# Beam project complete??



## cibula11 (Feb 14, 2007)

Well, the beam is up.  I used 2 lvl's to span the 15 ft I needed.  I've drywalled around it and it looks nice.  Pictures soon!  One end of the beam goes to the exterior wall, the other to the middle of the room.  The end post (4x4 douglas fir) sits on a doubled sill plate.  Under this is the basement.  I looked in the basement and the post is sitting about 2-3 feet away from the main beam that supports the house. The post also falls on a floor joist.  Should I give support to this area in the basement, or is the beam that is a couple feet away close enough to support the weight?  There is a way I could simply add a little wall with 2x4 in the area to help frame out a rough in shower.  

Also my house is old, and the floors are thick.  Almost 6 inches, so its not like the end post is sitting on subfloor.  Am I okay??


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## Square Eye (Feb 15, 2007)

Add the support wall in the basement!!
Take advantage of ANY opportunity to support a beam, a post, a wall.. anything load bearing..

Did I mention YES!!! build the wall?


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## cibula11 (Feb 15, 2007)

Would a 2x4 wall be sufficient if it was not exactly under where the post would fall in the basement.  It would be about a foot from the post upstairs and so the post would fall in the middle of the main support beam and the new wall in the basement?  Or should it be directly underneath?

If a 2x4 wall is not enough, could I just use an adjustable post on top of treated 6x6...as I would probably not want to add a footing in the concrete for a supplemental post.


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## harleysilo (Feb 15, 2007)

I would imagine over time the floor joist that is under the supporting beam COULD start to pull away from the main beam.  I would make sure that joist is properly attached to the main beam.  You could also sister that joist with another equal sized one.  But if you are sure that end post sits dead on the joist, and that so happens to be exactly where you need a wall, I'd build a load bearing wall there as Not Round Eye suggests!

I have had a similar problem with a load bearing upstairs wall built less than 2 feet off the main beam in the basement, over the 20 years it was like this, those Floor joists all saged 3/4 inch.  I had to jack them up and build another load bearing wall in basement to support them.  The joists were not originally connect to the beam in the best manner.


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## harleysilo (Feb 15, 2007)

Does this represent what you are describing?


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## cibula11 (Feb 15, 2007)

Yep it looks very similar.  The only difference is that all the floor joists sit on top of the main beam.  They are not hung into them.  So most of the floor joists extends on top of the beam. There is no way that they could "pull" away .Sag, maybe.  Also my proposed wall would not be that far away from where the post would fall.  It is actually just about 1' away, and like I said earlier, about 2.5' away from the main beam.  Does that make sense? 

Another website forum told me to build a post directly under where the post is.  The main problem with that is that it is close to a floor drain and the concrete begins to slope.  That's why I was wondering if I could just add a wall a little off center from the supporting post.


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## cibula11 (Feb 15, 2007)

Also the wall would run perpendicular to the floor joists


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## harleysilo (Feb 15, 2007)

I think I understand what you are describing now.  So what is your new beam supporting?

Do you think you could build your own "mini-beam" and insert it next to the floor joist underneath the post, and run it over to the top of the new wall?  So say your joists are 2x10's, you take 3 2' long 2x10's, nail and screw them together, place them on beam running over to top of new wall.....

Do you follow?  Check your other thread about this for same response....


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## glennjanie (Feb 15, 2007)

I vote with Square Eye; you must have direct support under the load. I have actual experience with this for evidence. When Janie and I moved into this house there was a 1-1/4" sag under the plumbing wall (which serves 2 baths) and the doors in that area were binding and dragging so bad they couldn't be closed. The house was 45 years old then and I don't know how long it had taken to get that much sag, but I know it was there. I raised it back up with 2 basement jacks and some 4 X 6s about 15 years ago and haven't had any problem since.
Glenn


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## cibula11 (Feb 15, 2007)

Okay. My biggest problem...and sorry if I already mentioned this, but it is that the place that I need to support the floor joist is near a floor drain where the concrete slopes.  I had thought that I could lay a pt 6x6 on the floor and put an adjustable post on top of the 6x6 and and attach to the floor joist.  Is this an option?


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## harleysilo (Feb 15, 2007)




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## cibula11 (Feb 15, 2007)

For everyone else, this is what I am talking about.  Am I correct in saying that this would NOT be the way to go and that I need a "line" extending the post to the basement floor??


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## cibula11 (Feb 15, 2007)

Sorry Harley...I put your image in my post to give everyone else a little view of what I was thinking.  Thanks for making my job easier


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## cibula11 (Feb 15, 2007)

Since the post lands right on top of a joist....could I get away with adding the wall and not worrying about the smaller beam.  This would give support to the joist so that it would not sag.


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## cibula11 (Feb 15, 2007)

Since the post lands right on top of a joist....could I get away with adding the wall and not worrying about the smaller beam.  This would give support to the joist so that it would not sag.


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## harleysilo (Feb 15, 2007)

If you sistered the current joist a couple times you would in fact have a beam....

Sistering a joist is when you stick another joist beside the current one and glue and screw it into place.  When one builds a beam, say out of 2X10's typically a layer of plywood is placed in between the two 2x10's, all glued and screwed together.

You could sister the joist in the manner one would build a beam....meaning current joist,  glue and nail piece of plywood to it, stick another joist up there glue and nail that to the plywood, you have in effect built a beam.  

Now whether or not that beam will be strong enough is a question I can't answer, since I don't know what (wieght) your post upstairs is holding, but that post has a limit, and if the beam i.e. sistered joist and new wall can support the amount of weight that your post is rated for you should be good.


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## cibula11 (Feb 15, 2007)

The beam total weighs close to 200lbs but it also helps support the attic.  I will search for an answer.


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## cibula11 (Feb 15, 2007)

Okay. My biggest problem...and sorry if I already mentioned this, but it is that the place that I need to support the floor joist is near a floor drain where the concrete slopes.  I had thought that I could lay a pt 6x6 on the floor and put an adjustable post on top of the 6x6 and and attach to the floor joist.  Is this an option?

To be safe I have decided to go ahead with Glenn's suggestion to make sure there is support directly under the beam.  Ideas with the sloping floor.  Or would a slight slope in a 6x6 post be okay to rest an adjustable pole on?


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## harleysilo (Feb 16, 2007)

You could kill several birds with one stone by busting up the area around the drain, diggin down, pouring a footer that is level on top, and then moving the drain......


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## cibula11 (Feb 16, 2007)

I think that would end up killing me by doing all of that.


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## Square Eye (Feb 17, 2007)

A beam sitting on a post puts a concentrated load directly at the bottom of the post. If the beam after the house settles, has a ton on it, which is a very _low_ estimate considering drywall and furniture (static load), then add some bouncing kids (live load) Then at the the bottom of each post or each end of the beam, is a concentrated load of 1000lb in a 12 1/4sq inch area.

Want a quick lesson in deflection failure? Put a beam under that post. Deflection will become shear if the load is enough.

Get a post on a footer under there. Move the drain if you have to.


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