1 x research source these are large pieces of lumber going across the house from side to side supporting the floor roof and are generally 16 apart.
Removing walls to connect garage attic to house.
Today every truss or rafter is anchored with a strap if one is following high wind construction guidelines.
The stucco on the building was a real issue.
In your attic or in an unfinished garage use a flashlight to look at the connection between the trusses or rafters and the outside walls of the house.
The rest of the walls the partition walls are simply there to divide rooms.
The original insulation was near 40 years old and sitting below the ceiling joists in many spots.
Non load bearing walls also called partition walls do not support loads from above and are simply there to divide spaces if you re considering removing a load bearing wall.
Go into your basement or crawlspace and look at the alignment of floor joists.
You can remove either type of wall but if the wall is load bearing you have to take special precautions to support the structure during removal and to add a beam or other form.
The wall you are wanting to remove is not a bearing wall by looking at the framing in the attic and the roof lines of the house.
Bait traps with cheese or peanut butter but do not set the traps.
Removing a load bearing wall and replacing it with a beam is significantly different from removing interior non load bearing walls load bearing walls are structural elements that help support the weight of the house.
Only some of your walls are needed to hold up your house.
However if it was my house i d go significantly more conservative and use a 60 minute rated door and frame as well as 1 hour fire rated smoke barrier construction the house garage wall is intended to be a firebreak of sorts and 1hr construction is not that much more costly than a standard wall.
Attics they re dark and dingy but great for storage if you can gain the right access especially in a garage attic.
I wanted to save some money by buying a smaller one but this one is better and works well for me.
I am going to put another on the attic for cooling the house.
This way i open the door in the house and the fan quickly absorbs cool air from it.
See below for a shopping list and tools subscribe to this old house.
All holes around the edge of the attic need sealing with mesh wire screwed with screws to prevent mice from coming back.
Just to be on the side of caution i would install an 8ft 4x4 directly centered under the splice with lag bolts and remove the vertical.
This old house general contractor tom silva shows how to safely cut open up a wall.
I really like this model.
Try to determine whether you can see any indication of metal straps.
These are called bearing walls.
Several years ago we wanted to beef up the insulation in our main attic to help make our home more energy efficient.
Clean the attic first and remove any mice droppings and nests that you can find.