Roofing battens?

[Buchan]

I am looking to purchase HD Pro, and have gone through the tutorials to see what it  does and doesn't do. Mostly does everything, but apparently it doesn't put battens onto the roofing rafters as far as I can see. I would have considered this odd as most roofing here (Australia) would use battens in one form or another, and would assume that to be the same in the USA.

Also I assume that with the HD Pro, being used in the southern hemisphere, deals with the sun being in the northern skies?

I also assume that there is a mechanism to orientate the house to the north. Not talked about in the tutorials.

Thanks.

[DavidJPotter]

In terms of magnetic North, HD Pro has a "North Pointer" that you can set relative to the structure model, so the structure stays in the default position of the native PC or Mac screen (the bottom is native South and the top of the screen is North, left is West and right is East) so you use the "North Pointer" indicate magnetic directions relative to your Monitor.

 

I am a Native Texan/American and I have never, until your post heard of roof battens, ever. I have numerous user friends who use Chief Architect Premier and Home Designer from Australia and New Zealand and they never mentioned Roof Battens, ever, so I do not know what you are talking about, sorry.

 

Welcome to the forum!

 

DJP

 

PS: I did a search for "Roof Battens" and of course, I now know what you are talking about. Battens are used for tile roofs which are extremely rare and expensive (only very expensive homes have them up here). In my thirty year long professional career, I have never had a single custom home that the client wanted to spend the money for such a roof. I am not saying you are "wrong", rather I am just sharing what is "real" to me in my experience.

[DavidJPotter]

One other thing I might mention about your requirement for "Roof Battens" is this: in my experience as a drafter, a designer here in America, Plumbers, Electricians, HVAC technitions here are all licensed by the State they work in and do they must know and operate by established codes. What this means is that all I need to show in my plans is where plumbing, electrical and HVAC objects are to be located. Those licensed persons already know the codes that govern their licensed trades. The same is true for foundation design and other purely structural matters which are governed by State Licensed Structural Engineers and Architects. Though not licensed by the state, roofers that are allowed to work on projects know how to roof and need little-detailed instruction from me as to how to construct a roof. I would never hire a roofer who did not know his business, would you?

 

That said, it is also alright for you to have whatever considerations and ideas you have about what Architectural software should be and have. Roof battens could easily be represented with 2D CAD lines in HD Pro or Chief (there is no native way to represent roof battens in Chief Architect Premier software either other than 2D CAD lines in plan view, manually drawn and Chief costs seven times more to buy than HD Pro).

 

DJP

[solver]

I believe what we might call a purlin, is what the OP is referring to as a batten.

 

 

And no, the software does not do them automatically.

 

It's been requested, as this is a common construction detail on buildings with metal roofing.

 

What David is referring to, I believe, are battens installed as part of a tile roof. Tile roofs are very common in the Southwest and Western US. 

 

 

Here is a random image of the Phoenix, Arizona area. I would bet every roof visible is tile.

 

[Buchan]

Thanks for your responses.

In Australia, "battens" are used both for tiled rooves and metal rooves (as "roofing battens"). With the metal rooves they would be at 450 or 600mm spacings.  Battens morph into purlins, when the rafter spacing spreads perhaps beyond ~1 to 1.5M, and the between rafter span requires a larger cross section dimension. Battens are also often used to carry the internal ceiling plaster, instead of attaching to the ceiling structural members. If I was building a shed with portal frames or trusses spaced at 4M I would use "purlins"

So without the battens listed on the roof, the sheeting will be shown in fact to be around 35 to 50mm lower than it actually is, which might catch you out with the sills when fitting dormer windows etc. The same applies to the ceiling plaster (or dry wall as you call it). The ceiling height will be 25 to 35mm lower in reality.

 

Anyway, you have answered my query promptly, so thanks. I will put the information into the mix. 

Regards

[MasterSuiteAddon]

does the 2021 version of this software allow one to manually make purlins? I have 2x12" rafters on a home addition and want to make a super insulated roof.
I will need 2' O.C. purlins of vertical 2x4" to fit another R13 layer of insulation and then I will need 2x4" horizontal layer to go ontop of that for a 1.5" air vent. trying to figgure out how to do it?

 

[MasterSuiteAddon]

to answer my own question. I called support and they said purlins is only a feature in the much more expensive chief architect software, which can be rented monthly. I asked them if it can be done manually and they said no due to having to space them.

[DPMARTINSON]

On 9/23/2021 at 6:13 AM, MasterSuiteAddon said:

does the 2021 version of this software allow one to manually make purlins? I have 2x12" rafters on a home addition and want to make a super insulated roof.
I will need 2' O.C. purlins of vertical 2x4" to fit another R13 layer of insulation and then I will need 2x4" horizontal layer to go ontop of that for a 1.5" air vent. trying to figgure out how to do it?

 

 

I'm using HomeDesigner Pro 2024 and have the same requirement. 

 

I'm building an ICF (Insulated Concrete Form) home with a continuous insulated and vented roof.  (Attic will be fully conditioned)  I am originally from a colder climate (45 years in Wisconsin) and now in SouthWestern US (San Diego County).  The majority of the homes here have clay or concrete tile roofs because of the brutal sun, summertime heat, and high risk of wild fires.  

 

I've designed the roof with R-42 rigid insulation and batten / cross-battens, radiant barrier, vapor port at ridge, ember resistant vents, and eve-to-ridge ventilation.  The result is a super tight and efficient home.  Yes, it is relatively more expensive than the roofs designed in the Northern regions of the US.  You could say this is a cost trade-off with the snow removal equipment that I used to need to clear my driveway. 

 

With HDPro, you have to be creative and manually create these details:

3VentedGableRoof02.pdf VentedGableRoof02.pdf VentedGableRoof01.pdf