🇩🇴 Dominican Republic · Roof timber & trusses · Updated 2026
How much roof timber do you need to build a house in the Dominican Republic?
A 150 m² single-storey house in the Dominican Republic needs roughly 100 m run of roof timber — about 0.67 m run per m² of floor area. That is computed from Dominican Republic construction conventions, including the local wastage allowance.
Roof timber & trusses quantities for a house in the Dominican Republic, computed from how buildings are actually put up here rather than from a global average. The tables below run from a small 50 m² dwelling to a 400 m² family home, and the method section shows how to reproduce every figure by hand so you can adapt it to your own plan.
Roof timber & trusses by house size in Dominican Republic
| Floor area | Roof timber & trusses required | Per m² of floor |
|---|---|---|
| 50 m² | 46 m run | 0.92 |
| 75 m² | 60 m run | 0.80 |
| 100 m² | 74 m run | 0.74 |
| 150 m² | 100 m run | 0.67 |
| 200 m² | 124 m run | 0.62 |
| 250 m² | 148 m run | 0.59 |
| 300 m² | 171 m run | 0.57 |
| 400 m² | 215 m run | 0.54 |
Single-storey. The per-m² rate falls as the house grows — a small house has more wall and roof per square metre of floor than a large one, which is why these are computed size by size rather than scaled from a single rate.
Where it goes — 150 m² house
Roof timber / trusses Trusses at ~1.2 m centres plus wall plates | 100 m run |
Ceiling boards Floor area plus 5% cutting | 157.5 m² |
What drives the quantity in Dominican Republic
| Factor | Local value | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Truss spacing | ~1.2 m centres | Span and spacing together set the member sizes; closer spacing means more, lighter members. |
| Roof pitch | 25° | Steeper roofs need longer rafters for the same span. |
| Wall plate | Full perimeter | Runs the whole way round on top of the walls, bedded and strapped down. |
| Ceiling area | Floor area + 5% | Boards are cut to a module; the offcuts are the 5%. |
How to calculate it yourself
- 01
Divide the building length by the truss spacing and add one to get the truss count.
- 02
Multiply the truss count by the span to get the approximate timber run, then add wall plates on the full perimeter.
- 03
Add purlins or battens at the spacing your covering requires — sheet roofing and tiles differ substantially here.
- 04
Take ceiling boards off the floor area plus 5% for cutting.
Buying and site notes
- —Timber must be treated against termites and rot in most climates. Untreated roof timber is a false economy measured in years, not decades.
- —Check moisture content on delivery. Timber fixed wet shrinks, and the roof telegraphs every joint through the ceiling.
- —Engineered trusses usually beat cut-on-site roofs on both cost and accuracy once spans exceed about 6 m.
Get every material measured off your own plan
This page works from a representative footprint. Upload your dimensioned drawings and get the full schedule — every material, measured from your real geometry and priced in DOP (RD$).
Take off my drawingsRoof timber & trusses in Dominican Republic — frequently asked
How much roof timber does a house need in the Dominican Republic?
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A 150 m² single-storey house in the Dominican Republic needs roughly 100 m run of roof timber — about 0.67 m run per m² of floor area. That is computed from Dominican Republic construction conventions, including the local wastage allowance.
How much roof timber per square metre in the Dominican Republic?
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About 0.67 m run per m² of floor area for a single-storey house. The figure is not linear across sizes — a small house has proportionally more wall and roof per m² of floor than a large one, which is why the table above is computed size by size rather than scaled from one rate.
What changes the quantity of roof timber needed?
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Truss spacing (~1.2 m centres) — Span and spacing together set the member sizes; closer spacing means more, lighter members. Roof pitch (25°) — Steeper roofs need longer rafters for the same span. Wall plate (Full perimeter) — Runs the whole way round on top of the walls, bedded and strapped down.
Is wastage included?
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Where it applies, yes — a 5% allowance is carried on the perishable materials (walling units, tiles, paint). Bulk materials like sand and stone carry handling loss instead. Ordering the theoretical quantity with no allowance reliably means a second delivery at a worse price.
How accurate is this for my own house?
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It is a planning quantity derived from a representative rectangular footprint, so it is the right order of magnitude and internally consistent — good for budgeting and for checking a supplier's list. It is not a measured takeoff of your plan. Upload your dimensioned drawings to get quantities measured off your real geometry and priced in DOP.
Are roof timber prices included?
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No, deliberately. Material prices in the Dominican Republic move week to week and vary by region, so a price printed on a static page would be wrong within a month. This page gives you the quantity — take that to two or three local suppliers and the price will be current and competitive.