Ridge Beam Roof Construction

The image below shows a cross section of our simple 12 x 13 house from the joist span tables section of this tutorial.

Ridge beam roof construction.

The difference between them is that a ridge beam is a structural member that bears half of the live and dead loads of the rafters on either side of it but a ridge board is not structural. Yes either a ridge board or a ridge beam is necessary and required by the building code where roof rafters meet at the the center of their span. A ridge board is a non structural member that serves as a prop for opposing rafters to rest against and connect to. Its the way i was trained to build sheds.

Now if you have done any looking around this site you ll quickly see that i am not a fan of using a ridge beam in shed construction. Ridge beam sizing is based on the span of the beam between supports and the amount of roof load supported by the beam. A structural ridge beam is a horizontal beam placed at the peak or ridge of a roof and is designed to carry much of the live and dead loads or weight of the roof structure by itself. The ridge board must be set as perfectly as possible so take your time and use careful measurements.

Timber framing is a traditional method of framing that uses heavy timbers instead of standard board lumber. Ridge beams and boards modern raising ceiling joists jlc technical steico construction roof rafter collar tie calculations structural ridge beamtimber steel framing manual single span ridge beamglulam ridge beam span table elcho. Ridge beams are required by code if the roof slope is less than 3 in 12 irc section r802 3. Here we have a wood framed gable roof.

Let s consider a basic gable wood roof framing design. Continuing on from part 3. Floor beam span tables of residential structural design we will now look at roof rafter and beam design. Here s a picture of a gable style shed using a ridge beam.

The loads on the ridge beam are carried by vertical posts at the beam ends down through the building structural walls to the building foundation. The ridge board runs the length of the building and provides support for the tops of the rafters helping the whole roof structure work together as a system. Framing in a ridge beam in shed roof construction is not hard. I always always build trusses.

Timber frame ridge beams.