Window headers, Insulation-live and learn

[JasonL]

Its "jokers" like these that give us carpenters a bad name! It appears to me that while offering some support (as mentoined earlier through the nails...shear) the headers were installed as an afterthought. Are you sure there is nothing behind them? I am baffled sometimes by what people try to get by with. Jason

 

[beenthere]

Looks like the window is about all that is holding the 'double' headers up there. And it does show that some builders shouldn't be in this business, and there are a few who say, it will all get covered up with the 'trim' and no one will see it.

Guess this one was 'exposed' so to speak.

 

[JimR]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Looks like the window is about all that is holding the 'double' headers up there. And it does show that some builders shouldn't be in this business, and there are a few who say, it will all get covered up with the 'trim' and no one will see it.

Guess this one was 'exposed' so to speak. )</font>

That is exactly what this builder was thinking I bet. Once it's covered nobody will know the difference. Just like the jerk builder that built my garage. He tried to support my twin horizontal I-beams with 2x4 studs nailed together instead of using the steel lolly columns against the inside of the interior walls that I had written in the contract. When I checked the overhang inside the walls. The beams only extended onto the 2x4's by an inch. What a jerk that guy was. He no longer builds houses or does additions. He's a lawyer now and does deeds and real estate transfers. I fired him before we started on the house addition and took over the project myself and hired people to work for me. My wife and I both feel that if you want the job done right you better stay on top of whom ever you hire on a daily basis or just do the job yourself.

 

[KennedyDiesel]

The windows on the north are 6x5. They do not appear to be sagging. The windows to the south are 8x5 and appear to be sagging, but they operate so it may just be install error.

The Builder (supply co that has contracted crews) had an opportunity to come and see this as well as correct it while the steel was off. He declined.

So now I have the second contractor planning to cme and do the south and east walls soon. The plan is to redo the headers if they are done the same way. I'm considering a couple of possibilities of action as I'm just plain pissed now:

1) Take the pictures in and make a scene in his store about BS headers.

2) Purchase a domian soandsobuiltmine.com and show the pics.

3) Have my contractor do the work and send them the bill knowing they likely will ignore.

4) Hire an attorney and see where it goes.

I've already torpedoed a sale of theirs to a friend for a 60x132' mega $$$ horse barn/garage/storage bldg. etc based on this issue which makes me feel a little better. Told him to be sure to mention my name /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif


Attached is a pic of both buildings.

Either way, the contractor who built mey second building WILL be fixing the first one the correct way, it's only a matter of who pays.

 

[heehaw]

its a shame some people do that kind of work, but the best i can tell, anyone, can call themselves a carpenter: hope you can fix it without to much rebuilding.
heehaw

 

[_RaT_]

<font color="blue"> Headers are designed to transfer the load around an opening, like a window, down to the foundation. The 'headers' in the picture don't do that </font>

That pretty much says it all. The headers of course need to be sized for the span and the studs sized for wind deflection. I've not heard of "girts" at least not in this context. Strapping or lath would be more the term we would use.

 

[imported_OWDouglas]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( my Dad is a Union carpenter for 40+years, I'll show him this link to see what he thinks. )</font> <font color="blue"> </font>

Showed him today, all he said was "nope, that's not right"

 

[JimR]

This is the half wall in the unfinished part of my basement. Here is how my builder made my headers. There are two boards above the window to make the header. They are nailed together. There are (2) 2x4's on each side of the window. The inner one on each side holds up the header. The second one goes all the way up to the sill for the first floor sill. These 2x4's are also nailed together. All my windows upstairs on both floors were also done this way. My garage was done this way also. It may be that your builder's workers forgot to put the headers in and thought this would be a quick fix by slapping them on the outside. I did what you are doing to your builder. Word spreads fast when somebody screws up. The problem that I had with my first builder on my original ranch house was that they nailed a deck right to the side of the house with no flashing. It took 5 years to rot out the side of my house and the sill plate. He repaired it, but onlyafter I threatened him with a lawsuit in front of his workers.

 

[_RaT_]

I still don't consider that typical either. Normally you have a trimmer which sits under the header and extends to the mud sill plate and then a king stud that goes from the top of the header down to the mud sill attached with the trimmer. In your picture, your king and trimmer do neither but rather stop at the window plate. Your header setup does however work as long as there are cripples directly under the 2X coming down from the header. It's not necessarily wrong, just different.

 

[KennedyDiesel]

Buider is a member here:

http://www.wisconsinframebuilders.org/index.html

We'll see what the WFBA has to say...