what are rafters
Mia Lopez
Updated on June 05, 2026
Rafters and trusses are those that support the roof. Though both rafters and trusses are triangles in shape, the trusses have more triangle webs inside the principle frame. Rafters consist of sloping outer beams which provide support.
What are 3 types of rafters?
There are basically seven different types of roof rafter designs used to create a roof: common, hip, hip jack, valley, valley jack, cripple jack and flying hip.
What is the difference between rafters and joists?
The main difference between Joist and Rafter is that the Joist is a horizontal structural element transferring load from flooring to beams, typically running perpendicular to beams and Rafter is a structural members in architecture.
What is a rafter roof?
A rafter is defined as one of a series of sloped structural pieces (typically wooden beams) that extend from the hip or ridge to eave, wall plate, or downslope perimeter. They’re designed to support the roof deck, shingles, and everything else that goes with the roof. Rafters are the traditional way to frame a roof.
What are rafter feet?
The rafter feet are a key part of your roofline structure. They must be solid so you can fit your replacement roofline components. In my previous post, Roofline Ripping Out, I described how to remove the visible components of your existing roofline. The next stage is to check and prepare the rafter feet.
Where are the rafters in a house?
In a sloped roof, common rafters run from the peak of the roof down to the top of the exterior walls of the building. At the peak, the rafters are nailed to a ridge board, and at the top of the wall, rafters are attached to the horizontal top plate of the wall framing.
What is rafter in building?
A rafter is one of a series of sloped structural members such as wooden beams that extend from the ridge or hip to the wall plate, downslope perimeter or eave, and that are designed to support the roof shingles, roof deck and its associated loads. A pair of rafters is called a couple.
How far apart are rafters?
Standard industry roof rafter spacing is 12”, 16”, 19.2”, and 24” on-center, however other spacing may be used by a Structural Engineer. Depending on all contributing factors though, 16” and 24” are commonly used for most buildings. The wider the space between rafters often results in rafters of greater depth too.
What is the difference between a rafter and a purlin?
The rafters are the beams of wood angled upward from the ground. They meet at the top of the gable at a ridge beam, which has extra bracing to attach it to the rafters. The purlins are the large beams perpendicular to the rafters; from this shot, it appears that there are three purlins on either side of the roof.
What are roof beams called?
Rafters are the exposed beams you see in the ceiling and at the peak of a building that’s under construction.
How do rafters work?
Rafters are long wooden boards used for the frame of the roof, also known as stick framing. Rafters are made on the job site by the roofers and they are typically cut into 2×10 or 2×12 beams, which slope down from the peak of the roof. Ceiling joists then help secure the rafters and the exterior walls.
Are rafters load-bearing?
The roof trusses/rafters and floor joists/trusses are running parallel to each other. This means that only the two walls the roof trusses/rafters and floor joists/trusses are bearing on are load bearing.
What’s a joist rafter?
Joists are the parallel horizontal beams that run across an open space, joining opposite walls in a building to support both the ceiling below and the floor above. Joists are traditionally made from timber.
What is the difference between a rafter and a beam?
is that beam is any large piece of timber or iron long in proportion to its thickness, and prepared for use while rafter is one of a series of sloped beams that extend from the ridge or hip to the downslope perimeter or eave, designed to support the roof deck and its associated loads or rafter can be a raftsman.
What is the difference between a roof joist and roof rafter?
The only difference between joists and rafters are the amount of load they must be designed to carry, and their angle – that is generally it.