A Guide to the Repair of Historic Roofs - Dublin City Council

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ROOFS A GUIDE TO THE REPAIR OF HISTORIC ROOFSEAVES AND PARAPETSThe eaves are the lowest part of a pitched roof, whereit meets, or overhangs, the wall top. The design of theeaves is responsible for ensuring that rainwater isthrown clear of the top of the masonry walls. This canbe handled in several ways: using a gutter that is flushwith the face of the wall below; a concealed parapetgutter; or projecting eaves. In vernacular buildings thatdo not have gutters, the eaves should simply throwthe rainwater far enough off to ensure that the groundat the base of the wall does not become saturated.In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries,overhanging eaves came back into popularity. Ahorizontal course of eaves stones or slabs was oftenfitted overhanging the top of the wall. Timber eavesbrackets in this period tended to be deep in section,curved in design and had two points for fixing. Thisstyle of bracket was later superseded by driven-inwrought-iron brackets that supported the guttering.The eaves of Victorian and Edwardian structures wererobust in profile, overhanging the masonry walls andoften picked out in painted timberwork. There wassometimes a timber soffit to the underside of the oversailingrafters although in most cases the rafter endswere left exposed. Projecting decorative stone ortimber corbels were often used to support cast-irongutters.In this flush eaves detail, lead is used to form aconduit for carrying rainwater along the eavesof the roof to the downpipeProjecting eaves with moulded stone cornices wereoften used in substantial seventeenth- and earlyeighteenth-century buildings. However, as thePalladian style of architecture emerged, gutters hiddenbehind parapet walls or in the valleys between lowpitched roofs became more popular. Most parapetsconsisted of plain brick or stone walls capped withdressed stone copings. More elaborate examplesincorporated stone balustrades with finials and otherornate decoration.In a common construction detail of the lateeighteenthand early nineteenth centuries, ahorizontal course of eaves stones was used toproject from the top of the wall while a wroughtironbracket supported the gutterPitched roofs with sprocketed (also known as ‘bellcast’or ‘kicked-out’) eaves were fashionable for a timeduring the early and mid-eighteenth century. Manysprocketed roofs were later modified to remove thesecondary rafter from the roof timbers.21
ROOFS A GUIDE TO THE REPAIR OF HISTORIC ROOFSRoof featuresDORMERSDormer windows are vertical windows in a slopingroof which have roofs of their own. They are so calledbecause originally they gave light to the sleepingquarters in the attic. Dormers were common until themid-eighteenth century, when they fell largely out offashion in Ireland. They came back into favour as anarchitectural feature during the nineteenth century.Dormers were constructed of timber, with monopitchedor double-pitched roofs, clad with slate or leadon roof, cheeks (sides) and apron (below the window).Some dormers had glazed cheeks to maximise theamount of light entering the interior.LANTERNS AND ROOFLIGHTSGlazed circular, oval, or occasionally rectangularlanterns were used as a means of bringing naturaldaylight into stairwells or anterooms. Many wereglazed with decorated ribbed members and colouredglass.Hinged cast-iron rooflights set into the plane of theroof became common in the nineteenth century andare still available today. They are used both to improvedaylight in the roof space and to access the roof formaintenance.Pitch-roofed hatches, similar to dormers, wereused to provide access to the roof for maintenancepurposes. They were generally located in thecentral valleys, constructed of timber and finishedwith a cladding of slate or lead. By the end of thenineteenth century they had gradually beenreplaced by hinged cast-iron rooflights, whichprovided both daylight and roof accessGlazed lanterns of circular and oval form wereinserted into roofs as a means of bringingnatural daylight into internal spaces such aslandings and stairwells. Frequently theselanterns were poorly maintained because ofdifficulties of access and they were oftenreplaced or covered over with a replacementroof covering. These circular glass rooflights arepart of a nineteenth-century alterationMASONRY FEATURESThe nineteenth century saw the increasing use ofdecorative architectural features such as turrets,cupolas, or belvederes, often constructed using cutstone, timber or brick. Substantial decorative corbelsand pedimented gable fronts were used with cornicedecorations at eaves level to enhance the roof profileon more substantial structures.22
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A Guide to the Repair of Historic Roofs - Dublin City Council

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