flashredmkiv
Active member
As was stated in another thread on flooring, we purchased our home almost 2 years ago now. It was built in the early 1900's, so the house has tons of charm and character. When we bought it though, the garage was a mess. The ceiling tiles and insulation were all falling down, half of the lights didn't work, and so on. I have done quite a bit, and am still working on it. It is a single car garage with plenty of room on each side of the car for working. So basically it's an oversized one car.
I have been wanting to utilize the "attic space" in our garage for storing seasonal items and other garage items that don't need to be accessed every day. I was planning to put in an attic ladder, insulating and putting up drywall as well to keep the heat down in the lower part of the garage. That being said, I'm not so sure about the structural integrity of the ceiling joists, which are 2x4's that span about 18 feet. It is extremely old wood, so they are very dense and strong, but it seems that a few have seen their better days (as you can see below):
This one is warped and twisted:
Each 2x4 joist is "supported" up to the roof line 2x4's with some thin pieces of wood:
I know that I need to reinforce all of the joists, but am looking for the best method. I was thinking of purchasing 2x4's as long as needed, one for each side of each joist and lag bolting them clear through. As to how far apart they would need to be, that is also where I'd need advice.
Also, is the method in which they are "supported" up to the roof line 2x4's correct (as in angle, etc)? I imagine I should replace these with 2x4's as well.
I may be totally wrong in all my thinking, but that is why I'm posting in here.
I have been wanting to utilize the "attic space" in our garage for storing seasonal items and other garage items that don't need to be accessed every day. I was planning to put in an attic ladder, insulating and putting up drywall as well to keep the heat down in the lower part of the garage. That being said, I'm not so sure about the structural integrity of the ceiling joists, which are 2x4's that span about 18 feet. It is extremely old wood, so they are very dense and strong, but it seems that a few have seen their better days (as you can see below):
This one is warped and twisted:
Each 2x4 joist is "supported" up to the roof line 2x4's with some thin pieces of wood:
I know that I need to reinforce all of the joists, but am looking for the best method. I was thinking of purchasing 2x4's as long as needed, one for each side of each joist and lag bolting them clear through. As to how far apart they would need to be, that is also where I'd need advice.
Also, is the method in which they are "supported" up to the roof line 2x4's correct (as in angle, etc)? I imagine I should replace these with 2x4's as well.
I may be totally wrong in all my thinking, but that is why I'm posting in here.