Change direction of floor joists

[McCarl]

Renovating a very rundown cottage (log house) and have now dug out the foundation and filled it with gravel. Now I'm getting to the floor joists and note that they are 565 cm long, and the longest floor joists available at the hardware store without special ordering are 540 cm long. However, the room is only 500 cm wide, so if I turn the floor joists, it works without issues.

Is it completely crazy to change the direction of the floor joists? Or could it make a big difference construction-wise?

Since it's "just" a summer house, I want to keep the costs and work down.

 

[jonaserik]

A photo of what it looks like says more than words.

 

[McCarl]

A photo of how it looks says more than words.

Not entirely clear with the foundation, need to shovel in more gravel.

But the floor joists have been lying as they are stacked to the right in the picture. I want to rotate the whole thing 90 degrees.

 

[jonaserik]

Can be rotated 90 degrees, but first check how the tiljorna are attached to the outer wall. They might be holding the house together, it’s a stone foundation and it can be very uneven and carry unevenly. If you rotate it, you might need to install kottlingar anchored in new tiljor and the lower part of the outer wall. It looks like there is timber on the right and the same on the other side. They might be holding the corner together, so removing them might not be a good idea. Can you leave it in place and attach the new to them with joist hangers and long screws, certainly hard timber, so pre-drilling is not wrong.

 

[McCarl]

It is possible to rotate 90 degrees, but first check how the boards are attached to the outer wall. They might be holding the house together; it's a stone foundation, and it can be very uneven and carry weight unevenly. If you rotate, you might need to install bracing anchored in new boards and the lower part of the outer wall. It looks like there is timber on the right and the same on the other side. They might be keeping the corner together, so removing them might not be a good idea. Can you leave it in place and attach the new ones to them with joist hangers and long screws, certainly hard wood, so pre-drilling is not a bad idea.

When I broke up the floor, all the joists had come loose from the sill and the sawdust had fallen into the foundation.

I have replaced the sill on the long side that can be seen under the window and attached it properly to the sill running into the wall on the right. So I believe and hope the wall won't give way if I change the direction of the floor joists.

But to be on the safe side, perhaps I'll install some short supports and maybe an extra corner brace in the corner where the sills meet.

 

[McCarl]

Can be rotated 90 degrees, but first check how the planks are attached to the outer wall. It might be that they are holding the house together, it's a stone foundation and it can be very uneven and carry unevenly. If you rotate, you might need to add blocking that is anchored to the new planks and the lower part of the outer wall. It looks like there is timber on the right and the same on the other side. They might be holding the corner together, so removing them might not be a good idea. Can you leave it in place and attach the new to them with joist hangers and long screws, likely hard timber, so drilling pilot holes is a good idea.

Thanks for the response by the way 🙂

 

[useless]

You can put back the healthiest of the old beams in the middle and secure it properly to the outer walls. Then the new floor beams will have support in the middle and don't need to be as strong.

 

[McCarl]

You can put back the healthiest of the old beams in the middle and attach it properly to the outer walls. Then the new floor beams get support in the middle and don't need to be as strong.

Yes, that's an idea. However, they were all spliced, so I'll have to do that again. And support it from underneath. But not with a piece of wood like it was done before so that everything was soaking wet 😅

 

[jonaserik]

If it's solid at the bottom, concrete slabs and wrapping a post at the bottom with asphalt paper are enough; otherwise a couple of plinths.