Ceiling Joist Attic Loading

Ft dead load of roof of wood shingle construction 10 lbs.

Ceiling joist attic loading.

Single story house built in the 1940s. Span exceeds 26 feet in length. The wooden joists or beams over your garage help hold your roof in place. The dead load on a floor is determined by the materials used in the floor s construction.

1 inch 25 4 mm 1 foot 304 8 mm 1 pound per square foot 0 0479kpa. Hopefully the attached pictures provide additional info. Ceiling joist are 2x4. Unless expressly built so an attic s joists are meant for carrying the load of the ceiling below and related elements collectively known as the dead load.

A typical wood frame floor covered with carpet or vinyl flooring has a dead load of about 8 pounds per square foot. Loads should be determined in accordance with this chapter. 2 how much weight could the ceiling joist hold. 2attic loads may be included in the floor live load but a 10 psf attic load is typically used only to size ceiling joists adequately for access.

When used for storage only dead load of attic floor not floored 10 lbs. If you have an attic over your garage these joists also bear the load of your attic flooring and any materials you store in the attic. However in some cases the joists are intentionally built strong enough for the homeowner to later build out the attic. Therefore if you have an attic space according to this scenario the ceiling joists can be designed for a live load of 10 pounds per square foot psf by using table r802 4 1.

Most houses attics are built without flooring and are not designed to carry the heavy load of finished space. I have done this many times in rooms and older garages with sagging ceiling joists. The ceiling load may include items like drywall ducts recessed lights bathroom fans and attic insulation. If there s wall board covered ceiling suspended from the underside of that floor the dead load increases to about 10 pounds per square foot.

Ceiling joist spans for common lumber species uninhabitable attics with limited storage live load 20 psf l δ 240 check sources for availability of lumber in lengths greater than 20 feet. Girder load width half joist span live load on roof local requirements for wind and snow. Live load on attic floor local requirements. Ceiling joist are support by a wall that runs roughly down the middle of the house.

Standard joist spacing for the installation of attic flooring materials is 16 inches on center oc meaning the distance from the center of one joist to the center of the next joist is 16 inches. Attic ceiling joists with limited storage. If you need a storage area above your garage strong ceiling joists are necessary to support the added weight.