Is it possible to provide a way to monitor the
crack/check width over time? That way your client can
decide what to do.
Irv
> Bill
> I had a similar problem about 3 years ago with a
> smaller beam. I got an
> engineer who does nothing but wood/timber design and
> he advised me that
> it is a check(if I remember correctly) not a crack.
> A crack goes all the
> way through whereas a check is only partially
> through. At 69, I am still
> learning. Any way he said not to do anything about
> it, as it has been
> there for 60-70 years. Rather than suggest that
> solution to you, I would
> determine its age, etc and talk to a wood expert. I
> wish you the best of
> luck with it.
>
> Bill Allen wrote:
> >
> > I'm working on a small commercial remodel in
> Southern California. The
> > part of the work for which I'm responsible is
> nearly complete.
> > However, when the inspector came out to finalize
> the framing, he
> > noticed problems in an existing beam which is not
> part of my original
> > scope of work. The building is three stories and
> is rectangular. There
> > is a beam line running down the middle of the long
> direction. For my
> > work, I had to remove and replace the existing
> beam where the office
> > is being remodeled. Beyond my work, the existing
> beam is unmodified.
> > What caught the inspector's eye are small holes
> drilled in the beam
> > used to pass electrical conduit. I haven't run the
> numbers yet, but I
> > believe these holes are O.K. What is troubling is
> that, on one span,
> > there is a long crack down the wide face of the
> beam for most of the
> > length. Worse yet, it appears that the beam above
> the crack has
> > rotated slightly. Below is a sketch prepared by my
> original CAD
> > program. I've exaggerated the rotation, but it is
> obvious. The beam is
> > huge. It's 18-3/4"x701/4". It spans about 12-1/2
> feet and supports two
> > floors and a roof. I'm concerned about two things;
> the ability of the
> > beam to transfer VQ/I stresses through the cracked
> region and the
> > ability of the beam to remain stable if the crack
> propagates. Maybe
> > there are other things I should worry about. There
> are three methods
> > of addressing this problem that I can think about
> off the top of my
> > head and they are:
> >
> > 1. Do nothing; the beam is still structurally
> viable.
> >
> > 2. Add Simpson LTP4s at 12" o.c. or so which would
> stitch the crack in
> > the hopes that it will keep the crack from
> enlarging/propagating and
> > will hopefully transfer the VQ/I stresses by an
> unknown load transfer
> > path.
> >
> > 3. Don't mess around with it and repair the beam
> by sandwiching two
> > PSLs, one on each side and designed to take 100%
> of the load. I would
> > have the contractor jack the beam as far as he can
> (there are bearing
> > walls above) before he bolted these beams to the
> existing beam. If I
> > could get 100% of the load off the existing beam,
> it would then act to
> > only transfer the load to the PSLs.
> >
> > What would you do and why?
> >
> > TIA,
> >
> > T. William (Bill) Allen, S.E.
> >
> > ALLEN DESIGNS <http://www.AllenDesigns.com>
> >
> > Consulting Structural Engineers
> > V (949) 248-8588 • F(949) 209-2509
> >
>
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