainstream construction material. With heat rising, so much energy is wasted by heat escaping through roofing structures. Choose timber cladding as your roofing structure and already you have added exponentially to the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) of your build.
5. Not only is timber cladding as a roofing material renewable, recyclable and biodegradable, it has a strength, longevity and durability to match, and in some cases exceed, many other roofing products on the market.

Tips for Using Timber Cladding for Roofing

Opting for timber cladding as your roofing material will add instant kerb appeal to your property but think carefully about the effect you wish to create. Timber cladding for roofs primarily comes as either shingles or slates, each with their own individual aesthetic.

Shingles are thin pieces of wood sawn on either side creating a smooth, flat surface that is rather uniform in effect. They are arranged in such a way as to create square or rectangular rows in any roofing structure and give a clean, attractive and regular appearance to the finished design. A shake is traditionally hand split in a similar way to how a wood cutter might split logs. Whereas a shingle may be cut cross grain, a shake is always cut in the direction of the grain and the splitting process leads to a rougher texture and finish. Shakes are also thicker than shingles. They therefore cost more because of the amount of wood in them. A shake roof will give an overall more rugged, rustic finish than a roof tiled with shingles, so think carefully about the aesthetic you wish to achieve.

You’ve made your decision, now you need to source a supplier. Be sure in doing so that you check carefully for the environmental credentials of the company you go with. Wood should be either PEFC or FSC accredited: if it is not, your product of choice has not been ethically forested and has no eco endorsement. At NORclad, you can rest assured that all our products have the very best in eco credentials: not only are our products PEFC or FSC accredited, but we ourselves are UKAS accredited. We were also finalists in this year’s prestigious Wood Protection Awards (WPA).

Learn More with NORclad

We hope this article has given you some insight into timber cladding as a roofing structure. With so many beneficial properties, it is certainly well worth considering. But with so much to think about and so much choice e.g. the incline of the roof, shingles, slates, the wood itself, size, shape and finish, it is imperative that you consult a specialist timber cladding supplier to discuss your needs.

This is where the team here at NORclad can help. We are a specialist manufacturer of timber cladding with over four decades of experience in the field. Our products have the very best in environmental credentials and offer superb thermal and insulation properties to protect your building from all manner of varying climatic conditions. Whilst we are based in the South West, our projects large and small cover the length and breadth of the country and we work with architects, designers, contractors, developers and self-builders nationally to fulfil all design requirements when it comes to timber cladding.

We have a vast array of case studies we would be delighted to share with you which will furnish all manner of inspirational ideas.

To learn more simply get in touch with us today.