Roof Pitch Using Speed Square

Place the square with its fence on the top edge of the lumber 1.

Roof pitch using speed square.

Align the pivot point with the outer edge of the roof where it meets the side of the structure making sure the fence is facing up. Determine roof pitch fast using a carpenter square and torpedo level. Subscribe to my channel. And it can be used to mark any angle between 0 and 90 degrees across a board s face.

The aim of this tutorial is to provide an understanding of how to read two main scales on a speed square. See framing square user s guide for a complete dictionary of all of the parts tables and uses of a framing square. The rafter table on a typical framing square gives rafter length for roof slopes with a rise anywhere between 2 to 18 per foot of run. You have a perfect 45 degree angle for easy corners.

This data will tell us the required rafter length for a roof of a given pitch or slope. It can be used to make lines perpendicular square to a board s edge. Then place a torpedo level on the fat base of the speed square. The triangle shaped square was invented in 1925 by albert swanson to provide a quick accurate method for marking rafters.

Read the pitch on the side of the speed square. Adjust the square until the level is level. Finding the pitch of a roof is simple with a speed square. Http bit ly 2cfqrn1more project and tips.

A speed square is a tool that just about every carpenter will have in her bag. Swanson was a carpenter in a small town outside of chicago. Locate the desired angle on the hypotenuse side of the square and pivot the tool until that angle s notch. He wanted to create a device to make it easier to quickly determine roof pitches.

I discuss a couple of. Because of its compact size it is frequently used as a saw guide when cutting framing members as well as a layout tool for quick 45 and 90 degree cuts. Simply brace the lipped side of the speed square against the edge of your board pencil a line up the hypotenuse of the speed square and voilà. After he created the speed square other carpenters began asking him for one and the swanson tool company was born.

Place the pivot point against the shingles. The pitch tells you the amount of vertical rise in inches for every 12 inches of run.