Cupolas

Cupolas

Cupolas can be added to the roofs of gazebos, pavilions, or even your home. They serve two major purposes: they help with air ventilation, and they are decorative. The air vent slots allow the wind and air from above the roof to enter the building, as opposed to just bouncing off. In an outdoor structure such as a gazebo or pavilion, this extra air flow acts as a type of air conditioning, circulating the air. A Cupola on a home can have the same effect, and for the cupola on your home you can even have windows installed. Cupolas are also great decorative pieces to top your building with. It gives a classier look to the structure, causing the structure to appear either more Victorian, or very expensive, depending on the style you go with.

Weathervane Cupola

You can top your cupola with a weathervane. This also serves both a decorative purpose as well as a practical one. Weathervanes often take on interesting forms that can enhance the look of your cupola topped structure. A weathervane also has its original, more practical use of seeing the wind direction. This is helpful in knowing when a storm might be on its way.

Build A Cupola

A cupola has three basic parts: the roof, the slated louvers, and the base (called a skirt). When deciding on the size of your cupola, a general rule of thumb is 1.5 inches to every foot of unbroken roof surface. So if you’ve got a big roof, you’ll want a larger cupola. There are many places to get plans for building your own cupola. One such place is the following online. Included will be plans for a generic cupola of a specific size. If you want yours to be larger or smaller than the plans are for, you’ll need to change the dimensions on your own. The two main ways to attach a cupola to your home (or barn, gazebo, pavilion, or garage) once it’s built are to add braces to it, or cut it to fit your structure. The most popular way to mount a do-it-yourself cupola is to design the skirt so that the middle of it fits snugly to the arch of your roof. You can, however, build braces to hold it in place, sort of like little legs. If you have a flat roof, you may add mounts that can be screwed down directly. If done right, your cupola can enhance your home both aesthetically, as well as cost effectively (after all, with added air ventilation, you won’t need that air conditioner running 24/7.