Hip Roof Load Bearing

The forces on the hip rafter jack rafter connection consist of the tributary roof load transfered by the jack rafter plus a force along the axis of the jack rafter which also changes the perspective of the stresses at the bottom of the jacks from straight down to sliding off the plate.

Hip roof load bearing.

However a house with a hip roof structure suggests that all the exterior walls are bearing walls. Because i have a hip roof that slopes towards each exterior wall each of those walls is carrying some roof weight. The exception would be in the case of a hip roof were ceiling joists often change direction at each end of the house and a wall is run crossways to support the inside ends of the joist the ceiling joists appear to change direction directly above one of the walls. We want to open the small kitchen into the old unused dining room in our single story hip roof house.

Anything 5 and above we always at least double cripple. In hip roof designs all four exterior walls support the ends of roof rafters so all exterior walls bear a weight load from the roof above them. Interior load bearing walls may also support the roof as they do in gable roof designs. Any wall on all floors directly above or parallel to a basement beam typically wood steel i beam or a basement wall must be considered by a layman as directly load bearing.

Some claim true rectangular or square hip roof structures are self supporting. These walls directly support roof trusses or rafters. Not all exterior walls are bearing walls though. Side walls are primary load bearing walls in simple gable end framing but hip roofs and complex roof lines depend on more than just the side.

A bearing wall will run in the same direction as the ridge of your roof. The exterior walls on houses that support the roof are primary bearing walls. There are many houses where just the front and back walls are bearing walls. Stair well openings are also typically load bearing points.

Bearing according to the 2012 irc codes any beam joist or header shall never have a bearing of less than 1 1 2.