Roof tiles are designed mainly to keep out rain, and are traditionally made from locally available materials such as clay or slate. Modern materials such as concrete and plastic are also used and some clay tiles have a waterproof glaze. A large number of shapes of roof tiles have evolved. These include:Flat tiles - the simplest type, which are laid in regular overlapping rows. An example of this is the clay-made "beaver-tail" tile, common in Southern Germany. Flat roof tiles are usually made of clay but also may be made of stone, wood, plastic, concrete, or solar cells. Imbrex and tegula, an ancient Roman pattern of curved and flat tiles that make rain channels on a roof. Roman tiles - flat in the middle, with a concave curve at one end at a convex curve at the other, to allow interlocking. Pantiles - with an S-shaped profile, allowing adjacent tiles to interlock. These result in a ridged pattern resembling a ploughed field. An example of this is the "double Roman" tile, dating from the late 19th century in England and USA. Mission or barrel tiles are semi-cylindrical tiles laid in alternating columns of convex and concave tiles. Originally they were made by forming clay around a curved surface, often a log or the maker's thigh. Today barrel tiles are mass produced from clay, metal, concrete or plastic. Interlocking roof tiles are similar to pantile with side and top locking to improve protection from water and wind. JW Roofing: We are the best Miami Roofer for tile in South Florida. Offering discounts to Synagogues and Churches.
Now off to Japan to see a traditional Rice hut roof