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CHanratha · Mar 1, 2007, 12:04 AM

I'm not sure if this is the right place for this post but here goes. As the title says, I'm framing a 960 Sqf addition and I need some expert advice on what to do with a section on the sheer wall. Here is my problem, The wall that the addition is connected to has to be sheer wall. Normally the sheer wall don't end at the ceiling Joice as far as what Ive seen in the past 2 years I've done construction. The blue print don't say anything about building a wall to the roof rafter, and this is where I'm having some trouble. Should I build the wall up to the rafter or should I wait and see if the inspector will say?

nmwirez · Mar 1, 2007, 04:39 PM

Originally Posted by CHanratha

I'm not sure if this is the right place for this post but here goes. As the title says, I'm framing a 960 Sqf addition and I need some expert advice on what to do with a section on the sheer wall. Here is my problem, The wall that the addition is connected to has to be sheer wall. Normally the sheer wall don't end at the ceiling Joice as far as what Ive seen in the past 2 years I've done construction. The blue print don't say anything about building a wall to the roof rafter, and this is where I'm having some trouble. Should I build the wall up to the rafter or should I wait and see if the inspector will say?

Depends on what the addition interior is going to be.

Firewalls... If it is a garage it requires the sheetrock firewall to be up to the roof peak in the attic. If this is an additional separate apartment, then the attic will need a sheetrock firewall all the way up also.
Sheerwalls... this is required if vaulted ceilings are being tacked on to the existing structure, then the common wall is all sheer up to the peak. Its like an outside gable end sheerwall additional to siding from foundation sill plate base all the way up to the eave rafter height.

If the end wall on the new 960 sf attachment is all glass or walls with broken linear sheathing, then the interior requires a compensating shearwall design. Sheetrock alone is no longer acceptable for sheerwall corrections. Does this help?

CHanratha · Mar 2, 2007, 12:40 AM

The addition is one big game room and it has a laundry room and a bathroom. The part where I'm unsure about is where the end of the existing house use to be. The blueprint says to have the stucco removed and sheer walled. But I don't see where it says the sheer wall has to go all the way up to the rafter. Now in my short 2 years experience in framing, the contractors that I've worked for had always sheer walled the end of the existing house all the way up to the new roof. The new roof in this project is build over half the existing roof and extends over the new addition. By the way the interior is going to be regular drywall over the sheer wall. So my question is, must the sheer wall always extend up to the rafter?

nmwirez · Mar 2, 2007, 08:08 AM

Originally Posted by CHanratha

The addition is one big game room and it has a laundry room and a bathroom. The part where I'm unsure about is where the end of the existing house use to be. The blueprint says to have the stucco removed and sheer walled. But I don't see where it says the sheer wall has to go all the way up to the rafter. Now in my short 2 years experience in framing, the contractors that I've worked for had always sheer walled the end of the existing house all the way up to the new roof. The new roof in this project is build over half the existing roof and extends over the new addition. By the way the interior is going to be regular drywall over the sheer wall. So my question is, must the sheer wall always extend up to the rafter?

No, unless you have an open beam ceiling.