Sylmar Structural Work That Starts Below the Roof Line
Adding a second story in Sylmar follows a fixed order: footings and sheathing below first, then the roof comes off, with ember rules where a lot is mapped.
The roof of a Sylmar house stays on until the ground under it is ready for a second story. New or deepened footings go in first, at the points the engineer marks, and they are inspected and poured while the family still sleeps under the old roof. Hold-down anchors are cast into that concrete. Only when it has cured and the lower walls are sheathed does the roof come off, so the house spends as few nights as possible open to the sky.
Footings and walls under the old roof
Footing work starts with a trench along each line the engineer has drawn, sometimes through a slab inside the house and sometimes beside it. Steel and anchors go in, the inspector looks before any concrete arrives, and the pour follows. Lower walls that will carry the new floor get plywood sheathing and the nailing the plans call for, inspected while still bare. All of this happens with the existing roof in place, so the kitchen and bedrooms stay in use, with dust walls around each work area.
Opening the roof and closing it again
Removal of the old roof is timed so new floor framing and a temporary cover can follow quickly. Joists, then walls, then rafters go up in that order, and the new roof is dried in before interior work below resumes. Ember-resistance rules may reach a Sylmar lot that lies in a mapped fire hazard zone, and on such a lot they cover the roof covering, vents, eaves and siding of the new story. Those materials are picked along with the drawings, since the exterior goes on soon after the frame is inspected.
Structural Work in Sylmar: what families ask
It can, once an engineer has checked the footings, lower walls and connections against the added weight and earthquake loads. Reinforcement is drawn wherever they fall short, and LADBS reviews that set. Where fire hazard mapping takes in the parcel, ember-resistant roofing and siding may be required on the new story as well.
Wiring and pipes leave the wall first. Next, temporary walls catch the ceiling, and the footing under each future post is checked or poured. Only then does the wall come out and the engineered beam go up on its posts. Inspection happens with everything exposed, and finishes are repaired once the inspector signs.
LADBS covers Sylmar, which is part of the City of Los Angeles. Its inspectors see footing trenches and steel before concrete, then sheathing nailing, hold-downs and beam connections before anything is covered. On a mapped fire hazard parcel the exterior details get their own look. The stamped drawings stay on site for every visit.
Structural Work in other cities
Other projects we take on in Sylmar
Your Sylmar project, start to finish
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