What are scuppers in construction? Definition of Scuppers in Construction. A component of the roof system that allows the discharge of water from the perimeter of a flat or semi flat roof through the parapet. Normally a roof scupper is constructed of aluminum or ceramic tile, and is waterproof and directly located in the parapet of a roof.
Description: Scuppers are used to provide an outlet through parapet walls or gravel stops on flat and built-up roofs to allow drainage of excess water. They can be used in conjunction with gutters and downspouts to divert the flow to the desired location.
Scuppers can be installed to carry water into gutters or directly into downspouts through conductor heads. When a conductor head is used, it should be at least 2″ wider than the scupper. When neither conductor heads nor gutters are used to catch the water, scupper spouts should extend past the exterior surface of the building to avoid wetting the building surface.
The minimum recommended weight for the construction of scuppers is 16 oz. copper. Scuppers are fabricated with flanges on the roof side which extend 4″ onto the roof. Wood blocking is required under scuppers to provide a nailable surface. Scuppers should be spaced no greater than 10 feet apart depending on the roof area drained.
Special Conditions: In areas with severe ice and snow conditions and/or excessive debris, conductor heads with overflow openings should be used. Where a roof is completely surrounded by parapet walls and drainage is provided by scuppers or internal drains, overflow scuppers should be provided. The roof-side flange of the gravel stop is nailed at 3″ O.C.
to the perimeter blocking.
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What is a scupper and how does it work?
A scupper. An exotic car part? A specialized cooking utensil for frying fish? A baby amphibious reptile? Not quite, although I swear I’ve heard them use the word scupper on the Animal Channel. No no, this term goes way back to the beginning of building buildings, when the issue of draining rain water off of a roof became evident.
You’ve all seen them, although it’s most likely one of those things that you don’t care to think about until you’re playing some trivia board game with your family on game night. The simple definition is it’s a hole in the side of a building to drain rain water from the roof. Almost every commercial building in America utilizes some form of scupper to drain rain water from its roof.
It’s not a gutter, either. The difference? It’s all about how the water is directed into it. You see, a gutter is filled from the top, where as a scupper is simply a hole cut into the side of a wall as an outlet for water. In commercial buildings with flat roofs, this is the most efficient way to drain the water pooling up on the roof.
The execution of building one, however, can be a bit more involved. The truth is, water ruins just about everything in construction. So when trying to evict the rain water from the flat roof of a building, you must consider flashing and waterproofing the outlet, the elevation of the outlet (sometimes you have additional scuppers set higher for overflow water), the frequency of placing them throughout the roof, sloping the roof to the scuppers, and more! Water makes everything complicated.
Check out this video of some ‘faux’ scuppers on this Modern Farmhouse we just built in our Country Farmhouse series. Can you figure out why they’re only faux scuppers
What are roof scuppers made of?
Scuppers Definition of Scuppers in Construction A component of the roof system that allows the discharge of water from the perimeter of a flat or semi flat roof through the parapet, Normally a roof scupper is constructed of aluminum or ceramic tile, and is waterproof and directly located in the parapet of a roof.
- The interior end of the roof scupper is level with the elevation of the roof, and will discharge into a leader ( pipe leading down to grade ), or simply spill off the side of the structure.
- Most scuppers that simply discharge the roof drainage off the side of the roof, will extend or cantilever off the side of the structure to stop that staining of the facade from draining water.
The original use of gargoyles was for the a decoration of this discharge of water off the roof. Their appearance, of course, has all the characteristics of keeping evil spirits away and the rest of the gargoyle heritage, however the practical use of these creatures is to discharge water off of a flat roof or overhanging soffit.
What is a roof scupper ponding?
What Is a Roof Scupper? – A roof scupper is a drainage system for flat roofs that can’t rely on sloping to naturally move water through a gutter system. Scuppers are essentially small devices that work by giving the water a mechanism through which it can escape the roof without passing through the interior of the building.
What is a roof scupper drain?
What is a Roof Scupper? – The International Building Code defines a roof scupper as “an opening in a wall or parapet that allows water to drain from a roof”. Roof scuppers are occasionally referred to as “scupper drains”, for obvious reasons. Roof scuppers with spouts that project out beyond the wall are known as “roof canales” in the American Southwest, where they are often used for rainwater collection.
- Scuppers provide a pathway for water to flow through parapet walls or any other raised edge around a roof, such as gravel stop edge metal,
- Primary roof scuppers normally channel water off the roof into a conductor box that connects to a downspout or a gutter,
- Overflow roof scuppers will let the water run freely down the side of the building.
A roof scupper is usually part of a peripheral drainage system, which is a drainage system in which the water drains off the sides of the roof, instead of through the roof itself using drains (an internal drainage system). Where roof sections on the same building are separated by walls, there will often be scuppers in the walls that allow water to drain from one roof section to another. 
Scuppers through a wall separating two roof sections on the same building
