How To Support A Roof Without Rafters

Framing a roof is the last step in framing new construction.

How to support a roof without rafters. Sagging rafters are a sign that a house is in serious trouble. If you re framing a gable roof on a new house or building a shed or even a doghouse with a gable roof you ll need to cut a number of roof rafters. Use 1 by 4 inch boards called purlins as temporary braces for rafter trusses. Over time roof rafters can wear crack or rot and replacements may be in order.

Without the proper support of rafter ties or a structural ridge a typical gable or sloped roof will sag downwards while pushing the building walls outwards towards a catastrophe such as that shown in our page top photo of a barn in amenia ny. Prevent this unfortunate series of events by bracing your rafters to make them sturdy and resistant to snow loads and wind. Brace other rafters as they are installed down the roof by nailing temporary 2 by 4 supports to rafter edges and to roof joists if rafters are being installed separately. While most home builders will outsource the construction of roofing trusses the rafter supports of the roof itself learning to frame a roof yourself is one of the true arts of carpentry and a basic primer is covered below.

In long spans the roof would sag in the middle if it were not strengthened in some way. A standard triangular roof known as a gable roof is framed using rafters which are diagonal members that support the roofing materials. The failure of rafter ties in this building combined with snow loading in amenia new york pushed the ridge down and the walls outwards as the. The handiest tool in your toolbox for this job will be the speed square.

Before you cut your boards you ll need to measure the width of your building and calculate the exact length of each rafter. How to frame a gable roof without ceiling joists. A ridge board was not always required and the photo above of the attic in a 1920s era house shows a roof framed without one. Rafter layout rafters must be laid out and cut with slope length and overhang exactly right so that they will fit when placed in the roof.

When sagging gets too severe it can lead to roof collapse and once the roof goes the house won t last for long. Nail these temporarily to the outside edges of the rafter sides starting with the third truss. This gives us plenty of support for our roof without having to worry about snow or other debris caving our shed roof in. Rafter and joist systems are made up of two pieces of wood that run directly beneath the roofing surface and give it its shape while joists bridge the gap between the two rafter ends and support the whole thing.

A ridge beam carries the loads of the rafters connected to it and must be both strong enough to carry the weight and well supported at the bearing points at each end to transfer the loads down to the ground. Cut the first rafter tail and ridge cuts. The roof rafters provide integral structural support to the roof.