Glulam Beam - Checking Problem

[ponytug]

I totally get that sentiment. I too tend to overbuild. Nevertheless that is not how most anything is built. I am hoping that the OP can get his beam repaired to the point that it meets the original specs, not the minimum specs.
I know that beams like OP's are built to withstand defects that occur over time but the pictures look like a pretty bad defect. I think if the OP can get a local engineer to look at and OK a repair that is then done by a local entity the repair can be trusted. Of course the beam supplier must sign off on the repair.
Years ago I had a fellow come by my shop needing a LUND boat repaired. Several ribs had broken right in the center. My fix was to make aluminum pieces that fit over the ribs and were two feet long. This way the stress would be over a much larger area than if I just welded up the breaks. So I used aluminum that was at least twice as thick as the rib material and hammer formed it over hard maple forms so that it fit tight onto the ribs. These repair pieces were then welded to the existing ribs while the boat was fixtured so the the cracks in the ribs were closed. The folks at LUND Boats were happy with my repair and paid my customer under warranty who then paid me. Some engineer at LUND looked at my repair and felt that it was more than adequate. If the OP gets the same type of assurance for the repair then it should be OK.
Eric

Sounds like a repair to set the standard!

All the best, Peter

 

[oosik]

This may be only a small point. The OP's pictures show de-lamination not checking. Checking is when the crack goes thru/across a single board in the glu-lam. The picture shows separation of one board in the beam.

Glue injection - compression while the glue dries - some form of screw or bolt to help hold this section together.

 

[ning]

This may be only a small point. The OP's pictures show de-lamination not checking. Checking is when the crack goes thru/across a single board in the glu-lam. The picture shows separation of one board in the beam.

Glue injection - compression while the glue dries - some form of screw or bolt to help hold this section together.

I was tempted to say "it looked like checking to me" but after looking again it does look like all of the alleged checking is on board boundaries, with some of the glue pulling wood from one side or the other making it look like checks.

That glulam looks really bad on second look. A beam's strength comes from the vertical aspect, and this basically cuts the bottom two boards off of it, and I'm not sure I'd take bets on the rest of it staying put either.

 

[lilranch2001]

I was tempted to say "it looked like checking to me" but after looking again it does look like all of the alleged checking is on board boundaries, with some of the glue pulling wood from one side or the other making it look like checks.

That glulam looks really bad on second look. A beam's strength comes from the vertical aspect, and this basically cuts the bottom two boards off of it, and I'm not sure I'd take bets on the rest of it staying put either.View attachment 817736

Those were my thoughts when I saw the pics,
I just failed totally in describing my thoughts as well in the way you did!

 

[ponytug]

I was tempted to say "it looked like checking to me" but after looking again it does look like all of the alleged checking is on board boundaries, with some of the glue pulling wood from one side or the other making it look like checks.

That glulam looks really bad on second look. A beam's strength comes from the vertical aspect, and this basically cuts the bottom two boards off of it, and I'm not sure I'd take bets on the rest of it staying put either.View attachment 817736

I agree, that's why I was suggesting epoxy plus compression, either with clamps or screws while it sets.

To be fair, arm chair quarterbacking from a thousand miles away, I think that the second board up has both delaminated from both the lower board, and the upper one, and it has also split/checked in several places. Whether it is full thickness or not seems to be unknown.

All the best,

Peter

 

[lilranch2001]

As armchair quarterbacks is it best to assume the best or worst case scenarios?

 

[yooperdave]

Those were my thoughts when I saw the pics,
I just failed totally in describing my thoughts as well in the way you did!

Note: Glulam beams are not like steel or concrete beams. The best material is used in the tension lams at the bottom for a simply supported beam. The junk is in the middle. Do not assume the loss of the bottom couple lams results in a linear reduction of strength. It is much more significant than that.

Yooper Dave