Thread: Partially broken truss

Is this truss still functional or should it be put in the inspection report? These are pictures looking up at it from the attic hatch.

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It's cracked, damaged, broken, etc.

Write it up and move on.

Dom.

If I had to guess, I'd say (off record) that it can still function adequately. BUT, it is damaged and you need to report it as in need of correction.

It may be nice to be able to determine whether or not something is functional but a defect is a defect. Think about how you would report a deteriorated shingles on a roof.....crumbling, falling to pieces, etc. There may not be any leaks but it doesn't mean it's OK.

Something I often tell my clients is that some things manage to work despite themselves but it doesn't make it right.

Pic#3 is there more than one truss splitting? The obvious one at top of pic
and 2 down from that appears to have a similar prob.
Write it up with your recommendation.

How did the roof feel when you walked on it?

j the roof is very strong.

Ryan

As a home inspector and structural engineer I wear two hats and most of my clients get a report that contains verbiage that is a mixture of both. With that said a normal HI should state the obvious and say one or more trusses have defects or splitting that has reduced its effective size by xx% (you fill in the percent) further review by an engineer or contractor may be warranted.

If there were no obvious structural reasons to think otherwise such as excessive sagging or impact damage by a tree falling on the roof etc. the SE side of me would tell my client due to the redundancy of multiple trussed and safety factors used in truss design this defect is insignificant in the overall performance and strength of the roof system.

I have looked at allot of trusses and roof framing systems and found very few houses with an engineered truss system that warranted an SE inspection, less than 1%. However stick framed roofs is another story, the most common structural problem with them is over spanning of the rafters.