The Blue Roof

The blue roof wasn’t just.We went through a couple of iterations in deciding which type of roof we wanted for our house during the design phase. The architecture Julian Dube provided two options in concept diagrams to select from. A flat roofed and a classic tiled roof design.

Clearly the flat roof was just not it for our house design . On researching, we discovered that flat roofs designs have high maintenance cost compounded with short life span. It was stated the roof would actually require a complete replacement when repairs can no longer fix any issues, such as leaking.

Our architecture presented 3D models diagrams which were helpful in visualizing the final product, and so we chose the classical pitched tiled roof. On cost comparison, the classical pitched roof is considered expensive to construct due to the supporting structure required, the trusses, and also influences the depth of the foundation to take the massive weight above.The house plan was then approved with the classical pitched tiled roof.

With the advent of new buildings which were sprouting all over Zimbabwe and here in the diaspora, we couldn’t resist the lure of chromadek roofs. And so the question was whether they were going to be cost implications in changing from concrete tiled roof  to chromadeck. On inquiry with the structural engineer and the site office, it turned out that was a matter of choice. And so Chromadeck it was, and a redesign of the roof was done by the structural Engineer Mabhiza to suit the mounting of the chromadeck roof sheets.

Next headache was the choice of colour or type of the Chromadeck. The Kingfisher appeared good  but was a bit too blue, so we settled for the Azure Blue, which is between the light and dark blue sheds.Each sheet cost was USD 781, and total cost for the roofing material including ridges and gutters was USD 4000.

In a space of a week in mid January 2015, the carpenters were done and paid their dues whilst we looked ahead for the next challenge.