A cricket, in roofing terms, is a small peaked or ridged structure built on the upslope side of a chimney or other wide roof obstruction, specifically designed to divert water and snow around the obstruction rather than allowing it to accumulate against the upslope face.
Without this diverting structure, water and especially snow can pool or build up against a wide chimney’s upslope side, creating persistent moisture exposure and potential structural loading that a properly built cricket effectively prevents.
Building codes typically require a cricket once a chimney or similar obstruction exceeds a certain width, reflecting the point at which water accumulation against the upslope face becomes a genuine functional concern rather than a minor issue.
What Does a Cricket Involve?
- A framed, peaked structure built on the roof deck
- Placement on the upslope side of a wide obstruction
- Flashing integrating the cricket with the surrounding roofing
- Sizing based on the obstruction’s width and the roof’s pitch
Why Are Crickets Important?
By diverting water and snow around a wide chimney rather than allowing accumulation against its upslope face, a cricket significantly reduces the moisture exposure and associated leak risk that chimney owes to standing water or prolonged snow contact, a genuine and well-documented source of chimney-related roof leaks. This diverting function becomes increasingly important as chimney width increases relative to the roof’s overall slope.
Older homes with wide chimneys sometimes lack an adequate cricket, either because it was never built or has deteriorated over time, making this a worthwhile detail to evaluate specifically when investigating a chimney with a history of leaks or visible water staining nearby.
Cricket vs. Saddle Roof
A cricket is a small diverting structure built specifically behind a chimney or similar obstruction. A saddle roof describes a similar small peaked roof structure, though this term is sometimes used more broadly for comparable diverting elements in slightly different contexts.