All Stick Frame ? No Trusses ? What does this mean ? (contractor, design)

[TN Tin Man]

Originally Posted by shadowwalker

I had bought trusses from a company here in town. While unloading them. The just tipped them off the semi trailer and let them fall. It sprung the whole load of trusses so bad that I had to reject the whole order. I was building the building myself. No help or contractors. Just me. Well we fought over this and I stopped payment on trusses as I paid with a credit card. You know what? That set of trusses still sets in the building supply companies lot. Oh, it gets moved from time to time but not one has bought them in almost four years. So I guess I was right. Oh and you can set trusses yourself. I had the other ones set beside the building and one by one took them by hand up on the floor, set them on top of the walls, (which I set up by myself),flipped them upright on top of the wall. Temporary nailed in place. Until I got ready to set on the roof work.
Now I will be the first to admit a crane would have been better. But necessity is the father of invention. Oh, and the Internet helped a lot!

Next time..... You can hang the truss upside down between the walls. Then using a rope swing them up right, "BUT" a crane is much!!! Better.. Here in FL most contractors have a metal tube frame that will accomadate 6-8-10 truss at a time.The frame has chains hanging off it that you can adjust, then you pick up 6-8-10 trusses at a time with the crane..... set and nail,then repeat....

[harry chickpea]

I've had to become acquainted with trusses, rafters, and joists. Roof decks have a load bearing weight that varies by the area of the country, primarily based on the snow load weight. Roofs in the south are going to seem flimsy to anyone from the north or mountain states. IIRC, the roof load requirement on a southern roof is only about 20 pounds per square foot. There will be some normal flexing when a person walks on a roof made to the minimum standards.

RE trusses and nail plates: A builder who attempts to make trusses on-site using nail plates is a fool. The metal joining plates of trusses may look like the plates you can buy in a home improvement store, but the ones used to properly make trusses are much stronger and pressed into place with a multi-ton press.

I once had to help a friend who had lost part of his roof to snow load. His rafters were 2" x 4" x 16' and placed 24" O.C. After checking some reference books and figuring out the loads, modulous of elasticity, and requirements, I found that simply putting a single 2" x 4" truss from the center of the span on each side to the center of the attic space made the entire roof over 6 times stronger. In essence, the shorter the span, the greater the load-bearing capacity, in an almost exponential relationship. When he eventually abandoned the house and it fell down, the walls collapsed and the roof structure remained intact.

Opening up attic space is a moot point if the pitch is low, and trusses are a great way to go to keep the living space open. If planning for a 1 1/2 story home, then a strong method would be to use 2" x 6" rafters, with a support wall that allowed a 7' or greater ceiling height in the upstairs space. The span of the rafter from the wall to ridge would be well within capacities unless the house was extra wide. In that case, a collar beam and trussing on top would boost the strength.

[alleycat]

Originally Posted by harry chickpea

RE trusses and nail plates: A builder who attempts to make trusses on-site using nail plates is a fool. The metal joining plates of trusses may look like the plates you can buy in a home improvement store, but the ones used to properly make trusses are much stronger and pressed into place with a multi-ton press.

I absolutely agree. And whenever I've seen a builder try to do this, generally they are builders who try to cut all sorts of corners, not just on the trusses.

[TN Tin Man]

Are the inspectors really watching? When I first came too Florida 30+ years ago I got in a huge argument with the contractor because he was putting the trusses on 28 inch centers? Where I came from in upstate N.Y we put trusses on 12 inch centers do too the snow load. Does this vary from county too county in Tennessee?

[alleycat]

Originally Posted by Tinman313

Are the inspectors really watching? When I first came too Florida 30+ years ago I got in a huge argument with the contractor because he was putting the trusses on 28 inch centers? Where I came from in upstate N.Y we put trusses on 12 inch centers do too the snow load. Does this vary from county too county in Tennessee?

Okay, I've just got to ask. What was his argument for putting trusses on 28" centers?

[TN Tin Man]

Originally Posted by alleycat

Okay, I've just got to ask. What was his argument for putting trusses on 28" centers?

I was use too 12 inch on center, and when I measured my home that I was building they where 28-30 inch on center. I figured the contractor was trying too pull a fast one.......

[alleycat]

Originally Posted by Tinman313

I was use too 12 inch on center, and when I measured my home that I was building they where 28-30 inch on center. I figured the contractor was trying too pull a fast one.......

What did he do about the decking? Cut it to fit the truss spacing? Or . . . leaving the edges hanging out in the air?

[TN Tin Man]

Originally Posted by alleycat

What did he do about the decking? Cut it to fit the truss spacing? Or . . . leaving the edges hanging out in the air?

Here in Florida they run the decking 1/2--5/8 OSB longitudinal across the trusses and yes clip it off on the over hang. Depending if it's hip roof they cut too appropriate angle, then the next course of OSB is jogged so the next seem up falls in the middle of a full sheet.It must Tye in with the truss,so they have too cut too fit middle of truss for next sheet. Now by the new code they have too have clips every 6 inches on edges OSB and a ring shank nail every 4 inch on truss, then a new material for Florida a self sealing rubber membrane that has a fiber glass cloth woven in the membrane,then shingles must have nails every 3 inches.This is for all new roofs and any re-roof after 1/1/08. The inspector has too inspect after roof deck when completion. Then inspector comes back after membrane is installed, then again after shingles are installed......... Roofing contractors are not happy

[crossvibe]

new material for Florida a self sealing rubber membrane that has a fiber glass cloth woven in the membrane,then shingles must have nails every 3 inches.This is for all new roofs and any re-roof after 1/1/08. The inspector has too inspect after roof deck when completion. Then inspector comes back after membrane is installed, then again after shingles are installed......... Roofing contractors are not happy[/quote]

I thought the new code started June of 08? One good thing, that silver/white colored fiberglass cloth is a radiant barrier. So much better than tar paper ...

[TN Tin Man]

Originally Posted by crossville

new material for Florida a self sealing rubber membrane that has a fiber glass cloth woven in the membrane,then shingles must have nails every 3 inches.This is for all new roofs and any re-roof after 1/1/08. The inspector has too inspect after roof deck when completion. Then inspector comes back after membrane is installed, then again after shingles are installed......... Roofing contractors are not happy

I thought the new code started June of 08? One good thing, that silver/white colored fiberglass cloth is a radiant barrier. So much better than tar paper ...[/quote]

Was it June 08?........ And the rubber membrane I was looking at the big orange store looked like shower stall enclosure material that had a glass cloth in the middle and just plan black and one side was self adhesive with a backer paper you pealed off......same width as a roll of tar paper and about the same size. I know a number of contractors using a OSB board with a foil back,and the foil side faces into the attic space...something to do with UVA and UBA...... something about reflecting the wave length back so it does not collect in the attic