What can we tell from THIS photo? The wood plates and staples indicate that these are very old field built wood trusses. The soot and char indicate that they have been exposed to a fire. The relatively clean separation between… Read More
Category Archives: Wood
How many layers of shingles?
How many layers of shingles can be safely supported on a wood framed residential roof? Most building codes limit the number of layers of shingles to two. As a structural engineer, I design for two, but I prefer one layer… Read More
What Can We Tell from This Photo? (Case Study 6)
During our moisture source evaluations we sometimes observe other conditions that we bring to the attention of the owner. Such is the case for this week’s topic. In the featured photo and Figure FT-1 we see a fractured web… Read More
How Much Snow Can My Roof Support?
After a succession of heavy snowfalls, we are often asked the question, “How much snow can a roof support?” or more specifically, “How much snow can MY roof support?” and “Should I shovel the snow off my roof?” Most who… Read More
Sawing Off the Limb You Are Standing On
Many of us have heard the expression, “You are sawing off the limb you are standing on.” Often someone will say this during a friendly debate when the other debater is undermining his own argument by discrediting his own evidence.… Read More
Garage Whisperer
We are often contacted to evaluate “Why is the garage leaning?” and “When did the lean occur?” (See the featured photo). With regard to the latter question, fortunately we have super listening powers. That is, we are able to hear… Read More
Humps and Sags in a Roof Framed with Sawn Lumber
We are sometimes contacted to evaluate humps and/or sags in roof slopes, as shown in the featured photo and Figures HS-1. Most often we are asked to evaluate residential roofs which are commonly framed with 2×6 or 2×8 rafters. … Read More