on 4/28/2005 11:50 AM J said the following:
"Buell Boy" wrote in message
ups.com...

I've read a number of articles on this. One method said to use 1/2" PT
plywood 10" wide triangular shims every 24 inches to prevent water from
getting between the beams, and to let it dry out by the PT Plywood.

This seems odd to me since this would tend to weaken the beam? Does
anyone really do this? ALso I would thin kPT Plywood would be a lot
less durable than 2x10 PT? Is it really practical?


Also, let's say my header is 12' long. What carriage bolt spacing
should I use? I was thinking 24", staggered on-on-top, one-on-bottom?

Thanks!
BX1


Is this supposd to be an exterior beam? If so flash the top and forget about
the shims.
If it is not exposed to weather forget about the shims.
If the 2x10s are placed side by side (oriented vertically) then it hardly
matters at all whether they are attached to each other. If they are properly
blocked to prevent rotation and buckling the there is no force that is

Correct but he's referring to a BEAM which, in most parts of the
country, is considered to be a horizontal cross member which supports a
load. He further indicates this by referring to it as a 12' HEADER.
You're speaking of a post or pilingg

I constructed a header for a 16' overhead door opening on the garage I
built. The sidewall containing the open was load-bearing for a truss
roof. I laminated a ¼" ~17'x9" steel flitch plate between the 2x10's
and bolted the whole thing together with carriage bolts as he proposes
(staggered). The garage is now 20 years old and there is absolutely NO
sag in that header - none. It'll take a fire to make that puppy sag.
Overbuilt? I dunno. That's what the plans called for in the header.

IIRC correctly the ¼" steel flitch plate w/bolts may have been an
alternative to either ½" or 3/4" ply nailed.

BX1's best bet is to check with Building/Zoning or Community Development
in his town and see what they say. To overbuild is never a crimeg