Q & A - Pitch of My Roof, the Easy Way to Find Out

Finding the pitch of my roof can be a challenge when you don’t know how, or it can be really simple.

The pitch of the roof is the angle of the slope. There are steep roofs that are difficult to walk on then there are flat roofs and all between. The steeper the roof the more materials you will need to cover it. In preparing to do your roof most people measure the roof from the rooftop and can get a very accurate measurement. In roofing, we use the term squares. One square is 10 feet by 10 feet. Others may choose to measure from the ground getting all the info from the ground then multiplying the pitch of the roof to have the total amount of squares needed.

This can become a harder the steeper the pitch because it becomes hard to walk on a real steep roof. I was recently asked,  "Bob, how do you find out the pitch of the roof?" Over the years of roofing, you gain a keen eye for the different pitches but even a pro like myself must verify the pitch because this can mean major costing differences the steeper the roof is. I use a digital level that tells be the pitch but these can be pricy. There are degree gauges you can buy at a lumber supply then you need to convert the degrees to pitch. Most of this conversion is easy to remember but we use them every day. So what is an easy and safe way to find the pitch of a roof?

Here is a pitch converter if you need one.

Degrees converted to roof pitch

9.5° = 2:12, 14° = 3:12, 18.5° = 4:12, 22.5° = 5:12,

26.5° = 6:12, 30° = 7:12, 33.5° = 8:12, 37° = 9:12,

40° = 10:12, 42.5° = 11:12, 45° = 12:12

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