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Square cut rafters?

Hepmeplez Jones

8 years ago

Hey,

I am sure I will get a mixed reaction but curious what people think about the square cut rafters on our new addition. The architect was trying to draw some inspiration from some craftsman homes we sent him. I never noticed the square cut until I looked at other houses in the neighborhood and noticed they are plumb cut. The neighborhood doesnt have a particular style. Its a mix of houses from the 50s, 70s, 2000s, . Our existing house has plumb rafters. The square cut never seemed weird to me until I noticed that and started looking around.

It seemed like it better highlights the roof lines and maybe better fits with the beefiness of the rafters... he stuck with the full 2x10 instead of shrinking them down. What do you all think? If we stick with the square cut its got me thinking if we should also revise a section of the existing house to be square cut too.

Comments (7)

klem1
8 years ago
Looks like somthing I could take or leave but certainly nothing I'd try to match on remainder of house. I'm not even sure one should try squaring other rafters for fear of opening a can of worms. Of course if you really like it and can afford to replace the roof at the same time,go for it.
kudzu9
8 years ago
It's not the traditional look, but on that house I think they work.
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Hepmeplez Jones
Original Author
8 years ago
Thanks. It's kind of funny. It isn't something I have ever paid any attention to when looking at my own house or others. I have never looked at a house and thought oh those rafter tails look awesome or awful. But now that I see it on my own house it's somehow become important. I think I'll leave it and leave the others alone. We already have a mix of boxed eaves from a 1990s addition vs. unboxed eaves from the original house built in the 1950s. The original house also has this detail where the gable overhang extends out farther at the peak vs. the eaves. We are mimicking that detail in the new section as well. Trying to update the look a lot but also make it still feel like the addition was always a part of the house.
kudzu9
8 years ago
Given that additional info, I think the way they are done makes a lot of sense.
User
8 years ago
It looks fine. I suspect it is rare because a gutter would have to be hung rather than attached. Perhaps there are brackets that fit this angle.

To be consistent with the Craftsman style I would expect to see exposed rafter tails.
Hepmeplez Jones
Original Author
8 years ago
Yeah.. its just borrowing some craftsman details. Its mostly just evident in the roof lines. We may also be putting in some of those craftsman brackets on the eaves. The porch will also be eld up with stone wrapped cedar posts and the framing above will be cedar wrapped with a cedar tongue and groove ceiling. The front will be stone and hardie siding.

The rest of the house was more of a mid century ranch. The front was pretty much just a flat brick and stone wall with no real appeal. All the rafters were wrapped in aluminum and it had some copper accents. We are wrapping this addition the same way to keep it all consistent. We aren't so willing to redo the entire rest of the house. Maybe someday..
Ichabod Crane
8 years ago
I live in a timberframe home and have square cut rafters and like the look. They also shed water and snow very well.

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