Hello, I recently moved into a 1929 Craftman Style house where the collar beams have been removed from at one end of house to provide for attic storage. I recently noticed that the rafters are separating. I need the storage space, so does anyone have any suggestions on how to reinforce that end of the attic so the rafters do not continue separating from the ridge board?
hurricane clips. go to the lumber yard & tell them your problem
Put the collars back or replace the ridgeboard with a supported ridge beam designed by someone who knows what they're doing. Don't forget to get a permit. If the separation is extensive you probably have damage at the walls where the thrust force is at work too.
Hurricane clips will do absolutely nothing. A lumber yard does not provide engineering advice.
R
It's stupid to trade off a building's structural integrity for a little additional storage space. You are killing your house. There are no bandaid solutions.
Reinstall the collar ties (they are not beams even though in some areas that is what people call them). There is no other choice. You should do this yesterday, if you catch my drift.
Have a pro take a look at it before you start DIYing. DIYing is what caused the problem in the first place. By pro, I mean engineer, architect or an experienced contractor.
You should look along the exterior walls where the interior walls intersect them. If there are cracks forming, you need an engineer.
R
I concur with both Rico and Michael. You have placed the structural integrity of your house in jeopardy. Hire a local professional engineer to review the situation and to make recommendations before the house collapses around your ears.
Lets get real here. If the rafters are separating from the ridge, I would suggest you contact the airlines and have them see what that roof has to make it lift up. They will buy the idea. Any that I have seen seem to push down and get tighter on the ridge. What you described, the way you described it, can't happen. Is this a hoax?
The bottom of the rafters' plumb cuts pull away from the ridge as the walls spread apart. The top of the plumb cuts stay in contact...until they don't, and then you really should be anywhere else than under the rafters.
Winter. Snow loads. Wind not partially blocked by tree leaves. Needs to be addressed immediately.
R
no, but usenet does. girl !
maybe they were shitty cuts to begin with , do you have any documentation over a long period of time to show how much movement there has been, & under what conditions?
how long ago were they removed? were they ever actually there? you could drill a couple holes insert some shackles, hook up a come along & pull them back in place & put up collar ties or even metal strapping to keep them intact. it really doesn't make sense that the rafters would push away from the ridge unless maybe it was jacked at some point in the past. maybe it had a sag & someone jacked it up to replace posts or such. hope it helps.
See RicodJour's explanation. The rafter bottoms come out as the tops come down.
messagenews: snipped-for-privacy@k70g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...> Hello,
they removed? were they ever actually there? you could
It might be possible to use knee walls and the attic floor to provide support. Since you don't want to simply replace the collar ties, I vote that you need to get an engineer to take a look.
So it looks like 4 votes for getting an engineer and 2 votes by folks who don't seem to know what collar ties accomplish.
Steve.
Yup.
Without seeing the situation firsthand, and not knowing if the gaps are widening, I would advise you to attach collar ties to opposing pairs of rafter, every other pair, about 1/3 of the way down from the ridge. Generally five 10d nails into each rafter at each end. This will prevent the rafters from continuing to separate.
Keep an eye on the situation, and pay particular attention to the wall/ceiling and exterior wall/interior wall junctions for signs of cracking. String a very taut line under the ridge board, spaced down from the bottom of the ridge a half inch or so, equal on both ends. Measure down to the line at each pair of rafters and see if the ridge has sagged where you removed the collar ties. If you have a good eye, you can sight along the bottom of the ridge to get a qualitative idea of the amount of sag.
If there isn't any cracking in the drywall and the bottom of the ridge if pretty straight, you've probably caught it in time. Learn to duck under the collar ties.
RYeah, don't forget the permit. Jeeeezzzzeeee..... to nail up one board. PLLLLLLEASE..
Good point, Most likely, the rafter have just shrunk in length. The floor joists in my 1871 home had shrunk all the way off the large nails holding them.
Obviously someone doesn't know what a collar tie does.
It's main purpose is to stop that slab of roof from becoming an airplane wing with a strong wind. They are usually every 4 ft and down about 1/3 of the rafter. They also do give some support to the rafter to keep it from sagging. A collar tie just below the ridge will hold the roof together just as well but gives no support to the center of the rafter. If the rafter is sized right, it doesn't need any support anyway.
Someone here seems to think it will help keep the building from spreading. That is total nonsense The only one that thinks you need a permit or an engineer must need the consulting work.
Can you say "Triangulation" It sounds like this could be fixed with nothing more than a string-line, a hefty jack and some new collar ties.
1) The Jack(s) will put it back where it started.2) The string-line will determine what is straight.
3) The collar ties hold it in placeOnce the collar ties are properly secured, the rafters shouldn't go anywhere. If needed, and there is ample support below, the need for "Ridge Poles" could be put into place for added support. But ONLY if there is ample support from below.
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