If you’ve ever had to beef up a pier-and-beam floor with some additional joists tucked between the subfloor and the beams, you know it can be difficult work in a space where it’s tough to maneuver tools and materials. The diagonal dimension of the joist is too big to let it roll into place without some serious pounding. After pondering the problem for a while, I got an idea. If I set my saw at 45° and ripped away the top edge on one side of the joist and the bottom edge on the other, as shown in the drawing, the joist should roll a lot easier and I would still have my original dimension. It works.
—Don Boerner, Rowlett, TX
Edited and illustrated by Charles Miller
From Fine Homebuilding #50
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Great tip. Having sore arms from driving the top of the joist for not place with an eight foot 2x. Remember the bottom only needs the bevel at the bearing points.
Thanks Don, I like this and will use it. I also like the idea that your giving the lumber and the sister as much wood as you can that helps the whole process for strength.