How To Remove Existing Wooden Roof Rafters From A Garage

When taking the roofing materials off be sure to extend the path of demolishing to each existing truss on each side of the damaged one.

How to remove existing wooden roof rafters from a garage.

When you have a problem with a roof rafter in the garage it s important that you immediately take care of it to keep the roof secure. Use your tape measure to record the distance of both rafter legs. This can seem like a huge job but in fact it s not too difficult. Discard the wood in a garbage bin as you work to make the cleanup easier.

Measure the dimensions of the old rafters beneath your roofing surface. Repeat the process for the joist beneath your old roof rafter. Remove the rotted wood with a chisel and pry bar. In face you won t be replacing the rafter but adding a support on the side along its length a process known as sistering.

However if you want to better utilize the space in your loft you may consider changing roof trusses and going for stick framing or rafters instead. Use a circular saw to cut two sets of new rafters from the same size wood by the same dimensions. Roof trusses are a common means of support and load bearing. The rotten wood will come away easily.

The sad fact is your builder could have installed attic trusses over this garage for just slightly more than what the existing trusses cost. This can easily be accomplished by using a hammer and a crowbar. The first step when removing a wood roof truss is to disassemble the existing roof that is causing a load upon the truss. Remember any alterations to a roof should be undertaken only with an engineer.