Saltbox Style Roof

When colonial era families first developed the style though they weren t aiming for aesthetic appeal.

Saltbox style roof.

In its simplest form a saltbox roof is a gable roof with asymmetrical planes one long and one short side. On a two story home the long side may span the height from the ridge to edge which can be one long roofing plane or divided into two. The saltbox architectural style was born as an adaptation to the harsh realities of early colonial life. We might call it the saltbox but there s no doubt this style is just perfect.

A saltbox house is a traditional new england style of house with a long pitched roof that slopes down to the back generally a wooden frame house. Saltbox roofs look like a patched gable style roof with two sides sloping outwards from a central ridge. A saltbox roof is a design that was used extensively in the colonial era. Now you will see this type of rooftop design on garages sheds and outbuildings rather than on homes.

A saltbox has just one story in the back and two stories in the front. Rather of sloping to the same degree one side includes the entire route to the house s first floor. However instead of sloping to the same length one side reaches all the way to the first. Salt box roofs feel like a painted gable style roof with two sides of a central ridge sloping outwards.

The short side typically has a low slope while the long side has a steep slope.