We loved our house from the first time we went through, but it really didn't have enough living space. We have worked on improving the layout of the home and increasing the living area of the home to create a modern and more pleasant layout to the home. We are really proud of how the job has turned out and we wanted to share some of the details of how the extension and layout changes where designed and constructed. This blog has some of the photos of our extension as well as tips that we have learnt along the journey,.
Roof trusses are pre-assembled units of webbed timber pieces used to support the roof of a building. The trusses are manufactured offsite and hoisted onto the roof once the contractor reaches the roofing stage of the project. This article discusses the benefits of using trusses instead of rafters (large planks of timber that are assembled onsite to hold the roof).
Fewer Internal Walls Needed
Buildings constructed using rafters require many weight-bearing walls in order to take some of the stress off the rafters. This increases the overall cost of the construction project because more materials (such as bricks and mortar) are needed to build those additional walls. Trusses eliminate this need for additional weight-carrying walls. This is because the smaller sections of timber dissipate the weight within them, so the trusses can span over a long distance without the need for walls to take part of the weight.
Quicker Project Completion
Trusses reduce the time needed to complete a construction project. This is because the prefabricated structure is transported to the site and lifted into place. This process takes a very short time unlike the traditional process (of using rafters) that is very time-consuming and labor-intensive. The time you save can mean less cost since the contractor will bill you for fewer hours spent on the jobsite.
More Precise Design
Trusses are carefully designed by engineers in a factory and are based on the specifics of your home (such as the roofing materials to be used and the size of the house). The engineers use technology like computer software to come up with the exact dimensions needed for the trusses. You can therefore be sure that the manufactured trusses will perform reliably. This is unlike the rafters, which are assembled onsite by the roofing contractor. You just have to rely on the skills of that individual and hope that he or she makes the right decisions when putting up the rafters. It is much better to rely on the product of a controlled factory environment instead of the opinion and skill of an individual.
You should talk to your building contractor so that you find out how suitable trusses are to the construction project you are planning. This discussion will enable the contractor to integrate all other aspects of the roof (such as cabling space) so that the trusses are not modified unnecessarily once they have been designed and installed. This is because any modification after installation can affect the integrity of the trusses so care must be taken to avoid those modifications, unless a structural engineer performs them. For more information, contact a business such as Wadsworth Joinery.
Share8 June 2015
