Setting Steel I-Beams

[98softail]

I am building my first house for myself. My question is in regards to setting the steel beams. Should I set the beams level with the sill plate or set them level with the foundation and add a 2X6 to the top of the beam to make level with the plate?

Also, I have never set steel. Can anyone outline the procedure or point me to a website or book that might guide me. A few friends will be helping, but I'd like to know before hand.

Thanks for your input.

[Rich]

Your 2 best attributes for setting steel is "Fear" and "Common Sense". Be scared enough that you're careful and enough common sense to think far enough ahead to have the steel in the air (not connected) for short a time as possible.
I personally would set them level with foundation wall.

[mjpliv]

Consider renting a "genie" lift for the task if you have to lift it from the floor. Or time the installation so it happens the same time as a material delivery. You might be able to convince the boom truck operator to drop it in place for you.

Just a note - while steel beams carry a fairly high load, they do not have a lot of lateral stability. Order the beam with 7/16" holes drilled in the top flange at 24" OC staggered either side of the web. When you attach the 2x6 plate to the beam use 3/8" lag bolts with washers to anchor them together. When the floor joists are attached to the plate this will give the lateral support required for the beam.

[mjpliv]

Now this should be on a plaque mounted on every job site!

Your 2 best attributes for setting (insert name of large or heavy object here) is "Fear" and "Common Sense".

[Rich]

haha.. I've got another.

What's it take to pour concrete?



Brute force and awkwardness.
Imagine trying to straighten a poured wall with a backhoe. Or someone carrying a 4x8 sheet of plywood, that's been soaked in form release 20 times, across a jobsite.

[Rich]

If common sense is so common - why do so few people have it? :) I'll stop now.

[mjpliv]

Why is the word "abreviation" so long?

[Rich]

HAHA.. good one. Here we are hijacking another thread.. I guess that's why it's called a community - everybody pipes up at once. :)

[mjpliv]

Should start a joke/construction cartoon section!

[Rich]

I think I will.. I've been looking for that old cartoon for "How the owner described it, how the architect designed it, how the engineer depicted it etc" to put on a shirt for our architect.

[colonial carpentry]

All joking set aside this man has a serious issue at hand! lmao! I personally like to set the steel "plush"with the foundation and like you said add the the 2x6 to the top of the beam,i always use construction adhesive on the bottom of the 2x6 to reduce the risk of a squeeky floor ,to attach to the beam i hand jam a few 16d nails on the very edge of the 2x6 then wrap them around the steel ,It is a good idea to have the wood on the steel before you put it in the beam pocket-it gives you a way to nail some braces on to it .Also if you need to shim the beam up to match your foundation height ,be sure to use steel shims not wood -you will not pass inspection with wood shims under your beam in the masons beam pocket. Good luck!

[mjpliv]

A word of caution about the practice of using bent nails to secure a plate to a steel beam.

Although steel beams have the abilility to carry big vertical loads, they do not have a great deal of lateral stability. While the ends of the beam may be stable, the center of the beam wants to "roll" over because the bottom flange is under tension (stable) and the top flange is under compression (unstable). As long as the top flange is restrained from moving (refered to as lateral support) then the beam maintains its structural integrity. A few nails bent around the beam flange seems to be a common practice but it does not provide adequate lateral support. Nor does the use of construction adhesive.

Depending on the size of the beam and the loads applied to it, these plates should be attached to the top flange using bolts located 16" to 24" oc staggered either side of the web. Generally these bolts are 3/8" to 1/2" in diameter. The floor system should be attached to the the wood plate in a manner that applies the lateral restraint to the plate (generally four toenails per joist.

When in doubt, have an engineer design this connect for you.

[98softail]

Thanks for your replies!
I am having the beams drilled to bolt a 2x6 to the top. I am also renting a Genie to lift them into place.

But I'm curious...How much "roll" would a 8"-12' long beam have?

[mjpliv]

A 12' beam would be at the low end of the scale. Unless you involve vehicular traffic it would be difficult to apply enough vertical force to cause the beam to roll.

Although I recommend using a bolted plates on all beams regardless of size, load or function, the biggest concern would be applications involving larger spans (20 plus feet) and big loads (roof and floor or concenrated load combinations)

A good demonstration of this would be a TJI type floor joist. A wood I-joist works on the same priciple as a metal I-beam. You have two horizontal flanges separated by a verticle web. If you try to walk on the top of a 15-16 foot I-joist with no temporary lateral support on the top flange (I have tried this - once!) you can feel the joists trying to buckle sideways.

There may only be a one in a million load scenario that will cause a residential steel beam to fail but I still advocate spending the extra $20.00-$30.00 and 15 minutes of time to make sure it isn't one of my homes.