to much bounce

[slamin81]

i have a 30x40 pole barn building on a budget, got a question, i have put a 15x18 loft up already (but being the newbie i am) i ran 2x6 the 15' width and did 24"on center know when walkin on the floor it make me very nervus does not feel sturdy is their any way to fix this without tearing it out..thanks guys

 

[Bob C]

I'm no professional carpenter, but if I was faced with your situation, I'd cut 5-1/2" by 8' strips of 3/4" plywood and staple them to the sides of the 2 by 6's. Then, I would install 24" pieces between the 2 by 6's staggering them by a couple inches. so in your case you would have three rows of these 24" pieces between the 2 by 6's.

 

[premierplayer]

2x6@24 oc, 15' span, not good.
Is there any way you can add 2x6@12"oc ? this would help I'm sure.

 

[theoldwizard1]

i have a 30x40 pole barn building on a budget, got a question, i have put a 15x18 loft up already (but being the newbie i am) i ran 2x6 the 15' width and did 24"on center know when walkin on the floor it make me very nervus does not feel sturdy is their any way to fix this without tearing it out..thanks guys

Put another 2x6 in between each joist so that they are now 12" centers.

If you can't get them in because of interference with the rafters/roof decking you can try this. Get some 1x6x12'. Notch the end so they fit under the roof decking out to the end of the 2x6. Glue and nail them to each side of the 2x6 but make certain you are overlapping in the middle (where the max load is). Add in the the 3' boards to complete the 15' span. Now bolt the whole sandwich together with 3/8" lag bolts about every 24"-26"


Before starting any of this, put a tight string across from wall to wall and check to see how much the center has sagged. Even if it is only 1/2", jack the center about 1/2" above the string before adding any additional support.

 

[slamin81]

wow guys thanks for the quick reply, it is open under so i can definalty do some of your guys ideas thanks alot. Know i am going to start the other side what is the best way to do this side should i go with 2x8@16, i am trying to cut cost but safty is most definalty first. any ideas

 

[carhunter]

I don't have a span chart handy but even the 2x8 might be a bit light for 15'. I built my 10x54 loft with 2x8x10's spaced 16 OC, and 2' of the joists was cantilevered over the 2x12 laterals for extra support. So only 8' of the joist was in span. And it came in handy because I've got it heavily loaded.

You need to consider the load in terms of lbs per square foot. There's a standard number used for this, like 40lb/sf or something, but there's guys here who are much more experienced with it than me

 

[slamin81]

ya im no expert either, i can go 2x10 but it will cut me sort somewhere else,***** doing something on a budget, budget as in $100 here $200

 

[jimp]

This should help you understand what you should have used (40 lbs live/10 dead).

At this point in time, without tearing it down, I would look at changing your 24 in. oc to 8 in. oc. (if you can add the 2x6's).

What you should have used is 2x10 16 in oc. To get the strength of a 2x10 you would need 5 2x6's. So @8 in. oc you would need 3-2x6's.

You can use your own judgement as to what level you want to proceed, but what you have is very dangerous to walk on much less use for storage.