How To Make a Roof In SketchUp

Drawing a roof on SketchUp can be a nightmare for beginners or even pros too! The situation can be particularly difficult when a client specifically wants a well-designed roof and you are still stuck at “how to make a roof in SketchUp?”

Well if you are in that situation, this article is your day saver since it can help you get started with 3D modeling! I have come up with an amazing yet super easy technique to make a roof, just the way I did for scaling in SketchUp. All you need is concentration; and patience.

The best way to go about it is by doing it with me. This will help you learn it in a much better way.

So, go ahead and start by creating a new file so that we can begin making a roof!

How to Make a Roof in SketchUp?

Buildings/Houses:

Of course, a roof is made over a building or a house. Thus, before you get started to make a roof, you need to make a building or a house.

Outlining:

Once you are done with the building, select the line tool. It can be selected by pressing L on your keyboard. Otherwise, you can manually select it by clicking on it. Line tool resides beneath the text tool in the menu bar.

Once you have selected the Line tool, the cursor will transform into a pencil shape.

Now you have to thoroughly outline the areas of the roof that you wish to have eaves, having equal heights.

This is an important step since a lot of buildings have complex roofs with varying eaves heights. So just in case when it offsets; the roof overhangs will fall at the right and desired places.

Offset Tool:

Select the offset tool. You can select it either by pressing F on your keyboard or by selecting it manually. Once you have selected it, draw an overhanging face.

Erase:

Once you are done with creating overhanging faces on Sketchup, you need to eliminate the edges or corners of the original face.

I’ll share a quick hack to do this. You need to double-click on the inner part of the first face you have drawn. Then delete the desired thing that has been selected.

This way you can easily erase or remove the first face.

Fascia Time:

When you have removed the first face, you have to either push or pull to get your hands on the thick fascia.

The thickness of each roof fascia can vary. I recommend you to ask your client about the thickness. If you cannot ask your client, keep a hypothetical one.

Now you know how to make a roof in Sketchup; let me tell you the simplest way to draw gabled roofs in Sketchup. Keep on reading to know how to do it like a pro.

How to Draw a Gabled Roof in SketchUp

Here are some simple steps to draw a gabled roof in SketchUp:

Protractor Tool:

Select the protractor tool from the tool menu or by pressing Alt and P together.

Generally, the SketchUp protractor tool is smart enough to detect the correct ratio of the roof. It automatically knows what’s steeper and what’s shallow. It itself understands the perfect angle. Let’s take 4:12 for now.

Line Tool:

Select the line tool and create a vertical edge. This vertical edge has to be drawn from the center point of the roof to the angle I guided you above.

Edges:

Now you have to draw two angular edges from the top part of the vertical line to the edges of your roof.

Erase:

Erase all the extras from the image. This extra includes a vertical edge that you have drawn and the guide.

Push/Pull:

The last step is to adjust the roof. If it’s extending further than the building, you can pull or push it in order to adjust it.

…And It’s Done!

You have just succeeded in drawing a gabled roof using SketchUp!

Why SketchUp for 3D models?

Have you ever thought that why only Sketchup is preferred over other 3D modeling programs? Well honestly, from my experience I can say that Sketchup is pretty handy and comes with an array of features.

Sketchup is trusted by a big community of 3D model designers. This 3D modeling program has been benefiting people of multiple disciplines including architecture, mechanical engineering, and even gaming.

Do You Know Following Things About Sketchup?

Do you know that Sketchup came into being in 2000 by Brad Schell and Joe Esch? Although it was designed in 1999 it took one whole year to become available for the general public. I think this was due to the testing purpose – but God knows the real story.

The main idea to launch Sketchup was to ease the 3D designing process, make it easier and enjoyable for the designers.

Let me share another amazing fact about Sketchup. Google bought Sketchup in 2006. But no one knows the reason and the amount Google paid for the software.

But the good thing is that Google has made numerous updates in Sketchup for which, it is known as the most reliable 3D modeling program to the designer community.

Conclusion:

Sketchup is a highly used 3D modeling program by 3D model designers. This is because of the exciting features that it comes with. I think, I have made a point and explained to you clearly how to make a roof in Sketchup. With the help of the above-mentioned steps, you should be able to make a roof easily in SketchUp. Furthermore, you may also look up the best mouse for Sketch Up that can help simplify your task even further by ensuring better functionality.