# Wood Shake

> A thick, rough-textured wooden roofing unit split from a log on at least one face, giving a rugged, deeply shadowed roof.

- URL: https://roof.wiki/wood-shake/
- Topic: Roofing Materials
- Also known as: cedar shake; shake roof; split shake; hand-split shake
- Regions: North America, Europe
- First published: 2026-11-02 · Last reviewed: 2026-11-02
- Cite as: "Wood Shake." roof.wiki. https://roof.wiki/wood-shake/

## Key facts

- **Definition:** Split on at least one face
- **Common length:** 24 in (610 mm)
- **Types:** Handsplit/resawn, tapersawn, straight-split, tapersplit
- **Special detail:** Felt interlay between courses

A wood shake is a wooden roofing unit that has been split, rather than sawn, along the grain on at least one face. Splitting follows the natural fibres of the wood, so shakes have a rough, textured surface and straight, continuous grain, which makes them stronger and less likely to warp than sawn shingles. Shakes are thicker than shingles and produce a heavier, more rustic-looking roof.

## Types

North American shakes are classified by how they are made:

- **Handsplit and resawn**: a split blank is run through a band saw diagonally, producing two shakes each with one split face and one sawn back.
- **Tapersawn**: sawn on both faces from a split block, giving a thick, tapered unit with a smoother surface than a handsplit shake.
- **Straight-split and tapersplit**: split on both faces; tapersplit shakes are tapered by reversing the block between each split.

The Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau's product lines include Certi-Split (handsplit and split shakes) and Certi-Sawn (tapersawn shakes).

## Sizes

North American shakes are most commonly 24 in (610 mm) long; 18 in (457 mm) shakes are sometimes called barn shakes, and 48 in (1.2 m) shakes are mainly used for siding.

## Installation features

Because the rough split surfaces do not lie tightly together, shake roofs traditionally include a strip of roofing felt **interlay** between each course to stop wind-driven rain and snow being blown through the gaps; the Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau's manual specifies felt interlay for shakes only. Shakes are fixed with corrosion-resistant fasteners and spaced slightly apart to allow for swelling.

## Performance

Split shakes resist water penetration well along their grain, and their thickness gives them a longer service life than shingles of the same species, provided they can dry. They require more maintenance than many modern roofing materials: debris, moss and lichens must be removed, and shakes that are split or cupped need replacing. Like all wood roofs, untreated shakes are combustible, and pressure-impregnated fire-retardant shakes are required in many fire-prone jurisdictions.

## Alternatives

Rubber, plastic and fibre-cement "shake-look" products imitate the appearance of wood shakes with lower maintenance, though they lack the natural texture and weathering of real wood.


## Sources

1. Wood shingle — Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_shingle
2. Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau — Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau. https://www.cedarbureau.org/
3. Roof Installation Manual — Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau. https://www.cedarbureau.org/installation/roof-installation-manual/