CENTRAL BUILDING RESEARCH INSTITUTE, ROORKEE-247667 (INDIA)

BUILDING RESEARCH NOTE

B.R.N.85

DOUBLY CURVED T I LE ROOF

Introduction of making til es and joists and th e co nstruction of roof

The cost of a roof usually amou nts to 25 to 30 percent is so devised that it can be eas il y adopted by less
of the total cost of a building . A small saving in this skill ed wo rkers even at the vill age level.
item alone wi ll appreciably reduce the tota l cost. Over
the past few years considerab le attention has been Design
devoted to the developme nt of cheaper roofs. Do ubly
curved tile roof is one such roof The special features (a) Tiles: Th e tiles are designed on th e prin ciple of
of this ro of as aga inst the conve ntiona l types are least simple shell with double curvature by taki ng the
form work , speed of construction, adva ntage of advantage of its prope rty of res istance to static and
prefab rication , and saving in costly and sca rce shock loads . The smaller size of the shell units has
materia ls li ke cement and steel. The process has by helped in om itting the normally requ ired RC . edge
now undergo ne several trials and has found adoption beams in she ll s.
in many bu ildings. Simplicity of making tiles and It has been found by experience that a tile size of
construction of roof, apa rt from low cost, makes it about 70 em x 70 em x 2 cm thick (F ig. 1) is most
adaptable in ru ral areas also . co nvenient, both fro m the making and hand ling
points of view.
Description ofthe roof
The roofing system is based on the use of si mple (b) Partly Precast Joists The PP. Joists are
roofing un its comprising 70 cm square doubly curved designed for the fo ll owi ng loading conditions :­
tiles and partially precast RC .C. joists . The method 1. Live Load - 150 Kg/m2 .

'" . . -. Ti mber Frame -#'-----_""~~M.RrI-___. .+/­

IE Hessian Cloth
Y -"S'e-,
64 em ' S Crn
Showing view of the Tile Fig. 2
Fig. 1 J.
 2
2. Water proofing layer - 150 to 225 Kg/m grade M15 . Finally su itable water-proofing layer is
depending on the climatic conditio ns and · provided .
treatment selected . Process of Making
3 Weight of tiles, concrete (a) Tiles: Make a masonry platform 64 cm x 64
in haunches and beams - 225 Kg/m i. em x 7 .5 em , high of bricks laid flat and plaster it on
The precast portion of the joist is usual ly kept 13 cm top with a 1 : 4 cement sand mortar to make a smooth
wide and 9 cm deep and reinforcement provided and level surface (Fig . 2) .
according to the designed requirement. To ensu re Make a square wooden frame of hard wood with fo ur
good bond between precast and the cast in-situ piece 6 cm x 5 cm in cross section (Fig . 3) Clear inner
co ncrete , stirrups are kept projecting by 5 cm above dimensions of thi s frame should be 65 cm x 65 cm
the precast portion The haunches between the On the outer sides of th is frame fix 2 mm thick and 5
humps of the tiles are filled with cement concrete of cm long or similar size headless nails. Mount hessian
cloth on this frame in such a manner that it is held taut
by the nails Put this frame on the masonry platform . It
BOTTOM FRAME ~ should just fit on this platform and the hessian cloth
5'i..7·!>·~ s h o ~ d remain tightly stretched . Now place another
L square wooden frame 70 cm x 70 cm x 2 cm clear
HEAOLUS NAILS
inner dim ensions on the first frame to hold the •
concrete and to serve as a gauge, (figures 3a
and 2a) .
Pour M15 cement concrete (stone ch ips 6 mm size)
FIG. 2 (a) on this form work to a depth of 2 cm and lift the entrie
form work with concrete resting on hessian cloth and
SHOWING MOULD WITH HE IAN
CLOTH PLACED ON RIGID PLATFORM place it away from the platform on four rigid supports
(Fig 2b) . The hessian cloth w ill then sag under the
COHeAtn weight of concrete and will form into a doubly curved

MASON ••'
~~ ..c,. '.".0' •
tile. In fa ir weather the concrete should be sufficiently
set to allow its removal fro m the form after 24 hours.
Re move the til e and place it on edge into water stored
P\.ATlFO.M 1--6"c.. ~~

FIG. 2 (b) in a tank , abutting aga inst a side , for curin g. The tan k
should be 3 m x 3 m x 80 cm deep and large eno ugh
to hold all the tiles made in 14 days.
Cast abo ut eig ht to ten tiles fi rst by the above method .
~ + 2cm
I ~

T f­
6) •• -
70 em

.)~'"
.;.~ .- 6 70 em
r--- 2 em x 2 em TOP FRAME

"AILS

SHOWING THE MOULD WITH CLOTH SHOWING TOP FRAM E FOR GAUGING CONCRETE
FIG . 3 FIG. 3 (a)
"
2
For subsequent tiles , lay these on level ground . Fill
the hollow space between the tile and ground with
earth or sand to provide uniform support. These tiles
will now serve as base moulds for casting more tiles.
Spread po lythene sheet or oiled paper 80 cm x 80 cm
on each of these tiles . This provides a smooth
surface for the til e to be moulded and concrete will not
stick to the base tile.
2.cMTHleK· C.C.
Place a wooden frame 70 cm x 70 cm inner
dimensions and 4 cm (Fig . 4), around the tile on the
ground . Pour M 15 cement concrete on the polythene
2
sheet to a thickness of 2 cm. To ensure that hte SAND 'ILl.ING
thickness of cement concrete is 2 cm throughout, use PRECAST D.C. TILE SERV'NCO AS
SASE MOULD
the wooden template shown in Fig. 4 and 4(a) By
moving this template across the tile all excess SECTION AA
FIG. 4
concrete can be removed and all the thinner patches
will come to light Remove this wooden frame about
ten minutes after the tile is finished . After 24 hours ,
put the tile in to the tank of water for curing . 14 days
curing underwater is required .
Stack the tiles on edge in a shed for at least 14 days
for drying .
It has been observed that one mason with two
helpers is able to cast 30 to 35 tiles per day.

(b) Partially Precast Joist : It is rectangular shaped

13 cm wide 9 cm deep with stirrups projecting upward
Mou ld is made from seasoned good quality ti mber or
Fig . 4 (a) : Tiles placed in position
MS . channels can be used as mould. To avoid
bu lging of joist during casting, clamps of angle iron wooden members . A 25 cm layer of M15 grade is laid
.I in the mou ld before placing reinforcement. Mould can
l . I
- be removed afte two hours, depending on the wate r
cement ratio and cl imatic condition . Joists should be

"'\ cured for 14 days and dried for another 14 days

before using.
70e ..
(c) Construction of roof : Lay the P.P. Joists on a
16 ..
AOO ,-
... slope of 1 in 48 . To achieve this slope keep the
supporting walls at differe nt levels . Distance between
th e joists , centre to centre , shoul d be 76 cm. Provide
eCia'" I I' It•...
• 70 ~~ aUTHRfLY ."IUl
two woode n props at middle th ird points along the
+ 100,,. ~
• WITH \Of. 511£11 length under the p.p. jO ist befo re placing the D.C.
ti les. Spread some mortar 1:3 on the edges of the p.p.
PLAN joists before placing the D.C. tiles. Th is prov ides
,
3
uniform support and bond with the tiles . After placing size can be made according to the size of the room to
the ti les in position (Fig . 4 band 6 a) , fi ll up the be roofed .
haunches with M20 cement concrete , leaving a small

l+r' - .. , ••• ,,,,, .. BUMS

~..
SECTION AA

l~jIl r -
r-
- -­
i ! ~
II I
~
• ~~ A
I t-
~o
I
I I ~ +­ 6l ea
•
II
I
I [><1 '- o.c. n~

k
Fig. 4(b) ~1l ,
I
-~
i
Use of wooden template to ensure thickness I
I
- ~
f-- ~W II

tn·t-I-----ltO,.aal&'
ridge uncovered . Diameter of these exposed patches ....
aa,'
shou ld not be more than 15 cm . For bigger spans or
special situations , provisio n of a cast in-situ primary
RC .C. beam may beco me necessary. Beams may
also be placed in level, if desired and the slope
required may be provided in the waterproofing
material, however laying beams to slope as stated
c c_tllll III .... _ _ _I
L.A.' ... $llU ..........
above is more advantageous and econom ica l.
")T U . TfU
.10 I ~~'..::c..r
Water Proofing and Insulating treatments

...
The usual waterproofin g-cum-ins ul ating treatment of
either lime concrete or mud phuska and clay tiles can ~#JLS 0' P...CMIa W l1U$ lIMO .~ USU48U
~
be provided over the roof in the conventional manner.

Typical Plan
A detailed plan and section fo r roofing a room 3.60 m
x 3.00 m is given in Figures 5, 6(a) and 6(b). The
design is based on the loadings given earl ier Lime
concrete terracing, weig hing 150 Kg/m2 has been
assumed as water-proofing and insulating treatment.
The size of the tile has been taken as 70 cm x 62 cm DETAILS OF PRECAST JOIST
to SUit this particular span. Similar adju stment in the FI G 6 (b) ..

4
 3
Materials and Labour Required Sand Loca l 0.071 m
Cement 1 bag
(i) For casting one tile 70 cm x 70 cm
Labour :
Materials : Mason 0.5 man day
3
Sto ne grit or crushed stone 6mm 0 .00B5 m Beldar 1.0 man day
3
Local Sand 0.0043 m
Cement 0.00213 m
3
NOTE The above analysis is based on the fo ll owing
assumptions.
Labour' 1. A min imum of 200 D.C . tiles and 20 p.p. joists
Mason 0.04manday are cast.
Beldar O.OBmanday 2. A min imum of 4 p.p. joists are laid at a time as
the hoisting and placing of a beam can be
(ii ) Fo r casting one p.p.joist (3.30 meters long) : carried out by 3 to 4 persons on ly.

Materials : Precautions in the Construction ofthe Roof

3
Crushed stone 10 mm graded 0.0340m 1. The p.p. joists must be proped at the middle
3
Coarse sand 0.017m third points ti ll the concrete in the haunches
3
Cement 0.00B5 m has set and has attained sufficient strength.
M.S. Round Bars 13.6 Kg This usually requ ires 7 to 10 days
(6 , 10&16mmdia) 2. The supports should preferably be removed
only after the water proofing treatment has
Labour: been done.
Mason 0.10manday 3. Labourers should not walk on the D.C. ti les.
Beldar 0.20manday Proper cat-walks should be arranged for
BlackSmith 0.25 man day placing D.C. tiles and laying in-situ concrete .
4 . The thickness of ti les shou ld be un iform
(iii) For the assembly of roof, putting one p.p. j oist in throughout, and should not be less than 2 cm
position , D.C. tiles over it on either side , and anywhere.
concreting the haunch formed by two tiles. 5. The mini mu m bearing of the tiles on beams
shou ld be 2.5 cm and on wa lls 5 to 7 cm .
Materials for haunch filling: (Average thickness 6
cm of concrete)

3
Crushed stone 10 mm graded 0 .142 m

Revised by y.K. Batra Published by: Central Building Research Institute

Prepared by Shiam lal RoorJ<ee- 247667
Reprinted April 2004 E-mail : director®cbrimail.com
First Printed July' 966 las BO 43) Website : www.cbri.org

,
Edited by : Dr Atul Kumar Agarwal & Shri Dlnesh. Scientists. Printed at: Paramount Offset Printers 7. Avas Vlkas. Roorkee Ph . 261778 . 264 1 17