Roof Rafter Seperation

The inspector recommends a structural engineer to determine cause.

Roof rafter seperation.

Builders aren t bound by standard rafter spacing measurements. I m no engineer but it seems like this is due to settlement but how bad. The reason is that in a rafter ceiling joist roof system the ridge represents the apex of a truss. At the top where the rafters meet they are either angled to meet at a point or attached to a horizontal ridge beam.

Very easy to do. The sellers investors who are flipping a foreclosure have upgraded the floors that cover potential slab cracks. This video shows how to repair a split rafter. As such the ridge and the adjoining rafter ends are entirely in compression.

The top portion of the rater was still in contact but by the bottom of the edge where the rafter abuts the ridge board a full one inch gap was present. With the proper tools anyone can do this. Typical rafter spacing codes will specify a minimum spacing of 16 inches 19 2 inches or 24 inches. As home buyers should we walk from this purchase.

Rafters must be strong enough to hold the roof sheathing and the shingles. The attached photos show rafter separation and broken collar ties. Some shed rafters do not incorporate ridge beams either due to small size or lack of technical know how. Rafter and roof joist spacing is only one part of a complex roof design that works together to form a structure that meets building codes and can hold up the weight of the roof and roof load.

If anything has the ability to force the rafter ends up tight against the ridge it would be the formidable weight of the roof itself especially a tile roof. If your local building authority has a rafter spacing code you may not space rafters wider than required by code.