Patio Roof Best Practices

[ddayy2k]

I am going to put up a 10' x 20' patio roof this Spring and would like to start a thread to gather information on all aspects of the project. Specifically is it worth the $5000 to have a pro do it or can a handyman with 3 friends do it . I have a few other questions:
Is it better to anchor to the patio or put in a cement footing ?
Is 3/12 roof pitch the best ? (asphalt shingle roof)
Where should I anchor it the house? Does it need to be to the sill ? (which seems quite high)
What kind of wood works best? (I am in North Texas).

I hope this thread can offer good suggestions to all DIY's out there
dday

[Don_P]

There is a similar thread going on here;
http://www.construction-resource.com/forum/showthread.php?t=9881

I'm going to agree with the majority of the responses, it would be money well spent to have it professionally designed. It's pretty straightworward to design for vertical loads. Where the walls of a building provide lateral restraint during hight wind an open roofed structure is more difficult to brace horizontally and experiences alot more uplift during a storm.

[joecaption]

No roof should ever be attached to the band joist or fascia.
Asphalt shingles need far more pitch then that to not leak.
http://www.iko.com/advantage/CasmaPdf/16-LowSlopedRoofs.PDF

A 4/12 is the bare minimum pitch. It would be far better to have the rafter tails sitting up on the original roof sitting on a ledger that's nailed to the org. roof. That way the shingles can be woven into the org. roof and it will not leak.
The post are never just set on the old deck unless there's was a 24" X 24" by 24" deep footing pored before the deck went in.
For a roof that long I'd use 6 X 6 post with a double 2 X 8" min. header cut into the 6 X 6's, and double through bolted. You will also need to 45% side bracing attached to each post to stop any swaying.
I'd agree that for this roof to be built so it's not going to fail and not leak by the questions your asking hire a pro instead.
I can not remember the last time I saw a DIY porch deck roof that was built right. Most leak, sway, or by the time you get out to the part of the roof that's the furthest from the house it sits so low there's no way to install a door later when they want to enclose it.