1x4 king stud on interior door

benjamincall

I'm framing a new door opening in my bathroom. I'm trying to work around a vent pipe that is restricting the size of the door. Can I use a 1x4 for king stud on one side? What about the trimmer on the non-hinge side?

HooKooDooKu

First of all, IMHO, a 1x4 is not a "stud". According to Wikipedia, a stud is "traditionally" 2x4 or 2x6.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wall_stud

So just based on that, I would say NO, a 1x4 can not be used as a king stud.

According to wisegeek, some building codes require a king stud. Their purpose seems to be to help prevent latteral movement of the other framing members.
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-king-stud.htm

So if code doesn't require a king stud, you could rely on only the jack stud to transmit the load of studs being removed for the door and omit the king stud all together. But the construction is considered to be less sound.

Scuba_Dave

Is it weight bearing/load bearing above the door ?
IE wall or something else that this will be supporting?
If not I wouldn't worry about it

I've framed out doors without any header in non-load bearing walls

benjamincall

The door is in a non-load-bearing wall. Thanks to everyone's input, I was able to find this IRC reference:

IRC 2000 and 2003, Section R602.7.2
Nonbearing walls. Load-bearing headers are not required in interior or exterior nonbearing walls. A single, flat 2-inch-by-4-inch (51 mm by 102 mm) member may be used as a header in interior or exterior nonbearing walls for openings up to 8 feet (2438 mm) in width if the vertical distance to the parallel nailing surface above is not more than 24 inches (610 mm). For such nonbearing headers, no cripples or blocking is required above the header.



source: http://resourcecenter.pnl.gov/cocoon...r/article//125

I guess I don't need the jack/trimmer studs if I have a non-structural header:

http://www.socalgas.com/construction...%20FRAMING.htm

tpolk

yeah you go ahead and frame an 8' window in a gable wall like that ,let me know how you like it

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HandyDave

Hey Benjamin...

How did you draw that neat framing diagram. Please tell me its not a real expensive CAD program that takes a super computer to operate!

benjamincall

I'm guessing that cross-section illustrates a "non-bearing truss."

"Headers are not required in non-bearing walls, including most interior walls and gable-end walls with only non-bearing trusses directly above."

http://www.socalgas.com/construction...%20FRAMING.htm

Fortunately, I'm just dealing with a 2'2 door frame in my bathroom.

benjamincall

I'm not sure who drew the picture. I linked to it on a government Website. At any rate, Chief Architect's Home Designer Pro is a pretty good tool. The old versions are pretty cheap now. PowerPoint will also work in a pinch.

HooKooDooKu

You could do something like that with Google's SketchUp. It takes a little getting used to using it, but it's not difficult to learn.

The one negative I've encountered with SketchUp is labelling. It has some tools for adding text, but the text has to be linked to something via an arrow or the text will seem to move around as you zoom in and out.

tpolk

a gable wall is tech considered non bearing imo, and an 8' flat 2x header? this keeps me busy

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Gary in WA

Yep, except the picture shows a stressed gable truss on the gable, not a studded stressed gable truss for the sheathing fastening requirements. Looks a lot like "Advanced Framing" which uses Simpson Header Hangers: http://www.strongtie.com/products/connectors/HH.asp


Here are the basics: http://books.google.com/books?id=LR4...raming&f=false


For those that want more: http://books.google.com/books?id=9wk...raming&f=false


Once you learn the new ways, it goes lightning fast. Just be sure to use a 2x header, as the drywall may flop around a bit...... lol


Be safe, Gary

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benjamincall

No need for hangers on the non-bearing opening, correct? Should I just end nail?

Gary in WA

Correct. The max above the header in the picture is limited to 2' because the sheathing needs nailing that max distance before adding cripples for closer nailing.

Thank you for sharing your self-found answer to your own question with us! here is one you'll find helpful in the future: http://www.mcvicker.com/resguide/page011.htm

Be safe, Gary

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Scuba_Dave

Yeah, I put headers over everything
A gable end with proper support I might use 2x4's on edge
---I did this in (3) places on small windows when there was either a 2x6 header within 2' above it or a double top plate
But usually a 2x6 header is a min for me
Just not worth it to save the $10-20 cost of the header

benjamincall

Good resource!