Term Description
Roll roofing

Coated felts, either smooth or mineral-surfaced.
Roof

(1) The cover of a building; (2) to cover with a roof.
Roof area divider

See "area divider."
Roof assembly

An assembly of interacting roof components including the roof deck, air or vapor retarder (if present), insulation and membrane or primary roof covering designed to weatherproof a structure.
Roof cement

See "asphalt roof cement" and "coal-tar roof cement."
Roof coating

See ‚"coating,‚" (1).
Roof covering

The exterior roof cover or skin of the roof assembly consisting of membrane, panels, sheets, shingles, tiles, etc.
Roof curb

Raised frame used to mount mechanical units such as air conditioning units, exhaust fans, skylights, etc., on a roof.
Roof overhang

A roof extension beyond the exterior wall of a building.
Roof slope

The angle a roof surface makes with the horizontal, expressed as a ratio of the units of vertical rise to the units of horizontal length (sometimes referred to as "run"). For English units of measurement, when dimensions are given in inches, slope may be expressed as a ratio of rise to run, such as 4:12, or as an angle in degrees.
Roof system

A system of interacting roof components generally consisting of a membrane or primary roof covering and roof insulation (not including the roof deck) designed to weatherproof and sometimes improve the building's thermal resistance.
Root barrier

A material that prevents migration of plant roots from damaging the membrane. A root barrier typically is a separate layer of material installed on top of the protection course, but it may be combined with a protection course or drainage course.
Rosin paper (specifically rosin-sized sheathing paper)

A nonasphaltic paper used as a sheathing paper or slip sheet in some roof systems.
Rubber

A material that is capable of recovering from large deformations quickly and forcibly, and can be, or already is, modified to a state in which it is essentially insoluble (but can swell) in boiling solvent such as benzene, methyl ethyl ketone, and ethanol-toluene azeotrope (mixture of a composition that is unchanged by distillation).
Rubberized asphalt

See ‚"hot-liquid-applied polymermodified asphalt.‚"
Run

Horizontal dimension of a slope.
Rust

(1) A reddish material, primarily hydrated iron oxide; a corrosion product formed on iron or its alloys, resulting from exposure to a humid atmosphere or chemical attack; (2) a special case of corrosion that deteriorates or alters the original surface condition.
Sacrificial protection

The form of corrosion protection whereby one metal corrodes in preference to another, thereby protecting the latter from corrosion; galvanic protection. See "anodic."
Saddle

A small tapered/sloped roof area structure that helps to channel surface water to drains; frequently located in a valley. A saddle is often constructed like a small hip roof or pyramid with a diamond-shaped base.
Safety data sheet (SDS)

A written description of the chemicals in a material or product and other pertinent data, including such things as safe handling and emergency procedures; formerly known as a material safety data sheet (MSDS). In accordance with Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations, it is the manufacturer’s responsibility to produce SDSs and the employer’s responsibility to communicate their contents to employees.
Sag

Undesirable excessive flow in material after application to a surface.
Saturant

A bitumen of low softening point for impregnating dry felts in the manufacture of saturated roofing felts. See "asphalt, dead level" and "asphalt, flat."
Saturated felt

A felt that has been immersed in hot bitumen; the felt adsorbs as much bitumen as it can retain under the processing conditions but remains porous and contains voids.
SBS

See "styrene butadiene styrene copolymer (SBS)."
Scarifying

In spray polyurethane foam roof systems, shaping by grinding.

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