Editorial policy
- Sourced. Every entry lists the sources it draws on. Today the encyclopedia cites 1,942 distinct sources, including standards bodies, building codes, government research, trade associations, heritage organizations and manufacturer technical literature.
- Neutral. Entries describe; they don't rank or recommend products or companies. No entry is paid for, and no company can buy placement.
- Global. Roofing terms, codes and practice differ from country to country. Where a term has regional equivalents, entries give them.
- Plain language. Entries are written so a homeowner can follow them and precise enough for a professional to use.
- Both measurement systems. Measurements are given in metric and imperial units where relevant.
How to use this information
roof.wiki is general reference material. Building codes, product approvals, warranties and safety rules depend on where you are and change over time. Before you build, buy or climb, check with your local building authority, the product manufacturer's current installation instructions and a qualified roofing professional.
Images and 3D models
Photos come from Wikimedia Commons and are used only when Commons lists them as public domain, CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA. Licenses that forbid commercial use or changes (NC, ND) are never used. Every photo is credited with its title, author, license and source, under the image and on the image credits page. Where no suitable photo exists, roof forms are shown as original interactive 3D models.
Corrections and contact
Spotted an error, or have a source we should add? Email [email protected]. Corrections are reviewed against published sources before entries are updated.
Open data
The full dataset is available as JSON at /data/entries.json, and a machine-readable index for AI tools at /llms.txt.