4. Roof

Question 4: Predominant Material and Condition of the Roof

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The Most Predominant Material

The roofs of Costa Rican houses are built mostly with metal sheets or with "mud tile". Of course, surely you will find some with asbestos, cement, or other type of material for the roof, although there are exceptions; for those last cases we have reserved, as in question 3, a space in which you will have to mark with an X the alternative that has been named "Other" (in which are included, for example: cement, mud tiles, wooden tiles, plastic sheets, palm, etc.).

We do not insist too much inasmuch as "tiles of mud" because it concerns that which we all know is made from baked mud and is found in the traditional farming dwelling, or rural villages or in recent mansions. The same goes for roofs made with "sheets of metal", which we know as sheets of zinc, although the possibility of finding a house where the tiles are only constitute a decorative element must be kept in mind, and under these are the sheets of zinc, that by being the predominant material of the roof will be marked as an alternative. For such a better possibility, verify from the resident of the dwelling or the Enumerated Person about this respect.

Also we call your attention inasmuch as the roofs made with a base of "asbestos-cement", which is a material used recently and known generally as "Ricalit", which is the brand that seems to have been used most. Asbestos-cement is as its name indicates, a material made with as its base a mixture of asbestos and cement. In addition to the type "Ricalit" of which we have spoken, other similar ones exist with other brand names. The important thing is that you know that you will find it generally in cases of recent urbanizations, principally those named "prefabricated".

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The state of the predominant material:

To evaluate the state in which the predominant material is found, we turn to the three categories that we have used in the previous question, saying:

• "Good": when the roof does not shoe any defects or sagging.
• "Fair": if the roof requires repairs of some importance, since it shows damages in its materials, although it does not constitute any imminent danger for the inhabitants of the dwelling.
• "Bad": when the roof is in such a state that, is demands to be substituted almost completely, both because it leaves the inhabitants at the mercy of the rain, in danger of falling over or other possible mishaps.