What if we needed to span more than that.
Floor stiffening beam.
Tom s house was built in 1765 but bouncy floors aren t just an old house problem.
Let s say our house is 24 x 26.
Our floor joist beam can span a maximum of 13.
Owner is balking at the idea that the beams are structural.
This solution works best in crawlspaces where you aren t too concerned about limiting headroom or cluttering the space with columns.
There are a variety of ways to stiffen a floor.
Jacks improve the effectiveness of your floor stiffening work.
Stiffening a bouncy floor built over a crawl space with a concrete floor is the simplest project because you do not have to worry about finished headroom as you do with a basement.
Bending deflection caused by overloading undersized timber section poor quality timber insect or rot damage.
Stiffening the floor with sister joists is a tried and true method overcut notches are prone to split ting.
The method or methods tom chooses depend as much on practicality as on effectiveness.
In the table above the widest floor beam span for 12 of supported floor joists is 14 7 if using a 5 ply 2 x 12.
It s obvious as heck to me that these are structural in nature especially since the contractor said he jacked the floor slightly with the beams to get the floor plate level mid span but the owner is heading down the road of prove it.
Build a wall or place a beam.
Even structurally sound code compliant new floors can deflect or flex more than feels comfortable.
The method or methods tom chooses depend as much on practicality as on effectiveness.
It s not a lot of work or expensive.
Types of wooden beam weakness that can be repaired.
If you don t mind the obstructions or loss of headroom though beams and columns certainly.
Building has floor stiffening beams in place.
We ll show you three ways to stiffen up your bouncy floor by adding bridging installing plywood along the joists and adding a wall or beam under the floor.
Built up beams are rock solid but reduce headroom.
To make a new footing cut the slab dig out the earth beneath and pour concrete flush with the top.
Beam will be and the stiffer the floor will feel.
Any one of the three can solve your problem depending on your situation.
Now we will need to support that center floor beam with posts.
Even structurally sound code compliant new floors can deflect or flex more than feels comfortable.
New build need for lowest height of timber to preserve headroom loft conversion ring beams ridge boards joists.
Tom s house was built in 1765 but bouncy floors aren t just an old house problem.
Change of use from domestic to commercial added loading such as.
