OTHER ITEMS
The roofs of new houses in Australia may well host vents, skylights, evaporative cooling units, aerials, and satellite dishes. People install these items on their roof to cool, vent, add light or to receive data. Most roofs have at least one of these items. This bulletin discusses these items of potential roof clutter. Previous bulletins have covered other items found on roofs and walls, such as photovoltaic panels and water heating equipment.
Evaporative cooling units
Evaporative cooling units are large machines rising from the roof cladding. They are ideally placed above the main living areas, such as the lounge and dining space. They can come with a ‘stem’, or be ‘low profile’. They come in a range of colours and so may be matched to the colour of the roof cladding.
“Heating and cooling units must: be located towards the rear and side of the house; not be visible from the street; and if heating and cooling units are located on the roof, they must be positioned entirely below the roof ridge line and match the roof colour.” (Taylors Quarter, Taylors Lakes, Victoria)
Vents
Roof vents expel heat and moisture from a roof space. Vents come in many forms including ridge vents, box vents, and powered and wind driven turbine vents. Vents come in a wide variety of sizes, colours and profiles. As hot air rises, vents are most effective when near the ridgeline of the roof
“Install roof ventilation (such as Eco- Vents or Whirly-Birds) which do not use energy in operation) to further optimise the comfort of your home.” (Alkimos Shorehaven WA)
Turbine vent.
Turbine vents are commonly known as whirly bird vents. The wind rotates them, forcing out air. Of all the vent types, these stand highest above a roof. These are the most common vents in Australian houses.
Box Vents.
Box vents, also known as louvre vents, are a static vent. They use natural convection to draw air out. They are especially useful on complicated roofs. These vents come in a range of profiles, all prominent above the roof cladding. They can be coloured to match the colour of the cladding.
Powered Vents.
Powered vents come in a range of profiles, similar to the box vent. They may be powered by mains electricity or photovoltaic electricity. Most houses require only one vent.
Ridge vents.
Ridge vents sit along the ridge of the roof, which is the best position to vent hot air. Ridge vents can extend for the full length of the roof ridge. These vents are relatively inconspicuous. Houses with smaller roof profiles or lots of ridges may not suit this choice of vent.
Off-ridge vents.
Off-ridge vents sit below the ridge. These are great for smaller roof forms. These are typically flat in profile and can be colour matched to the roof.
Aerials and satellite dishes
Fibre to the home (FTTH) is available in most new estates. In most cases, FTTH eliminates the need for external receivers such as aerials and satellite dishes. External receivers may still be required for international broadcasts and in some other circumstances.
“Every house at Valley Lake will be connected to the Valley Lake Optical Fibre network. This network will provide telephone services, ultra-broadband internet access, Valley Lake intranet access, free to air television, video on demand and pay TV. Connection to the system eliminates the need for TV aerials to receive free to air TV broadcasts.” (Valley Lake, Keilor East, Victoria)
Gone are the days where a house had a large round satellite dish and a high aerial on the roof. Advances in technologies allow small rectangular ‘dishes’ and mounting even where some obstructions are in the way of the signal.
“Television aerials and satellite dishes must be concealed from view from the street, or located in the rear 50% of the lot, and must be mounted no more than 2 m above the house.” (Valley Lake, Keilor East, Victoria)
Skylights
Skylights provide light to a room through the roof above it. One type is a window in the roof, often openable. The other type is a tube that channels light from a dome above the roof through a reflective tube to a transparent cover in the ceiling.
Issues and potential controls
Items such as evaporative cooling units and aerials can be unsightly. Items such as vents and skylights can add clutter to a roof. One or more design standards can control their placement, height, number, colour and prominence.
Design codes typically permit these items on roof planes that don’t face the public realm, if the item is below the roof ridgeline. Below is an example from Atticus, an estate the Design Review Group has processed developer approvals for.
“All ancillary items must be designed, coloured and positioned to be inconspicuous when viewed from the public realm and from neighbouring lots. They must be positioned behind the return fence, or where a return fence would be, and below the nearest roof ridgeline. They may need to be screened.” (Atticus, Woodstock, Victoria)
