How Far Apart Should Roof Trusses Be On A Shed

For light load roofs 24 o c.

How far apart should roof trusses be on a shed.

Most roof framing is 24 on center and you can still build sheds up to 14 with 2 4 rafters at 24 on center. Converting that to feet and inches the on center distance is 2 feet 10 1 2 inches. 2 4 rafters can span up to 7. Common spacing for trusses on this type of building is often between 2 and 4 feet but trusses built with advanced designs may allow spacing as great as 8 or 12 feet.

So the space between rafters can be greater without reducing the maximum span. Attach each truss to your shed. Hook your tape measure on the king post to make marks at 2 feet 10 1 2 inches and 5 feet 9 inches on both the top and bottom chords. Generally if your trusses are going to match up with your wall studs only one top plate is needed.

The trusses should be a little longer than the exact width to allow for overhang and you will need sufficient trusses to mount across the length. For heavy loads 2x4s can span up to 5. These standards are as follows. Generally speaking the trusses should be equally spaced so place them every 24 on center.

Get ready to add the trusses to your shed s roof by moving each truss upside down to the top of your shed s foundation. If your shed wall studs are framed at 2 on center and you decide you want to go 16 on center with your trusses then you will need 2 top plates. Check out my new 12 16 shed plans here. Once you ve calculated the number of trusses you will need you should purchase the lumber.

With traditional stick frame construction the trusses are usually spaced 2 feet apart. Position the truss on the floor with the bottom chord near you and the king post on the right. The same concept holds true for roof trusses. It is necessary to have some helping hands to position the trusses on the shed s roof.

Most are spaced between 18 26 inches apart. This is traced back to building codes and structural design standards. With this design change roof trusses could be placed 12 feet apart making it possible for roofs to support the loads to which they would be subjected. Their defense is our engineers will not allow us to.

I ve had roof truss manufacturers try to convince me it is impossible to place wood trusses at spacings of over every 4 feet. For many traditional stick frame builders trusses spaced 8 feet apart seems unnatural but thanks to the ingenuity of modern engineering it is a very common building design. Spacing your 2 4 shed rafters at 24 on center limits the width of your roof. Typical roof truss spacing means that they are usually about 24 inches from centre which means at the centre of one truss there will be a two foot gap or twenty four inch gap until the centre of the next truss.