[whoowah]

Hello

I have a 2 story, balloon framing house. The second floor bedroom has some bounce in it. The joists are 2x8x16. I have the the room completely gutted. The floor on top of the joists are gone and the ceiling below the joists is gone. So, I have complete access to these joists. I was going to sister these joists but some are pretty twisted due to improper bridging. Would it hurt anything to completely remove the old joists and replace with new ones? I would do this one joist at time. Would it mess with the structure of the house to remove the old joist and replace? Thanks for your time!

John

 

[Just Bill]

Proper bridging will often stiffen a floor, and sistering definitely does when the joists are glued/screwed together. If you are talking about baloon framing your are talking about a house that was built before about 1920, with old growth lumber, how twisted can they be??? New wood will not be as strong as what you have, so I would sister before I would replace.

 

[Termite]

I would sister before I would replace.

Me too!!! :yes:

 

[Maintenance 6]

Sistering is what it's called when you attach a second joist to the original to double it. Balloon frames were built way into the 1950s, perhaps even later. 16 feet is a pretty long span for a 2x8. If you can loose some ceiling height, you might want to consider adding 2x10s and notching them over the ledger(s). That would stiffen it up more than just adding 2x8s. Then add bridging to reduce the vibration/bounce.

 

[Scuba_Dave]

I'd sister & go w/2x10's also

 

[Willie T]

Amen.

 

[Ron6519]

what is sister?

It's when your mother has a girl.
Ron