Boarding a loft- can I remove longitudinal binders

[neil.a.brookes]

Hi All

I'm planning to part board my loft directly onto the ceiling joists using 18x600x2400mm T&G chipboard. My roof is a fink trussed construction.

I'd like to board the central area below the ridge to maybe 120cm beyond the webs. However, there are longitudidinal binders across the ceiling joists on the outside of each of the webs on either side.

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My question is, am I able to remove these binders if I'm boarding the loft. I'm presuming not as the boards won't serve the same structural purpose? Alternateively, can I relocate them or should I just board up to them and leave them in place?

Thanks in advance.

Neil

[ayjay]

If I were to do it, I would board up close to the binders, and then remove them and carry on boarding, but, I wouldn't do it cos trusses aren't designed to have extra loads on them. If you're only planning to store a bit of lightweight stuff up there it should be OK,(Xmas decs have to go somewhere for 350 days every year) but nothing heavy.

The wind-bracing looks a bit minimal in your loft, unless there's a lot more that we can't see.

[neil.a.brookes]

Thank you Ayjay.

You’ve raised an interesting point regarding not storing too much weight up there. I’ve discovered the same whilst reading up on truss roofs today.

It’s not something I’ve realised before. I’ve always stored quite a lot in my loft. It’s a little bit disappointing as I’ve done quite a lot of work putting in a new larger loft hatch, lights and my next step was to board it to make a useful storage area.

I guess even the boards themselves are going to add quite a lot of weight up there then?

[oz0707]

Boards will be spread over quite a large area. If you Google it I'm sure you'll find an average kn per m2 for loft storage. From memory I think you'd be fine with around 75kg m2 bet that would leave you 60 ish after boarding. That sounds slot though over a 36m2 garage so perhaps I'm wrong! Wouldn't be the first time!

[oz0707]

If I was using 8x2ft boards and the trusses were at 6pp centres perhaps you'd be better cross battening at 600s with cls flat side down, this then raises you above bracing, gives a wider bearing for the joints and more importantly should be a lot easier to cut around truss webs as every one should fall on a board joint, whereas if you board across the joists you could end up with sone awkward bits to cut out.