How To Cut Roof Trusses

Let s compare common roof trusses with the roof framing materials that were used in your parent s house.

How to cut roof trusses.

The important point to keep in mind when you use your truss calculator is that every truss calculation is completely unique and is based on the size of your roof and its specific dimensions. Trusses are commonly used to provide support for roofs bridges and other expansive structures. Roof truss basics roof trusses are engineered wood alternatives to hand framed rafters. They support live and dead loads by efficiently transferring the loads to the building walls or supports.

A cut roof this is the traditional method of cutting the timber on site and building up the roof using rafters ridge boards joists and purlins etc the exact details being determined by the size of roof size of timbers etc. While they look the same you probably didn t notice the subtle differences. If a lot of trusses are damaged or one has been significantly modified or cut then consulting a engineer is wise. All roof rafters should be identical so follow the same steps to measure the plumb cut tail cut and birdsmouth cut.

A truss roof using factory made trusses which are delivered to site complete and just erected. When a truss becomes damaged cut or modified there is a chance of a structural overload or that they will not perform properly. To put together a simple wooden truss you ll fasten a number of pre cut beams into a chosen configuration inside a sturdy triangular frame which will help distribute the weight of the structure more evenly. Most trusses are built from 2 by 4 lumber.

Click here to get free fast bids from local structural engineers who can help you cut your trusses. These trusses are usually engineered by a structural engineering company to carry a specific roof load. The truss is a framework consisting of rafters posts and struts which supports your roof. With modern trusses the entire assembly can be constructed on the ground in triangular frames and the most challenging part of the work is determining the angle at which to cut your pieces.

At this point you ve cut 1 roof rafter. Depending on the size of your structure you will need to cut several or many more.