Roof Without Ridge Board

Ridge beams are required by code if the roof slope is less than 3 in 12 irc section r802 3.

Roof without ridge board.

You don t need a ridge beam but you do need a way to keep the walls from spreading. A ridge board is a non structural member that serves as a prop for opposing rafters to rest against and connect to. If you re using a roofing calculator press the pitch button to input the pitch ratio in the calculator s memory. Rafters and a ridge board are the key components of a roof framing system.

The engineer has designed this exposed roof to have the rafters meet up at the top and have cats or brace boards installed in place of ridge board in between rafters. Other elements like gable studs and cross ties supply additional bracing. For 2 x 4 rafters use a 2 x 6 ridge board. You may splice two boards together to achieve this length if necessary using a 14 and 1 2 inch block of the same material.

A ridge board was not always required and the photo above of the attic in a 1920s era house shows a roof framed without one. The ridge board forms the peak and ties the rafters together side to side and end to end. To learn more about roof structures go to our home inspection blog at. A proper beam would have a supporting post at each end.

Collar ties rafter ties tension beams structural ridge beams. A ridge board isn t a beam per se. If the roof rises 7 inches 18 cm for every 1 foot 0 30 m its pitch would be written as 7 12. This article describes and illustrates the different types of support that prevents roof sagging and wall bulging at buildings including definitions of collar ties rafter ties and structural ridge beams.

It s often just a nice way to bring the rafters together. Also measure the length of half of the roof from one side of the ridge beam to the edge of the building. Ridge beam sizing is based on the span of the beam between supports and the amount of roof load supported by the beam. Roof framing without a ridge board hey i was wondering if any of you have ever actually framed a roof before without a ridge beam.

A ridge beam carries the loads of the rafters connected to it and must be both strong enough to carry the weight and well supported at the bearing points at each end to transfer the loads down to the ground. The rafters support the sides or slope of the roof.