knee wall storage with ceiling trusses?

[gcan]

I have a 26'x26' garage with a floored 2nd story which is 12'8"x26', the upper part was made possibe by using trusses. My trusses have a 2x8 floor cord and the rest is 2x4 and they are set on 16" centers. This created 4' knee walls in the 2nd story.

I would like to utilize the area behind the knee walls for storage so I was wondering would it be safe to cut out 3 of the 2x4 knee wall studs and use a double 2x6 header to create a 4' storage closet in the wall?

If not are there other options or ways to access and use the area behind the knee walls?

thanks in advance for any ideas or suggestions

 

[Flatmotor]

I would contact your truss manufacturer before you make any mods to them. I have 6/12 attic trusses in my 36x56 shop and ended up with a floored area of 8x56. I am going to just build plywood shelves behind the knee walls to free up floor space on mine. Bill

 

[gcan]

Flatmotor - so you are going to leave the knee wall studs in place? are yours 16" or 24" center?

Mine are 16" so if I did this and closed it in I would only leave about a 13-1/2" clear opening, better than nothing but a wider opening would be nice.

 

[PAToyota]

Always work with the truss supplier on modifications to a truss. Although it is possible that you can get away with it with proper bracing, if there are any problems you no longer have any warranty from them if they have not approved it.

A number of years ago we had heavy snows in our area. Trusses that had been modified had worked fine for years up until that point. Then insurance wouldn't cover damage due to "unauthorized modifications to the structure" on those buildings. Unlikely you will see heavy snows in Alabama - but the same would be true of high winds or hurricanes.

 

[Flatmotor]

Flatmotor - so you are going to leave the knee wall studs in place? are yours 16" or 24" center?

Mine are 16" so if I did this and closed it in I would only leave about a 13-1/2" clear opening, better than nothing but a wider opening would be nice.

I'm not going to cut any of mine I think it would severely weaken the trusses and not really help me anyway. Mine are on 24"oc. Bill