rafter seat cut question

[zchrisz]

guys, i'm adding on to my garage the existing roof is 2x4's rafters and ridge, the new roof i will be using 2x6's and i'm sitting here having trouble figuring out how the roofs will be level... do you cut the birdsmouth deeper on the 2x6 to match the height of the 2x4 rafters?

 

[KMR Construction]

the extra 2" will be on the bottom of the rafter. if you were to trace the 2x4 on the 2x6 the top would be flush making the birdsmouth longer and the plumb cut will hang down further

 

[pop pop]

If you want them the same height, you'll have to. The added 2" will be on the bottom of the rafter.

 

[Ksullivan]

yea what they said, I am surprised someone framed 2x4 rafters in Connecticut! My garage which is older is located in the heart of CNY and it has 2x6's. Good luck with your project!

 

[Zeke]

guys, i'm adding on to my garage the existing roof is 2x4's rafters and ridge, the new roof i will be using 2x6's and i'm sitting here having trouble figuring out how the roofs will be level... do you cut the birdsmouth deeper on the 2x6 to match the height of the 2x4 rafters?

In a word, yes. And if you want the outside tails to match, you rip the bottom off to make a 2 x 4.

 

[zchrisz]

yea what they said, I am surprised someone framed 2x4 rafters in Connecticut! My garage which is older is located in the heart of CNY and it has 2x6's. Good luck with your project!

yeah i know, i have a porch that was added on 8x16' with the same roof setup, they were both built in the early 50's still standing!

 

[Ksullivan]

We get tonnages of snow here and I bet it's the same as you in CT. Glad it's still standing! Good luck on your addition project

 

[tcianci]

If you make the walls of your addition as little shorter, you can set the top plane of the rafters even with the 2x4 rafters without having to over cut the birds mouth, then once the rafters are set, do the plumb cuts and soffit cut in place so that your fascias and soffit line up

 

[Flange]

If you make the walls of your addition as little shorter, you can set the top plane of the rafters even with the 2x4 rafters without having to over cut the birds mouth, then once the rafters are set, do the plumb cuts and soffit cut in place so that your fascias and soffit line up

Thats how I would do it but then again I dont know what your building code says but here in the UK a birdsmouth can be cut no greater than one third of the rafter size. E.g. a 6 inch rafter can have a maximum 2 inch birdsmouth cut in to it.

 

[darkk]

yea what they said, I am surprised someone framed 2x4 rafters in Connecticut! My garage which is older is located in the heart of CNY and it has 2x6's. Good luck with your project!

I live in eastern Ct and my roof rafters are 2x4 without much bracing. I always wondered..what the hell were they thinking. I'll have to fix it sooner or later. I had it re shingled a couple years ago and the guy said he had a tough time getting a straight line side to side..