Wood Beam Span Length

Simplified maximum span tables for selected visual and mechanical grades of southern pine lumber in sizes 2 4 thru 2 12.

Wood beam span length.

Window door garage door headers supporting roof wall floor loads. You can also use the wood beam calculator from the american wood council website to determine maximum rafter and joist lengths. The distance over which a wood beam bears a load when used for support is its span. Anything 5 and above we always at least double cripple.

Span calculator for wood joists and rafters also available for the android os. According to the 2012 irc codes any beam joist or header shall never have a bearing of less than 1 1 2. Beams of more than one ply must be fastened together with either nails or bolts. Also available for the android os.

The values displayed in the resulting table will show nine possible maximum beam spans for the supported length selected. View joist rafter tables. These nine beam spans are for built up beams made up of either 2x8 2x10 or 2x12 dimensional lumber nailed together as either 3 4 or 5 ply beams. Tables providing size selections for various beam spans and loading combinations for southern pine dimension lumber and southern pine glued laminated timber are available for the following applications.

For example a 3 ply 2x8 beam would use three 2x8s nailed together side by side. Window door garage door headers supporting roof loads only. Our floor joist span tables are based on loadings given in the newer amended version of bs 6399 1. The span of any wood beam depends on many factors such as type of wood weight of the load and overall size of the beam.

On longer spans the beam may require much more bearing space as indicated by this table. Use the span tables below to determine allowable lengths of joists and rafters based on size and standard design loads. While every effort has been made to insure the accuracy of the information presented and special effort has been made to assure that the information reflects the state of the art neither the west coast lumber inspection bureau the american wood council nor its members assume any responsibility for any particular design prepared from this online span calculator. Calculating the span of a beam requires using various factors that you need to first determine for a structure where the beam is being used.

Engineered wood products ewp span and size charts for bci joists. Bci joists are specially constructed i joists with flanges made from strong versa lam laminated veneer lumber with oriented stranded board webs and approved waterproof structural adhesives providing outstanding strength and durability.