Supporting Floor Joists That Have Been Cut For Plumbing

Contractors may cut through floor joists to accommodate plumbing or hvac mechanical equipment as long as they properly transfer the floor load to adjoining joists by adding headers.

Supporting floor joists that have been cut for plumbing.

If you have sagging cracked or twisted joists which can happen in older houses this project will provide the extra support the floor needs. B the framing member that runs around the perimeter of your house and that the floor joists butt into often gets riddled with large holes. Heading off and framing floor openings. How do you support loads when a joist must be cut for plumbing.

Section r502 10 of the international residential code states that header joists can be the same size as the floor joists when the header joist span isn t greater than 4 feet but if the header joist span is more than 4 feet you ll need to double the header joist and ensure that it s capable of. The rim joist fig. Even worse is that over time any rot or decay from moisture that these cut up joists see will result in a dangerous situation where if the job was done right the joists would be able to handle the load. In a perfect world any floor joist that is cut should have a header installed preferably two and doubled adjacent joists.

If you ve had a chronically damp basement or crawlspace look for indications of insect damage to structural members. Look for insect damage and moisture. Additional support for the floor joists is achieved by nailing the ends of the joists into headers. The idea behind this is pretty simple.

Also look for floor joists that have been cut improperly to install pipes wiring or hvac ducts. This space is the logical exit point for dryer and furnace vents big electrical service wires and fireplace fresh air intakes.