Saltbox Style Roof

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.

Saltbox style roof.

Today there are not a lot of newly constructed homes that have this type of roof design. When colonial era families first developed the style though they weren t aiming for aesthetic appeal. The short side typically has a low slope while the long side has a steep slope. Salt box roofs feel like a painted gable style roof with two sides of a central ridge sloping outwards.

In its simplest form a saltbox roof is a gable roof with asymmetrical planes one long and one short side. Rather of sloping to the same degree one side includes the entire route to the house s first floor. With its asymmetrical roof and restrained facade the saltbox house has become an icon of new england s coastal areas. A salt box house defining feature is its roof.

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. Saltbox roofs look like a patched gable style roof with two sides sloping outwards from a central ridge. A saltbox has just one story in the back and two stories in the front.

However instead of sloping to the same length one side reaches all the way to the first.