January 14, 2019

Carport Repair Begun

One good thing about deciding to repair the carport rather than tear it down and rebuild is that Dan can work somewhat undercover when it rains. First on the repair list was replacing the rotted girder.

Old girder

The original builder made his girders by putting together two 2x8s to make 4x8 girders. One of the reasons Dan decided to repair the carport instead of tear it down, was because only one of the outer boards was badly rotted. The other girder boards were in pretty good shape. Even though he milled most of the lumber, Dan decided to buy the replacement board to avoid inconsistent shrinkage.

Repaired girder

Next was to replace the posts. He wanted to start at the back of the building which meant tearing out the front wall of the storage area.


Installing the first new post...

The ceiling is jacked up a bit to get the post in place.

A bit of adhesive will help keep it from sliding around.

Then it's checked with a level as it's fitted into place.

Next, the post on the other side and then a new beam.

First posts and a new beam in place.

Then the rest of the new posts.

Middle post

The original posts were 4x4s; Dan's are 6x6s. He used the old posts to make some of the knee braces.


The front beam turned out to still be pretty solid so Dan didn't replace it. But he did add proper bracing.


Then the center posts.


The building is much sturdier on its feet!


The roof is next.

Carport Repair Begun © January 2019

14 comments:

Gorges Smythe said...

Good work!

Ed said...

As a woodworker, I really enjoy seeing the woodwork that went into adding the knee braces. It looks masterfully done!

Kris said...

So the only thing holding all those new posts to the brick foundation is glue? No way could we get away with that here. As usual, you guys are just going to town on this. Hoping for dry weather in your future and looking forward to updates.

Leigh said...

Gorges, so far so good!

Ed, thanks! Dan would probably be quick to point out what he sees as faults. On the other hand, he's just trying to make the best of what he's got to work with. Even so, I agree with you. :)

Kris, believe it or not, that's better than how the original posts were. The builder simply set 4x4s on top of the foundation and that was that. You can see photos in my first carport blog post. The weight of the roof pretty much kept it in place. Trust me when I say we've rolled our eyes at this guy more than once. ;)

Michelle said...

Looking good, a lot of work but I am sure you will be relieved when it is finished.

Susan said...

Nice job! It sure does look sturdy!

Nancy In Boise said...

Great job! Something similar on a garage at our house years ago. Just beefed it up.

Toirdhealbheach Beucail said...

Looks great! Well done!

Leigh said...

Michelle, we certainly will! :)

Susan, it's much more sturdy than it was before, and once Dan finishes extending the one side it should be even more solid. That will be a relief.

Nancy, definitely a simpler solution, isn't it? I'm just glad we could do that with ours.

Thanks TB!

J.L. Murphey said...

WTG Dan! Work smarter not harder. Cockeyed Jo

The Wykeham Observer said...

Such a good job. It's fun to watch the progress. If that adhesive is anything like the little bit I've used, it will last!

Chris said...

A shadow of it's former husk, now much sturdier. This repair is going quick. It must be relief to repair all that rotting wood. Although I'd still be tempted to fix the footing problem (re: posts). Maybe it really doesn't require changing, and the extra bracing will do the trick!. I have a tendency to over-engineer everything though, lol.

Leigh said...

Jo, that's always the challenge, i.e. figuring out the smartest way to get the job done!

Phil, I doubt the adhesive would withstand an earthquake, but every little bit helps under ordinary circumstances!

Chris, that built-in foundation took some consideration. In the end, he didn't feel like tearing everything down to tear it out. Once he extends the roof on the left side, that will do a lot to stabilize the structure. As long as the rain holds off, this should go along pretty well.

Rain said...

Wow, great job! That must be a lot of heavy work. I admire that you both do things on your own like that. Very awesome! Oh Leigh, I answers the comments usually on my blog, but since I'm here, we are thinking of the Maritimes of Canada, New Brunswick or Nova Scotia. Mainly because the property is so inexpensive there for the land we want and it'll afford us to be able to live BELOW our means...which isn't happening here right now!! We're applying for the mortgage in March...then the official search begins, but I've been eyeballing the real estate pages and bookmarking my faves!!! :)