Roofing in Liechtenstein

Liechtenstein is a small Alpine principality between Switzerland and Austria, lying mostly in the Rhine valley with mountains to the east. Little has been published specifically about its roofing, but its listed buildings and its building law give a picture of a pitched-roof tradition closely related to that of eastern Switzerland and Vorarlberg.

Climate and hazards

The country spans the relatively mild Rhine valley floor and Alpine terrain with heavy winter snow at resorts such as Malbun. Liechtenstein's Building Act refers to the Swiss SIA standard when defining structures at risk.

Roofing history

Some of the oldest buildings are timber farmhouses. A house in Vaduz's Mitteldorf has a core dendrochronologically dated to 1410, extended in the 16th century; today its two adjoining dwellings each have a separate pitched roof and correspond in appearance to the 19th-century village house type. It has been protected since 1989. The farmhouse museum at Schellenberg occupies a squared-timber house built in 1518, insulated with moss and lichen and assembled with wooden pegs and nails rather than iron; it has been moved three times (1687, 1793-1794 and 1992-1993), was listed in 1993 and opened as a museum in 1994.

Traditional and vernacular roofs

Traditional village houses have pitched roofs over timber or masonry walls.

Roofing today

Modern houses in Liechtenstein include contemporary interpretations of Alpine buildings with pitched and flat roofs.

Codes, standards and regulation

Building is governed by the Building Act (Baugesetz) of 11 December 2008, published in the national law gazette in 2009 (LGBl. 2009 No. 44). Its roof-related provisions include:

• building height is measured to the top of the roof covering, or to the parapet or railing on flat roofs;
• on mono-pitch roofs of at least 10% slope, and on steep roofs over 45 degrees, the ridge height counts as building height;
• roof and attic storeys must be set back at 45 degrees at facade corners in certain cases;
• for energy retrofits, a raised roof structure is excluded from the height calculation, and external insulation, including on the roof construction, may project up to 0.25 m (10 in) into setbacks;
• changes to the building envelope, including roof windows, and the installation of solar and photovoltaic systems must be notified, while energy-generation systems above 3 kW need a permit;
• projects affecting registered cultural property must be coordinated with the cultural heritage authority.

Notable roofs

• Farmhouse museum, Schellenberg, a timber house of 1518.
• House 89/90/162, Mitteldorf, Vaduz, with a core dated to 1410.

Sources and gaps

Roof-load guidance, details of historic roof coverings (such as the balance between wooden shingles and clay tiles), information on the roofing trade and on domestic roofing manufacturers, and building statistics for Liechtenstein were not found in published sources.