Where the garage beam lands
A beam support not sitting on its plate, found at frame stage in Pakenham.
In short: The beam over a double garage door carries a lot of roof. On one Pakenham frame its support point was not bearing fully on the bottom plate.
Why the garage beam matters
The opening for a double garage is the widest in most houses, so the beam above it collects roof load from a large area and delivers it to two points. Those two points have to be right.
What we recorded
At a Pakenham frame inspection the support carrying the garage beam was not bearing properly onto the bottom plate. The load was going through fixings and a partial contact area rather than straight down into the slab.
The same problem in smaller openings
On the same job a few jamb studs beside window openings were sitting off the plate and relying on skew nails. It is the same issue on a smaller scale: timber that should be carrying load in compression is hanging on nails.
Why it gets missed
From a few metres away the frame looks complete. You only see the gap when you get down at plate level with a torch, which is why frame inspections are done close up.
What to ask your builder
Ask for the support to be packed or replaced so it bears fully, checked against the engineering for that beam, before the wall is wrapped and lined.
Written by our local inspection team from work carried out in Pakenham. Licensed building practitioners, Building & Plumbing Commission registration CDB-U 53425.
