Roof pitch

[MWC104]

My garage should be getting underway next month and I'm working on a few details about framing. The garage is going to be attached to the house and the roof will run opposite the gable the house does. When the garage is built, the house roof will extend over to the garage roof. My home has a 5/12 pitch which I calculated out to be ~5'9" at the ridge. I want the garage roof to be taller but not so much that it looks out of place. If I did a 5/12 on it, I calculate it to be ~8' at the ridge. Does anyone think that's acceptable being a bit over 2', aesthetically? Can trusses be purchased in 1/2 increments? I thought about going 4.5/12 pitch to get closer to the home height but never see store-bought trusses advertised in that manner.

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

If you aren't going to be the same height I prefer the look of being noticeably different.
I've seen houses where the peaks or eaves were off by a small amount (4"-6") and to me it looks like they tried to make them match but missed.
I suggest photo-shop or simply drawing on a printed picture of your house and plans to decide.

 

[The Cobbler]

offsetting the peak can look good too.. any truss manufacturer should be able to produce any dimensions you want. I would stay with the same pitch as the house or it will look odd.

 

[MWC104]

Thanks for the replies, guys. Another question, aside from roof pitch - on the rear wall (this is a gable end), I have in my plans for a 36" entry door. I just spoke with the concrete guy and he said he would not suggest that. He said he did that on his first home and used it about 6 times. He said it was very inconvenient if he shut the garage doors and wanted to run back in the house to get something and not open the doors. On his next home, he put it on the side, nearest the front, and he uses it all the time.

What's your thoughts on that? I liked the idea of it being on the back wall because it was fast access to the backyard, and we plan on fencing in the yard which would not include the side of the garage. I never thought planning a garage would be this stressful.

 

[Stuart in MN]

Placement of the entry door really depends on where you will use it most - if you want fast access to the back yard, that's the place to put it.

As for the roof pitch, I think it should be the same as the house. The different heights aren't that big a deal but if the garage was a different pitch it would look odd.

 

[MWC104]

Placement of the entry door really depends on where you will use it most - if you want fast access to the back yard, that's the place to put it.

As for the roof pitch, I think it should be the same as the house. The different heights aren't that big a deal but if the garage was a different pitch it would look odd.

Thanks, Stuart. Appreciate the input! Can't wait to get this thing going and get pictures. I'm a wreck just thinking about all of it. Once it's up and done, I can quit worrying.

 

[DekeT]

Look up truss builders/suppliers where you live and call them. They can be custom built to any shape, slope, or spec.

 

[Kevin54]

Any custom built truss is going to cost more because they have to retool for that truss size and pitch. But with that being said, my addition's roof is 1 1/2' taller than my existing garage's roof. Once it was trimmed out with fascia and such, most people haven't even noticed it. I had to tie a 4/2 pitch into a 4/12 pitch roof, but with the size difference, it let my addition's roof come out taller. I can snap a pic if you want.

 

[readhead]

Pretty much all trusses are custom built. Since you are turning the ridge you will have to design the trusses next to the existing house to bear on a ledger or in hangers. The truss company will take your plans and design the trusses for your house. When you are determining heights are you taking into account heal heights? Does your building department require "energy trusses"? Long answer short, go see the truss company.

 

[MWC104]

Any custom built truss is going to cost more because they have to retool for that truss size and pitch. But with that being said, my addition's roof is 1 1/2' taller than my existing garage's roof. Once it was trimmed out with fascia and such, most people haven't even noticed it. I had to tie a 4/2 pitch into a 4/12 pitch roof, but with the size difference, it let my addition's roof come out taller. I can snap a pic if you want.

I'd love to see a pic. I know I'm stressing over nothing, but I guess that's how some of us deal with situations like these XD.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Pretty much all trusses are custom built.

I have never been inside of a truss manufacturing facility, but i would ASSUME they have pretty flexible manufacturing.

A jig table with adjustable stops to align members. Likely all cuts are done on a computerized saw. The guys just line up the sticks, toss a plate on top and a "flying" press head pops it into place.

 

[T_R]

Thanks for the replies, guys. Another question, aside from roof pitch - on the rear wall (this is a gable end), I have in my plans for a 36" entry door. I just spoke with the concrete guy and he said he would not suggest that. He said he did that on his first home and used it about 6 times. He said it was very inconvenient if he shut the garage doors and wanted to run back in the house to get something and not open the doors. On his next home, he put it on the side, nearest the front, and he uses it all the time.

What's your thoughts on that? I liked the idea of it being on the back wall because it was fast access to the backyard, and we plan on fencing in the yard which would not include the side of the garage. I never thought planning a garage would be this stressful.

I put mine on the front next to the garage door. The garage is attached. So now I have to walk all the way around to get to the back yard. I wish I did 2 man doors now. I think we are going to add one on the back wall next year.

So my suggestion is do both.

 

[MWC104]

I put mine on the front next to the garage door. The garage is attached. So now I have to walk all the way around to get to the back yard. I wish I did 2 man doors now. I think we are going to add one on the back wall next year.

So my suggestion is do both.

After much deliberation today, this is what I decided. The 2 entry doors will be better in the long run. Now I have a question about windows. The garage floor will be about 1' 5 1/2" below the house floor. The builder is asking what windows I want to put in the garage. The garage walls are going to meet the house at the top plates, so they will be even. Am I assuming correctly that since the man doors will be flush to the floor at the sill, the windows in the garage will be lower as well? So they will not align to the house windows on a horizontal plane?

Is that going to look odd? I can't seem to find any examples online that show what I'm talking about.

 

[MWC104]

Edited last post. Let me know what you all think. Sorry for asking so many questions. I just want to do it right.


I may have my answer, but since the man doors are 36x80, the header will have to start at ~82" and that's probably the height of the window headers as well to make the trim work all line up and such? That would force the windows to be on a different horizontal plane and the top of the window will be the 1' 5 1/2" lower than the house windows are lined up. I guess I'm afraid that will look funny, but it would look even funnier if the windows were above the top of the door plane. These are single-hung windows by the way.