Adding On To My Shop

freedhardwoods

Deeply Rooted
Joined
Sep 11, 2014
Messages
149
Reaction score
177
Points
147
Location
SW Indiana
I don't claim to be a carpenter, even though I've built a few buildings including my house. There are other areas that may not be put together in a conventional method, but I am beefing up any parts that carry weight. I'll get pics of a couple supporting areas when I get to them.

That end wall is non load bearing so I skipped the extra support. I will be building the wall on up to the joist soon and get a pic of it.

I only have a single top plate on the load bearing south wall, but I doubled the studs under each joist and have a 2x6 support on edge the length of the wall fastened to the inside. Pole barns normally have that edgewise board and no top plate. I guess I'm sort of mixing methods.

My house is built the conventional way; double top plate all around, well insulated etc. Can't remember everything about some of my other buildings. My house is 30+ years old. No problems with it yet. So far this fall, I turned the furnace on one morning a couple days ago for a couple hours to take the chill off. It's 21* outside and 62* inside right now. My wife may or may not turn it on for a little bit when she gets up.
 
Last edited:

valley ranch

Garden Master
Joined
Dec 22, 2014
Messages
5,742
Reaction score
5,724
Points
367
Location
Sierra Nevada mountains, and Nevada high desert
Yep, Red, the top plate will be like 3 1/2" shorter on one wall and the intersecting wall will have the top plate 3 1/2" longer so they fit together like a puzzle and tighten everything up.

He'll tighten up as he sees the need, that shop look like a dream.
 

freedhardwoods

Deeply Rooted
Joined
Sep 11, 2014
Messages
149
Reaction score
177
Points
147
Location
SW Indiana
Top plate isn't so much for support as to tie the walls together.

Yep, Red, the top plate will be like 5 1/2" shorter on one wall and the intersecting wall will have the top plate 5 1/2" longer so they fit together like a puzzle and tighten everything up.

He'll tighten up as he sees the need, that shop look like a dream.
I changed your quote for my situation.

I think my house has overlapping top plates, but it's been over 30 years and I can't remember for sure. Also, anything I have built that was bigger than a dog house has 2x6 walls. That's why my house is insulated so well.

I can't overlap a top plate on this building on either end now. I have the corners tied together really well without it. I asked a local carpenter if he would double the top 2x6 plate in my situation and he said it could help stiffen the center of a non bearing wall in severe wind situations. Since I built both walls in 2 sections, they probably do need center support.

Thanks for the tips. :thumbsup
 
Last edited:

freedhardwoods

Deeply Rooted
Joined
Sep 11, 2014
Messages
149
Reaction score
177
Points
147
Location
SW Indiana
First pic is the top double plate that I was able to overlap
into the new wall.

I have been reusing the metal I pulled off of the building. I have 1 end and 1 side on except for the sliding door. Just a small pile of metal left. The ugly looking spot by the window is a temporary patch over the hole I framed in the wall for A/C. I won't buy and install that til next summer.

I am going to pull the old metal off the end of the building facing the road, use part of it to finish the door, and put new metal across that entire end. The sliding door on that end will be 2/3 in the old part and 1/3 in the new. The header will be supporting the roof as well as the door.

I measured the wall sections this morning before I went to work, called the lengths in at 7 am when GPB opened, and brought home the new metal late this afternoon.

I'll have several pics for this wall. I have to jack up the header holding the roof peak, take out the corner post, and put the header in the end wall to hold up the roof header. I'd like to get that wall covered by Sat pm. We'll see if that happens.

48.jpg
46.jpg
47.jpg
49.jpg
51.jpg
 

Latest posts

Top