Thread: Western Red Cedar Shingles & Shakes

Welcome to the forum.

Hi and welcome - does your roofing material/products pass Australian standards and if so, can you provide the docs or point to the supporting govt. websites that confirm same?

My understanding was that no combustible material could be used on roofs in Australia - I'd love to be wrong about that, as they are a truly beautiful material not only for roofs but for walls. ... in fact, I am just about to start my first look at a new book I bought "Newport Shingle Style"

Welcome to the forum.

Originally Posted by seriph1

Hi and welcome - does your roofing material/products pass Australian standards and if so, can you provide the docs or point to the supporting govt. websites that confirm same?
"

A good question , but someone appears somewhat reluctant to answer?

Don't get me wrong - I am keen to recommend good products and use them when I can, but I have always been on the opinion that nothing combustible could legally be used as roofing in Australia. My information is not current about such things and as always, am very interested to get-and-stay current.

Also, I can't afford to get such things wrong especially when my information might be used by folks in our region (Kilmore - bushfires)

I put western red cedar shakes on the front of a set of terrace houses I did , good for the first 5-6 years but oiling coating them was a pain and 10 years down I was glad they were a front feature and not on the roof . Being cut with a taper and the thinest part being 5mm they dry out and split very easily . Wouldn't use them again but in the 70's they were the ducks .

Sorry for such a long delay - not reluctant to reply, just run out of hours in the day & couldn't access forum for a while. With regards to Australian standards etc, you are right - you would definitely NOT put cedar on a roof in a bushfire prone zone. There is no specific standard that mentions WRC in particular, however the woods mentioned that are allowed to be used on buildings have comparable combustibility etc. The official reading is a Class II fire rating of 69.

As with everything there is good and bad - same with cedar. We use premium grade only - there seems to be a lot of the cheaper 2nd and 3rd grade product around. Australian climate being as it is, necessitates that CCA treated Cedar is a non-negotiable. From what you say about "oiling", it sounds like you purchased untreated cedar - and the size of it sounds like it would only be good for kindling. Again the climate in Australia necessitates that shakes (NOT shingles) be used with a starting size of 13mm in the butt, right up to 19mm (and even 25mm). Shakes can have a life expectancy of 40 years (all depending on climatic conditions of course). Majority of WRC is tapered, when layed correctly they should last a minimum of 15 years (even untreated shingles). You can get straight cut. Once a cedar roof/cladding is laid (correctly and with the correct cut of shake for the area/conditions), there is no need to oil, it's own natural oils are sufficient, just keep debris off (as with all roofs). Cedar naturally fades to grey over time.

Welcome to the forum