How To Reinforce Floor Joists In Attic

The joists must have enough strength to support the load anticipated in the future as well.

How to reinforce floor joists in attic.

Gluing and screwing a 3 4 attic subfloor and providing solid bridging should also be considered. My calculations tell me assuming 2 southern yellow pine joists which are common in my area that 2x6s 16 inches on center will span 9 feet 9 inches with allowable deflection being the governing factor. After several centuries of service floor joists in older homes may sag or crack. However you can easily transform your attic by remodeling its floor using joists to create a safe and stable flooring system.

Clear the joist spaces. How to reinforce an attic floor with sister joists. Often existing joist bays are filled with electrical and heating ducts that will need to be relocated. Adding a 2 x 4 along the bottom chord of the 2 x 6 ceiling floor joist maybe helpful in stiffening the joist as well.

Pull out all insulation and any debris from all of the joist spaces so you can see the full length of each joist including where it meets the exterior walls. Positioning the new joist adjacent to the existing preserves precious ceiling but it does come with some potential complications. How to make floor joists stronger. But you can still double the capacity of the existing 2x6s in the attic floor so first let s make sure that s enough for your situation.

Plan is to use attic for storage not for living. Just installed an attic ladder in 90 year old house. This is a great answer. You will have to use a very sturdy piece of wood or some steel plating to reinforce the floor joists.

Also remove any blocking or bridging between the joists as applicable. It might be a good idea to make a drawing of the floor joist as a reference. Currently the joists are 2 4ã â â s real 2 4ã â â s not 1 ã x 3ã â â s. If your attic joists won t bear the weight necessary to finish out a living space but the engineer cleared them to support floor decking for light storage you can install inch plywood or.

I went to get a permit from the city to finish the attic and they said i needed to reinforce the floor since for a live load it was not strong enough for our span below about 12. Be sure to jot down your measurements and mark it on the diagram so you have a good record of where they go. Step by step guide on how to build attic flooring on joists. Long spans of joists in newer homes may wobble or bounce from foot traffic.