Hi,

I am building a shed using dense concrete blocks (not the light aerate
ones). The walls are single leaf and I want to put up a double pitched
roof ( approx 20 deg pitch ) over it. I need to fix a 3x3 timber wall
plate on top of and along two of the walls. The wall plates will take
the lower ends of the rafters and collars. The wall ( and hence the
wall plate ) is 4m long.

I will be laying a thin bed of mortar first and then place the timber
on it and I have a several long restraint straps to hook over the
plate and fix to the wall. But I'm concerned about actually fixing the
wall plate to the masonry. I've looked at the Building Construction
Handbook ( R. Chudley ) but can't see this detail. Plenty of diagrams
showing wall plates but no explanation of how it's kept in place.

Maybe additional fixings are not used for the wall-plate but instead
it only needs to rest on the top of the wall and the rafters, collars
and restraint straps together keep the entire roof assembly in place?

Anyone done this or knows what I need to do? If fixings are needed,
can anyone recommend which ones I should use for dense concrete block?

Cross section view:
__
| | wall plate
==== bed of mortar
----
| | very top of the
| | single block thickness wall

Thanks

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
Jas Virdee wrote:

Hi,

I am building a shed using dense concrete blocks (not the light aerate
ones). The walls are single leaf and I want to put up a double pitched
roof ( approx 20 deg pitch ) over it. I need to fix a 3x3 timber wall
plate on top of and along two of the walls. The wall plates will take
the lower ends of the rafters and collars. The wall ( and hence the
wall plate ) is 4m long.

I will be laying a thin bed of mortar first and then place the timber
on it and I have a several long restraint straps to hook over the
plate and fix to the wall. But I'm concerned about actually fixing the
wall plate to the masonry. I've looked at the Building Construction
Handbook ( R. Chudley ) but can't see this detail. Plenty of diagrams
showing wall plates but no explanation of how it's kept in place.

Maybe additional fixings are not used for the wall-plate but instead
it only needs to rest on the top of the wall and the rafters, collars
and restraint straps together keep the entire roof assembly in place?

Anyone done this or knows what I need to do? If fixings are needed,
can anyone recommend which ones I should use for dense concrete block?

Cross section view:
__
| | wall plate
==== bed of mortar
----
| | very top of the
| | single block thickness wall

Thanks

Like most building construction, it's held together with something you can't
buy at at Builders Merchant - called *gravity*!

The restraint straps are just belt and braces.
--
Cheers,
Set Square
______
Please reply to newsgroup. Reply address is invalid.

"Set Square" wrote in message


In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
Jas Virdee wrote:

Hi,

I am building a shed using dense concrete blocks (not the light aerate
ones). The walls are single leaf and I want to put up a double pitched
roof ( approx 20 deg pitch ) over it. I need to fix a 3x3 timber wall
plate on top of and along two of the walls.

Like most building construction, it's held together with something you can't
buy at at Builders Merchant - called *gravity*!
The restraint straps are just belt and braces.

Use 4x2 and 4" nails into the masonry evey second block or so. You join
the lengths with half-lap tenons in case you don't know and in this way
can use short lengths for ease and safety. Start the nails off -a pair
at every metre or so, bed the wood then nail home.

I think the straps have to go on every 1.8M apart. The correct measure
is on here somewhere. Do a search.


--
Posted via Mailgate.ORG Server - http://www.Mailgate.ORG

"Set Square" wrote in message ...
In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
Jas Virdee wrote:

Cross section view:
__
| | wall plate
==== bed of mortar
----
| | very top of the
| | single block thickness wall

Thanks

Like most building construction, it's held together with something you can't
buy at at Builders Merchant - called *gravity*!

The restraint straps are just belt and braces.


Concrete blocks buy you a lot of gravity - too bloody much

OP could always use a few big coach bolts down into the crete. Or
building glue maybe? Not sure I'd be 100% happy about a (light wooden)
roof structure just sitting there in a gale.


Regards, NT

I've done this construction (twice now!) without any probs whatsoever
(famous last words...) :-)

The wallplates simply sit on a bed of mortar and the weight of the roof
keeps it in place. Like you, I didn't fancy the prospect of the wallplates
not being "anchored" to the top of the walls, so I used heavy duty frame
fixers (Wickes) every 18" and just drilled and hammered them home once the
mortar had set. But it isn't necessary - as others here have already stated.
However having the wallplates anchored down made the nailing down of the
first few roof trusses easier...

Lets face it - in a *real* force 10 gale nothing is going to hold the roof
in place!

--

"Jas Virdee" wrote in message
om...
Hi,

I am building a shed using dense concrete blocks (not the light aerate
ones). The walls are single leaf and I want to put up a double pitched
roof ( approx 20 deg pitch ) over it. I need to fix a 3x3 timber wall
plate on top of and along two of the walls. The wall plates will take
the lower ends of the rafters and collars. The wall ( and hence the
wall plate ) is 4m long.

I will be laying a thin bed of mortar first and then place the timber
on it and I have a several long restraint straps to hook over the
plate and fix to the wall. But I'm concerned about actually fixing the
wall plate to the masonry. I've looked at the Building Construction
Handbook ( R. Chudley ) but can't see this detail. Plenty of diagrams
showing wall plates but no explanation of how it's kept in place.

Maybe additional fixings are not used for the wall-plate but instead
it only needs to rest on the top of the wall and the rafters, collars
and restraint straps together keep the entire roof assembly in place?

Anyone done this or knows what I need to do? If fixings are needed,
can anyone recommend which ones I should use for dense concrete block?

Cross section view:
__
| | wall plate
==== bed of mortar
----
| | very top of the
| | single block thickness wall

Thanks

In article , Paul King
writes
I've done this construction (twice now!) without any probs whatsoever
(famous last words...) :-)

The wallplates simply sit on a bed of mortar and the weight of the roof
keeps it in place. Like you, I didn't fancy the prospect of the wallplates
not being "anchored" to the top of the walls, so I used heavy duty frame
fixers (Wickes) every 18" and just drilled and hammered them home once the
mortar had set. But it isn't necessary - as others here have already stated.
However having the wallplates anchored down made the nailing down of the
first few roof trusses easier...

Lets face it - in a *real* force 10 gale nothing is going to hold the roof
in place!

So what was the wind speed in the great storm of October 1987 then?....
--
Tony Sayer