We moved into a house with a nice enclosed porch the length of the South side. The foundation appears solid, however, the roof is sagging and a couple walls are bowed. I believe this is due to the fact that there was no centre support in the original design, and perhaps the weight of snow caused the whole structure to warp.
Is it possible to fix this by propping up the roof and installing supports? Or must the whole structure be demolished and rebuilt?
2007-02-09 03:18:52 · 6 answers · asked by ? 2 in Home & Garden ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
We restored an old barn (historic) in Nova Scotia, with similar issues. First, you need to pull the walls back to vertical. We drilled holes through opposing walls. We tacked up two beams, running horizontally, over the holes. Our beams were 4 x6 x 24', as the walls were 24' long. We drilled holes in the beams, lined up with the holes in the walls. We ran two lengths of heavy cable. Starting from the center of the building, we ran one length in each direction, and out through the holes. We tied off the ends, with clamps and washers and connected the two cables to a come along. We just pulled it straight and beefed up the walls and ceiling. You may have to shore up the roof, temporarily. I'd check local building codes and use them as a guideline to get it right.
2007-02-09 03:50:04 · answer #1 · answered by Leo L 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If it sagged and bowed it wasn't built right to start with. I'd demolish it and rebuild. My in-laws did this recently and now have an enclosed porch that is usable year round in MI. Any repairs you try are liable to cause cracks in the walls, leaks in the roof and who knows what else.
2007-02-09 05:00:44 · answer #2 · answered by bugs280 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think at some point you will demolish the whole thing once you start trying to repair it. As long as you have a solid foundation redoing the whole thing is probably the best thing to do.
2007-02-09 03:31:01 · answer #3 · answered by Thomas S 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
anything can be fixed, but one thing is for sure, if you don't fix it, and a snow load gets on it, then you will be looking at your porch , on the ground.
2007-02-09 08:45:00 · answer #4 · answered by mcdougle 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A bit like saggy ****. Your building needs more support. Know what I mean
2007-02-09 05:09:12 · answer #5 · answered by The Heartbreaker. 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
on the bright side , if the snow does bring it down, maybe the insurance will cover a new one...
2007-02-10 01:10:55 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋