What Size Floor Joist To Span 16 Feet

In general terms joists spaced 16 inches on center can span 1 5 times in feet their depth in inches.

What size floor joist to span 16 feet. Live load is weight of furniture wind snow and more. If the joist spacing will be 16 inches 406 4 mm a joist size of 2 x 8 should be used even if the length is only 8 feet 2 44 m. Floor joist span tables for various sizes and species of wood. Joist span table use these tables to determine floor joist spans based on grade of lumber size of joist floor joist spacing and a live load of 30 lbs ft 2 or 40 lbs ft 2 these tables can also be used to determine deck joist span.

Since the example house we are designing for is 12 feet wide we need to find in the floor joist span table a joist size and centering that can span 12 or wider. Spaced at 12 inches the joist may only span 16 feet 8 inches. See the image below for an example of joists spaced 16 on center 16 o c. Use a joist span table such as those found in the resources section to determine the maximum 2 by 10 joist spans for other species and lumber grades.

Dead load weight of structure and fixed loads 10 lbs ft 2. The floor joist spacing is the distance between the centers of any two installed joists. This sample table gives minimum floor joist sizes for joists spaced at 16 inches and 24 inches on center o c for 2 grade lumber with 10 pounds per square foot of dead load and 40 pounds of live load which is typical of normal residential construction. Reading the table you ll see that 2 x 8s installed 16 apart on center can span 12 4.

1 ft 0 3048 m. You should check with your local building department for construction requirements in your area. Maximum floor joist span for no. The larger the deck the larger the joists.

1 psf lb f ft 2 47 88 n m 2. A structure with a 10 foot 3 05 m length and joists set 12 inches 304 8 mm apart would require using a floor joist size of 2 x 8 50 8 x 203 mm. At 16 inch spacing 15 feet 2 inches and 13 feet 3 inches at 24 inch spacing. 2x10 to 15 feet and 2x12 to 18 feet.

While most residential construction uses 2x8 joists with 16 inch spacing there are many other factors you need to consider when determining the proper joist span length. 2 grade of douglas fir are indicated below. For example in the rafter span table below the highlighted cell in the 40 live load table indicates that 2 x 8 southern yellow pine joists that have a grade of 2 that are spaced 24 apart can have a maximum span of 10 feet 3 inches 10 3 if designing for a live load of 40 lbs ft 2. A 2x8 up to 12 feet.

True floor joist span calculations can only be made by a structural engineer or contractor.