How do I connect the walls?

Question

I am building an 8' x 10' building with a roof that slants. One load bearing wall is 8'-9 1/8" (east side) in height, the other is 7'-6 1/16" (west side). I am not sure how to tie in the sill plates to the North and South walls which have a height range from above mentioned lengths.
Thank you for your time!

Answer 1

The height of the walls is irrelevant as far as putting the two intersecting walls together (nailing). Just nail stud to stud. As for getting the top plates to line up in a horizontal plane, you don't. Leave the top plate on the shorter wall cut back 3 1/2 in. from the end and let the plate from the slanted wall cross over it. You'll just have to adjust you two end rafters to compensate for that little bit sticking up (cut bird's mouth on the slope of the slanted wall).

If you haven't built the walls, just frame the two side walls the same height as the shorter wall, and tie the top plates together. Set the rafters and fill in with a knee wall (blocks from top plate to underside of rafter). The blocks will have a bevel the same as the slope of the roof and vary in height as you go from one end to the other.

Answer 2

Give the 10 to Turnhog, even though he's never cut Birdsmouth.

Certainly a decent home store will offer PLATES as well as suggestions. Perhaps a larger issue is codes etc,. liability? Insurance?

You don't strictly state if this is a "leanto" type structure or has opposing, opposite, equal roof sections that salnt away from a peak, toward an end point, hopefully overhanging the base structure.

In any event you might consider that every wall is load bearing, unless it's a leanto type attached to an existing structure, and don't build it from the top down.

I'm thinking this is more a utility structure than a house addition, and may not need such detail in worry over stress, and weight on the walls. You also don't state the foundation for it.

If this too is a DIY and you haven't crafted similar in the past, I suggest still you build it first as if it wasn't going to have a roof. Without question you'd have to secure the framing to the foundation, then at each corner, secure each wall to another.

I'll assume you either have a blueprint or fairly detailed sketch of the finished product and exploded views.

Steven Wolf

Answer 3

You can buy tie plates at your local home store. All it is , is a flat piece of meatel that already has holes in it so you can drive nails through it and it is available in various sizes. Place this on top of the top plate tieing the two walls together at the corners. This is not the preferred method, but you probably will never get the wood cut right using the other way and this is certainly acceptable with the building codes. The walls still need to be tied together on the outside corners using the sideing, plywood, or OSB using one 8d nail every eight inches.

Answer 4

In a situation like yours, I typically tie the walls together with the OSB sheathing by making sure a full piece covers the connecting point. The only way to traditionally tie the top plates together is to cut the top of the studs are the degree of the pitched roof, which I have never done.

Answer 5

You carry the two top 2x4 plates from one height to the other. Then you put in studs of a variying length on 16 inch centers. Its done all the time.

Answer 6

on the tall wall you need to either put in three studs, or a stud block and a stud, on the ends of it, then you nail the single end studs on the shorter wall into the the studs.but make sure that you toenail the top plate into the wall first to ensure a tight fit.

Answer 7

if one is bigger cut it. if smaller then you might be out of luck.
or try a design to mask it.