Case Study 03

Park Farm: a new roof, from the trusses up.

A rural Olney new-build. Fresh trusses, breathable membrane, hand-laid plain clay tile and three Velux, watertight in five weeks.

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Clay tile being hand laid over new trusses and breathable membrane at Park Farm, Olney

01/Project brief

Project brief

A brand new roof, built from bare frame.

A new build residential property on the rural edge of Olney. This one wasn't a re-roof; there was no "before" to strip. We walked on site the day the trusses were delivered, alongside the timber frame trades, and built the roof from bare structure to watertight finish.

Five weeks from the first truss to the last tile. Three Velux GGL MK08 windows into the south-facing slope, dry-fix vented ridge the full length, and a clay plain tile finish that will sit on this barn-style property for a century.

On site5 wks

Velux fitted3 × GGL MK08

SnagsZero

A new roof, from trusses to tile.

No stripping, no salvage; a clean sheet. Engineered trusses arrived on a low loader and the roof grew from the frame up, layer by layer.

01 / 07

FrameTrusses going up

02 / 07

FrameTrusses across the span

03 / 07

FrameRafters set for membrane

04 / 07

TileClay tile, hand laid

05 / 07

TileFront elevation, tile complete

06 / 07

FinishedSide elevation, Velux flush

07 / 07

FinishedHanded over, timber clad

03/Project specification

Specification

The specification.

Everything designed, sourced and signed off before the first truss was lifted.

Finished Park Farm new build with timber cladding and clay plain tile roof — Project card
Park Farm, Olney New Build
5 weeks on site · New build pitched roof · Olney, Buckinghamshire

01 The brief

ClientPrivate residential owner LocationOlney, Buckinghamshire TypeNew build Duration5 weeks on site

02 The roof

TilePlain clay tile, hand laid UnderlayType II breathable membrane VentilationContinuous dry-fix vented ridge TrussesNew engineered SW pine trusses Velux3 × GGL MK08 with matched flashing kits

03 Sign-off

StructureBuilt from bare timber frame RecordWritten photographic record RecordDaily photographs, written sign-off

Park Farm new build with trusses being erected on the timber frame

Finished Park Farm new build, timber clad with completed clay plain tile roof

04/ Framework to finish

Five weeks. One roof.

Frame Finish

SiteOlney, Bucks

TrussesEngineered SW pine

Duration5 weeks

ScopeFrame up to finish

05/What we did

Work breakdown

How the roof came together.

Five clean stages across five weeks, tracked and photographed daily, signed off in writing at the end.

Trusses being delivered and set out on the timber frame

Stage 01 · Days 1-3

01 Truss set out

Truss delivery and setting out.

Engineered SW pine trusses delivered to site, checked against drawings and set out along the wall plate. We walked the timber frame with the framer to confirm bearing points, then landed the trusses ready for lifting.

Trusses erected and braced along the length of the barn-style span

Stage 02 · Days 4-7

02 Trusses braced

Trusses erected and braced.

Trusses lifted into place across the barn-style span, plumbed, strapped to the wall plate and fully braced. Diagonal and longitudinal bracing fitted so the frame was rigid before we loaded it with membrane and tile.

Breathable membrane and battens laid across the new trusses

Stage 03 · Days 8-14

03 Membrane and ridge

Membrane, battens and dry-fix ridge.

Type II breathable membrane rolled the full length of the roof, tanalised battens set to correct gauge for plain tile and a continuous dry-fix vented ridge run along the crown.

Plain clay tile being hand laid and Velux MK08 windows fitted

Stage 04 · Days 15-25

04 Tile and Velux

Plain tile laid and Velux fitted.

Plain clay tile hand laid to a consistent coursing across both slopes. Three Velux GGL MK08 windows cut in on the south face, flashed with matched kits and coursed into the surrounding tile.

Verges and eaves finished, roof signed off on the Park Farm new build

Stage 05 · Days 26-35

05 Verges and sign-off

Verges, eaves, snagging and sign-off.

Verges and eaves detailed to a clean line, ridge tiles final-fixed, roof walked, snagged, photographed and signed off in writing.

06/Detail gallery

Detail gallery

The finish, up close.

Finished front elevation of the Park Farm new build under a blue sky — Finished front elevation

Side elevation angle of the finished Park Farm timber-clad property — Side elevation

Front elevation with tile complete and openings ready for trim — Front elevation

Mid-build shot of clay tile being hand laid on the south slope — Tile going on

07/Craft note

Why we made that choice

Why we spec a dry-fix ridge on new builds.

On a new build the ridge system is a specification choice, not a repair. Nothing on the roof forces our hand. We pick the ridge detail we would want on our own house.

The traditional alternative is a bedded ridge: each ridge tile is set on a sand and cement mortar bed. It looks fine on day one. It cracks by year fifteen. Once the mortar has fractured the ridge tiles go loose, wind gets under them, water tracks along the crown and into the loft. That is the failure mode we see week in, week out on repair calls.

Specifying a modern dry-fix ridge mechanically clips every ridge tile to a continuous ridge batten, and vents a 10mm gap along the whole crown so the roof space can breathe. No mortar, nothing to crack, nothing to fail. On Park Farm we ran it the full length of the ridge on day one.

"The roof went up faster than the walls. Watertight in five weeks flat."

Owner · Park Farm, Olney · 2026

08/What we used

Materials

What went on this roof.

Hover any material for the full spec on the Park Farm new build.

Traditional finish

10 · The finished barn

Every angle of the Park Farm build.

Park Farm finished roof — 01 · Finished roof

Park Farm second finished shot — 02 · Front elevation

Park Farm front elevation — 03 · From the front

Park Farm tiling stage — 04 · Tiling stage

Park Farm truss detail — 06 · Truss detail

See the full gallery

Previous case

Ravenstone Mill: complete re-roof

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