Vaulted Ceiling Roof Framing

Vaulted ceiling with collar ties as long as you have the traditional rafter and beam setup you can add a vaulted ceiling to your existing home.

Vaulted ceiling roof framing.

An engineer must determine rafter size placement and pitch based on span and. Several options for alternative structural support include placing a very sturdy strong center roof beam along the roof peak line and attaching all of the rafters to it. Contributing editor scott mcbride replies. However constructing a stick framed roof is not always easy.

If you are considering removing a flat ceiling in favor of constructing a vaulted ceiling first determine how to brace the roof with an alternative method of support for the rafters. A plain flat ceiling gable is actually a procession of light trusses usually spaced 16 in. There are variations of this design to create numerous unique ceilings. Builders sometimes also prefer this construction method when they want to provide a large attic space or high vaulted ceilings often called cathedral ceilings.

Vaulted ceilings can be constructed by either stick framing which means attaching each joist and rafter individually or by setting roof trusses that come engineered from a truss manufacturer with. These horizontal framing members tie a building s outer walls together and resist the outward force exerted by the roof rafters in conventional framing. Vaulted ceiling framing must be able to resist the downward and outward thrust of the roof s weight load. The bottom chords are angled to create vaulted ceilings.

They can be an integral part of the structural framing system. For example in texas where stick framing is common there are entire crews specializing only in framing roofs. To avoid these problems in a structure with a cathedral ceiling it helps to understand how a typical roof frame works. Stick framing a roof with rafters is the old fashioned and still most common method of obtaining a vaulted ceiling.

The trick in framing a vaulted ceiling is figuring out what to do with the ceiling joists.