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Clay Tile Roof Inspection & Installation Details - Photo Guide InspectAPedia®  -     Types of clay roofing tiles, life expectancy, installation details Clay tile roof inspection, failures, repair, product defects Roof inspection, leak detection, roof diagnosis, roof repair Key design details & references for clay roofing tiles Duralita & other clay roof tile alternative products

Here we discuss clay tile roofing types, clay roofing tile inspection, tile roofing diagnosis, & tile roof repair. Our page top photo shows clay roofing tiles installed in Patzcuaro, Mexico. Clay roofing tiles have been used in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, since the Greek and Roman Empires, and the Americas since Europeans arrived there. This roofing material is costly to purchase and install, but it can have an indefinite life expectancy. As we discussed at SLATE ROOF INSPECTION & REPAIR, the fasteners or metal flashings on clay tile roofs are more likely to wear out than the tiles themselves. However clay tile roofs are often damaged by foot traffic, ice and snow, or by severe storms.

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Clay Roofing Tile Types

Real clay tile roofs compared with cosmetic clay tile roofs: The clay roof tile systems we discuss in this article series are "real" clay tile roofs on which the tiles themselves are intended to provide the water shedding and drainage necessary to form a dry covering over a building. "Cosmetic" clay tile roofs are commonly installed in some areas (Boca Raton, Florida) over a completely functional waterproof membrane. Cosmetic clay tile roofs also protect the roof membrane from deterioration from sunlight, but the tiles themselves are not forming the waterproof covering.

Clay roof tiles, typically 7" x 13" are 1/4" to 1/2" in thickness and are shaped in molds and fired in a kiln to 2000 degF to cause the clay to vitrify. The vitrification (glasification) process makes the tiles hard and waterproof by melting and fusing silicas and aluminas in the clay. Clay roofing tile surfaces may also be decorated with an embossed pattern to resemble wood, slate, or stone. Un-glazed tiles are terra-cotta red, a color provided by iron oxide in the clay.

Clay roof tiles may also be made with a colored glaze, adding both color and an additional layer of hard surface protection. While traditional clay tile glazing was performed by hand dipping and pouring glazing compound over the tiles, Carson Dunlop point out in their Home Study Course for home inspectors, since the 1970's glazing on clay tiles has been spray applied and the tile backs are left un-glazed, both reducing tile cost and permitting moisture to escape from the back surface of the tile.

Higher quality clay roofing tiles are kiln fired to a higher temperature, are harder, less porous, and thus more durable. Inexpensive clay roofing tiles that are fired to lower temperatures insufficient to achieve vitrification are soft, easy to break, and less water resistant.

Description of Tapered Mission Clay Tiles & Barrel Mission Clay Roofing Tiles

Carson Dunlop's sketch (left) illustrates the traditional tapered mission style clay roof tiles, and at right, the less-rounded barrel-mission style clay roof tiles.

Description of S-style Clay Roofing Tiles & Flat Rectangular Interlocking Clay Roof Tiles

Carson Dunlop's sketch (left) illustrates the Spanish roofing tile that is roughly "S" shaped, including the pan or drainage trough on the left side of the tile and the raised tile surface on its right side. Variations of these interlocking tiles include a lower-profile "S" tile and also Greek and Roman clay roof tiles.

All of the rounded mission tile roofing materials need to be enclosed at the eaves or lower roof edge to avoid blowing rain and wind (wind-lift damage) and animal entry. Tile end closure is discussed at How clay roofing tiles are secured.

Carson Dunlop's sketch (above left) illustrates an "S" style clay tile. Our photo (left) and Carson Dunlop's sketch (above right) illustrate a typical interlocking roofing tile that is flat. In our photo you can see metal tabs that mark the location of inserted replacement or repair clay tiles. The tabs should be bent up over the tile edges but appeared to have been flattened by snow sliding down the roof. This clay tile roof was located near New York City. Lots of these tiles were broken, particularly on the low slope roof section: we suspected the damage was due to foot traffic.

We recommend against walking on clay tile roofs as you are likely to damage the roof leading to the need for costly repairs. Our photo of broken clay roof shingle-tiles (above right) was taken during an inspection made without walking on the roof surface - for obvious reasons: we didn't want to shoulder the blame for this damage. our photo of a tarred roof valley and damaged interlocking clay roof tiles (above left) was taken from a ladder at roof edge.

Description of Duralita Cardboard-reinforced Cement Roofing Tiles & Corrugated Roofing Products

Duralita, an alternative to both clay roofing tiles as well as other fiber reinforced cement roofing products is produced in El Salvador and used widely throughout central america and north americ. Duralita is a series of brightly-colored cardboard-reinforced cement corrugated roofing products produced by the Duralita, manufacturer of the same name. From the ground Duralita resembles clay roofing tiles. Panels of Duralita are secured using fiber or rubber washers and threaded rods or bolts. Duralita tejalitas are sheets of reinforced concrete that are intended to resemble roof tiles. Corrugated cardboard cement products of the same composition, Lámina, are sold in sheets of various sizes and similar colors. You can see an installation of Duralita at the Posada del Bosque Encantado, a hotel operated by our acquaintance Terry Rubin who was kind enough to inform us about this product. Other examples of corrugated roofing products (that do not look like clay roof tiles) can be seen at Corrugated Cement-Asbestos Roofing.

Books & Articles on Clay Tile Roof Inspection, Installation, Repair, Maintenance, & History

The books listed below can be found by using the "Roofing" link at the InspectAPedia Bookstore.

• Roof Tiling & Slating, a Practical Guide, Kevin Taylor, Crowood Press (2008), ISBN 978-1847970237, If you have never fixed a roof tile or slate before but have wondered how to go about repairing or replacing them, then this is the book for you. Many of the technical books about roof tiling and slating are rather vague and conveniently ignore some of the trickier problems and how they can be resolved. In Roof Tiling and Slating, the author rejects this cautious approach. Kevin Taylor uses both his extensive knowledge of the trade and his ability to explain the subject in easily understandable terms, to demonstrate how to carry out the work safely to a high standard, using tried and tested methods. 
  This clay roof tile guide considers the various types of tiles, slates, and roofing materials on the market as well as their uses, how to estimate the required quantities, and where to buy them. It also discusses how to check and assess a roof and how to identify and rectify problems; describes how to efficiently "set out" roofs from small, simple jobs to larger and more complicated projects, thus making the work quicker, simpler, and neater; examines the correct and the incorrect ways of installing background materials such as underlay, battens, and valley liners; explains how to install interlocking tiles, plain tiles, and artificial and natural slates; covers both modern and traditional methods and skills, including cutting materials by hand without the assistance of power tools; and provides invaluable guidance on repairs and maintenance issues, and highlights common mistakes and how they can be avoided.
  The author, Kevin Taylor, works for the National Federation of Roofing Contractors as a technical manager presenting technical advice and providing education and training for young roofers.
• History of the Concrete Roofing Tile, Batsford, 1959, AISN B000HLLOUC (availble used)

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Use links just below or at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.

ROOFING INSPECTION & REPAIR
ASBESTOS CEMENT ROOFING
ASPHALT ROOF SHINGLES
BUILT UP ROOFS
CERTIFICATIONS for ROOFING CONTRACTORS
CHIMNEY INSPECTION & REPAIRS
CHOOSING A ROOFING CONTRACTOR
CLAY TILE ROOFING
  Clay Roofing Tile Types
    Tapered & Barrel Mission Tiles
    S-style Clay & Flat Rectangular Tiles
    Duralita Roofing Alternatives
  Clay Roof Tile Installation Specs
  Clay Roof Tile Connections
  Clay Tile Roof Wear
FIRE RETARDANT PLYWOOD
HEAT TAPES & CABLES on Roofs for Ice Dams
INSULATION & VENTILATION INSPECTION & IMPROVEMENT
LOW SLOPE ROOFING MATERIALS
MASONITE WOODRUF FIBERBOARD ROOFING
MEMBRANE & SINGLE PLY ROOFS
METAL ROOFING TYPES
MODIFIED BITUMEN ROOFING
ROOF INSPECTION SAFETY & LIMITS
ROOF VENTILATION SPECIFICATIONS
ROOF VENTING ENERGY SAVING DETAILS
SLATE ROOF INSPECTION & REPAIR
SOD ROOFING
SIDING WOOD
STAIN DIAGNOSIS on Building Exteriors
STAIN DIAGNOSIS on Roofs
STANDARDS for ROOFING
STONE ROOFING
THATCH ROOFING
THERMAL EXPANSION of MATERIALS
THERMAL MASS in BUILDINGS
THERMAL MASS in UPSTAIRS
TILE ROOFING
WARRANTIES for ROOF SHINGLES
WOOD SHAKE & SHINGLE ROOFING
WORKMANSHIP & WIND DAMAGE

• Thanks to Alan Carson and Bob Dunlop, Carson Dunlop, Associates, Toronto, for permission to use illustrations from their publication, The Illustrated Home which illustrates construction details and building components. Carson Dunlop provides home inspection education, publications, report writing materials, and home inspection services. Alan Carson is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors.
• The Carson Dunlop home study course for home inspectors can be examined at the company's website at http://www.carsondunlop.com/Inspectors/hss.htm
• Duralita: produces cement & cardboard corrugated and clay tile-like roofing products: Duralita is a combination of cement and cardboard - see www.duralita.com/ Si tiene alguna pregunta, por favor escribanos a: sales@duralita.com - El Salvador: +503 22.25.57.44 ext.31 USA +1 305.677.3597
• Terry Rubin, proprietor of the Posada del Bosque Encantado can be contacted at gringamaya@yahoo.com or call (502) 5208-5334 or (502) 4146-1050 use 011 (502) from the US.
  

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