Framing A Shed Roof Dormer

Building a 20 ft wide shed dormer doesn t take much more effort than building a 4 ft wide version.

Framing a shed roof dormer.

The construction of the dormer involved three st. Be extremely careful not to damage the existing structure. The shed roof rafters are fastened to the other side of the header. You ll also need good equipment for working up high an extension ladder roofing brackets and scaffolding see roof safety.

Schedule your project considering that the roof will be wide open and the work may last an entire day. Purchase your materials including wood windows and any other specialty. If you feel that your house has little natural light you could think about creating a dormer with shed roof which will certainly help. The end wall of a shed dormer carries the load rather than the sidewalls.

Recently completed in march 2016 this project wasn t quite as straight froward as it may look in the video. Create a layout that incorporates the details of the project such as slope headroom and exterior appearance. To correct a slight dip in the floor we established a benchmark height with a laser level and nailed 2x6 squash blocks to the sides of the existing floor joists. Shed dormers are an efficient way to gain more space.

However the width can be increased with properly sized and engineered support framing. There is generally no load bearing issue when the end wall is framed directly over the exterior wall of the first floor. Framing a shed dormer is a simpler process than building a gable dormer. This framing option is usually best for dormers up to 6 ft.

On the roof using the pilot holes drilled in step 1 snap the lines that will denote the opening in the roof for the dormer. Framing the dormer with the dormer roof raised and supported we cut away the part of the original roof that was still in place leaving the exposed ends of the floor joists. Because they can be much wider than gable dormers shed dormers can provide more headroom and therefore more usable space. Usually a dormer is made for extra light into a house.

Building a dormer requires a tool belt loaded with all the basic carpentry tools plus a few extras a circular saw reciprocating saw framing square and 2 and 4 ft. Cut the shed dormers opening with a reciprocating saw.