Well it's gettin closer to winter time and I was thinking about the winter heating situation again. I have a small propane heater (tube kind) and it does an awesome job heating up my garage but eats through a gas grill cylinder in only a couple hours. the garage is not insulated, hopefully will get around to doing that sometime. Also there isn't a ceiling between the garage space and like the "attic" of the garage.

As it is now i don't have enough money to put plywood floor down (i wish the parents would pay for it!!), tho i will plywood it as soon as i get enough money. I was thinking of using like a plastic, like the stuff you use on the outside of a house between the sheating and the siding for now to maybe slow the heat from escaping. and hopefully allow the propane to last a bit longer.
Anything you would suggest i use for this situation?

While i'm at it I have another question, The garage has a 16foot wide door with no center posts. (i'm sorry, i don't know much building terminology) the ceiling rafters have like a bunch of 1 x 4 nailed to them and the roof rafters, i assume to hold up the ceiling. Would there be any way to remove some of these and strengthen up the ceiling rafters that it would be possible to walk around upstairs(when i finally put a floor down) and be able to put things up there without fearing the ceiling is going to collapse.

Sorry about the length, any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 

The sheeting will help but it is a fire hazard. DO NOT modify the trusses that hold your roof up!

 

Not the roof rafters, but the floor. I don't want to do anything that will weaken it, just lookin how i can strengthen it.

 

That entire assy with the rafter and the ceiling joist is a truss assy. They are engineered as a structural unit. You CAN NOT remove any of the braces.

 

I agree with Torque1st, don't ever remove any part of the brace system, however, you can always add things that dont interfere with the structual integrity, in theory, you can make it solid to walk on, but it will take some time.

 

If you know any contractors, have them come over and look at the roof/ceiling structure. From the way you describe it, it doesn't sound like engineered trusses. I don't think I've ever seen a truss which uses 1x4's for bracing. Usually they are made from at least 2x4's. A good contractor would be able to tell you how and where to move them to or not.

Why couldn't you use plastic sheeting (about 6 mils thick), I know the Home box stores sell stuff 10' x 100' for like $20. It's is used for vabor barriors and stuff like that.

Someone mentioned a fire hazzard. Why would this be a fire hazzard?

Just my 2 cents.

 

Plastic sheeting like that melts easily with heat and it is very flammable.

The user was talking about removing some of the braces in the struts in order to create clear space. That would weaken the structure.

I have seen trusses made with 1x4's. A 2x4 is not required where the element is under tension.

 

I'm not being argumentative, I'm just curious, How hot do you think it would get at the ceiling? Hot enough to melt 6 mil plastic sheeting?

I guess the truss issue would also be dependant on the area of the country you are in (what kind of snow loads you are subject to and such).

I've framed quite a few new homes in Mass in the last few years and most have used trusses. None have used anything less than 2x4's for bracing.

A quick way to determine if they are engineered trusses (up this way anyhow) is to look at the tie plates. The stuff we use has all pressed in steel plates. If his are just nailed in place with no plywood gusset plates then it was probably stick framed on site and might be able to be modified. A knowledgable framer or contractor should be able to determine this.

 

I don't think the plastic would have really any insulating powers to it.

If air infiltration is the problem- then maybe you should go with caulk, foam and weatherstripping as your first line of improvements.

 

I was more thinking that if you could keep the heat from rising up to the peak of the roof you would have more heat in the work area. Seeing as heat rises, you would have to fill the entire roof area before you would feel the heat in the work area. So though it is not a good insulater it would act more as a cheap ceiling to contain the heat.

 

As far as a fire hazard goes. I go by the rule that I never leave my heater running when I'm not in the garage. This way I can at least see, hear or smell something as it happens.

 

I would assume the 1x4 runs from truss to truss to keep them square to each other(similar to putting blocking between the floor joists) Do not remove them!

Staple the plastic to the bottom of the roof trusses and them lay the insulation on top of the plastic between the trusses. You should also put drywall over the plastic or it will eventually fall down from the weight.

Never use the attic for storage. The trusses are designed to take some extra weight from snow etc. but never a constant load over several months.

 

I am not worried about the heat from a heater. I would be worried about that sudden flame up from a torch or carb cleaner etc etc. Fire is always a hazard in a shop.

 

Yeah..i'm just looking to make a barrier to keep the heat from rising to the top. So there is NO way i could stregthen it to use it as storage space?, what if i double up on ever other ceiling rafter or is that not a good idea... just looking to beable to put some things up there....

 

The ceiling joists are up there to keep the walls from being pushed out by the roof. They are there for pulling strength. The 1 x 4 were probably put in to keep things from sagging. You didn't say what size the ceiling joists are, but if they're 2 x4, over 16', ceiling joist sag could be a problem without them. Your 16' span is the problem. Doubling up helps with the pull, but not the sag. I don't know what the local code is over there, but you would probably need a minimum of 2" x 10" on 16" just for walking around and storing light boxes. Myself, I would go bigger than that - I like to plan for the worst. You DON"T want to overload and have the thing come crashing down. Plus anything structural usually means a permit and updating to current code. ($$$)

If you have a back wall that's free, you might be able to build shelves that reach to the ceiling. Take it from me. Once you start filling up an attic with stuff from the shop, you quickly find replacement stuff for the new space...

If I'm working on a concrete floor, I'll throw down a couple carpet rems to stand on. It helps.