Ridge board not tall enough- repair option

[Alan Harris]

The house is over 20 yrs old, with an obvious addition at some point. It's a typical stick framed gable with 2 x 8 rafters on 24 inch centers. The ridge board is also a 2 x 8. Is there an acceptable repair option like glue and screwing a 2 x 2 (or larger) to the bottom of the beam to make it effectively a 2 x 10, , then nailing thru this into the bottom of each rafter?

[Richard Stanley]

That should be a structural engineer prescription.

[Jerry Peck]

I usually jump on the 'have structural engineer design appropriate repairs' wagon, however, this is not an "engineered" structure as such, and the purpose of the ridge board being the next size larger than the rafters is so that when the rafters are cut at the vertical with the slope of the rafter is that the now longer end of the rafter is fully bearing on the ridge board.

Also, construction can be down without using a ridge board and having the opposing rafters bear on each other.

Thus, the main purpose in the repair would be install blocking on which the entire cut end of the rafter will bear, and upon which the entire cut end of the opposing rafter will bear, placing the load of one rafter through the ridge board and blocking to the opposing rafter.

Being as this is not an engineered structure, the repair should be as simple as that.

That stated, though, *for your protection* ... that would be the reason to call for a structural engineer.

The opposite is true with trusses, which are engineered as an assembly, ANY AND ALL REPAIRS MUST BE designed by an engineer.