From this site

One project, every trade

Each calculator adds its lines to a single estimate — consolidated BOM, schedule and cash-flow included.

Open My Project →

Roof Cricket (Saddle) Framing Calculator

Calculate the ridge height of a roof cricket built to divert water around a chimney or other roof obstruction.

Computed in your browser — nothing you enter is uploaded. Figures are presented for United States against IRC 2024, and every formula is cited under regulatory standards below.

Last verified 2026-08-26 · v1.0.0

Market
Imperial · sales tax
3.94 ft
Schematic, drawn to the proportions you entered — not to scale on screen.

Cricket ridge height

0.98 ft

High confidence

With the figures above, the cricket ridge height comes to 0.30 m. This is calculated for United States and cites IRC 2024. Building in another market? Change the selector above so the units and code reference follow.

Estimated cost — your price

This site holds no price list for this material — local prices vary too much to publish honestly. Enter your supplier's price and the result is costed with it.

Preliminary estimate, not certified engineering. This tool produces an indicative quantity calculation for planning purposes only — it is not a certified structural analysis, a guaranteed material takeoff, or a substitute for building department approval. Always verify measurements on-site and have a licensed contractor or structural engineer review any load-bearing, code-sensitive, or safety-critical work before purchasing materials or starting construction. Spotted an arithmetic or standards error? Report it to contact@craftquantities.com with your inputs — confirmed fixes become pinned regression tests.

[Schema Verified] Computed in alignment with American Concrete Institute (ACI 318-19) formulas and International Residential Code (IRC 2024) spatial boundaries.

Regulatory standards & verification citations

  • A symmetric roof cricket's ridge height = half the obstruction's up-slope-facing width x the main roof's pitch ratio

Your workspace

Most jobs need more than one number. Add the calculators you need next and they open right here, underneath this one — your figures stay on screen and nothing is lost to a page change.

Frequently asked questions

Why does a chimney need a cricket at all?
A cricket (or saddle) diverts water and debris around the up-slope side of a chimney or other wide roof obstruction, preventing it from pooling or building up ice and snow against the obstruction's back side.
Why is the ridge height based on half the obstruction width?
A symmetric cricket splits the obstruction's up-slope width into two equal sloped faces meeting at a center ridge, so each face's run is half the total obstruction width.
Does the cricket pitch have to match the main roof pitch?
This calculator assumes a symmetric cricket built at the same pitch as the main roof, which is a common approach — some crickets are built shallower or steeper depending on the roofing material and obstruction size.