Renovating (and adding a gabled roof) to a stone house.

[Stoneface]

I'm looking at a property that has a stone house on it. The house is in pitiful shape and I would like to gut the interior, totally, put a new roof on it and use it as a studio. With it being a stone house I'm not sure if it relies on interior walls for structure. The house is about 20 x 30. Would it be feasible to tear out all the interior walls so it's just the four standing interior walls, then build a gabled roof onto it?

I've never done a vaulted gabled roof before, but found this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFDNMNfJ6Ns. I guess I don't understand how the walls are kept from just follow down. If pressue (snow, for example), bears down on the roof why wouldn't the walls just give out and tumble?

[brad27]

You should contact a contractor unless you want learn building code and do it owner builder.

[cole.nelson782]

Just ask a friend of mine he wasn't sure without seeing how everything is laid out. Best bet would be to contact a pro.

[Stoneface]

The house is falling apart and I don't really need it, so it's not that big a deal. I just thought it would be a lot of fun and kind of neat to have a stone shop. If I build it all up and the entire thing collapses it's not that big a deal. I'd just really like to do it myself. Nothing like finishing a big job, stepping and enjoying that sense of pride.

Cole, the layout for the roof would be just tearing everything out of the inside so there are just four stone walls, then framing a gable roof right on the walls.

[postoakshorthairs]

Let me preface this by saying I'm not a contractor. I have a fair amount of construction experience from working construction through school and building two of my own houses. Twenty feet isn't that big of a span. My great room area is 40 feet wide with no interior framing. Mine is framed with scissor trusses (which i'm guessing most are now) with framed in dormers. The trusses are designed to bear the load of the roof and and load on it (snow for example), which they in turn carry to the outside wals and is distributed down to the foundation. I've handframed some but for a vaulted roof it involves heavier lumber or engineered lumber to carry the span needed. If it were mine and the stone structure and foundation were in good shape i'd probably tear the old roof off with the interior walls in place and frame the roof with trusses to tie it all together then knock the interior walls out. Someone with more experience than me might have other ideas. Good luck...I love doing stuff like that and i'm a little jealous.

[DonF]

I would think that building on the existing walls would be a bad idea. Most rock houses are not real rock support walls. It they were, without steel in them, a small earthquake would tear them right down. Rock houses today are actually stick framed house's with rock applied outside for appearance. Those are attached to the frame wall with metal. On the one your talking about, maybe you can take out interior walls but then what would stabilize the bearing walls? Assuming you could take out the interior walls, you'd need to frame in the inside walls and attach the rock to them in some way. Then the framed in walls become the bearing walls and the rock is for looks only. You could have the inside look like rock but adding rock the them after they are done or you could even stucco them. Your going to have to use either wafer board with plywood on the corners to support those inside walls. They could be painted and no finish. You should have some sort of concrete footing around the inside to carry the weight without sagging. Of course it the span is only 20', you might get away with a post and beam type floor. Then the walls could sit on post's held up with blocks with 4x6's or maybe 4x8's to carry the wall. I don't know what would be required anymore, what every material you would use will determine how far apart the blocks would need to be. If you decide to put in a floor of wood, in this state I think it's 2' clearance you need from the bottom of the floor joist's down. Getting pretty involved for a do it your self'r with little or no experience. The think is, if you want to be sure you don't want to end up under the rock pile someday! basically what you need to do is build a building inside those rock walls and use them strictly for looks. Think of a concrete block wall. The are built with steel re-bar inside both verticle and horizontal and filled with concrete. Otherwise a shake takes them out. With the vibration of a shake, the motal holding everything together get's destroyed and the walls fall. That's why the re-bar and concrete.

if the thing has a roof right now, you might just re-roof it the way it is, flat? If you do that, all you need to do is take off the finish roof and check the sheeting, probably some type of 1x. If it's sound, add new roof joist's on top, block between them over each wall, apply 1'2" plywood and finish. the new joist's can be 2x6 if your only spanning 20' and the old joist's remain.

In the end, you'll be a lot better off getting a contractor to do it for you. He has needed tools and experienced labor.

[cjhills]

If the rock walls are solid and will bear the weight, it is no big deal to rip out every thing except the rock ,put trusses and roof over the whole thing. you will need a system to anchor plates to the walls and use hurricane clips to anchor the trusses. Rock walls have very low R value so if you would plan to heat it you may want to frame walls inside and insulate. If it has a frame floor that is bad you may be able to replace with fill and a slab which could give the walls more stability.
If it is rock veneer on a frame walls the same way will work. you need to decide or have somebody evaluate the building to decide if it is strong enough to support a roof .
Not many tremors in Missouri lately and it must have stould for many years.
If there is a local building inspector in the area he should be able to tell you what the code allows and evaluate the structure. Some lumber yards also have compitent estimaters who would help you. Good Luck. Cj

[Ruffshooter]

Stone You got a photo of the interior and exterior including the existing roof structure. I am sure we can figure a way to get you in the correct direction.

I am a contractor for 30 plus years.
Rick

[Stoneface]

Thanks for all the help, guys! Turns out, though, that the property wasn't all it was cracked up to be. I poked around the neighborhood and asked the neighbors about the place then called the county. Turns out the place was actually a meeting house for the Klan! Ha. Can you believe that? Also turns out the septic was just a pipe that ran back to a gully behind the house and the well runs dry after about a half an hour. Geeeze, what's a guy to do? Good thing I called around...

Got another place that I'm going to be buying now. Head out to sign papers on Wednesday. Six acres just outside of Baxter Springs, Kansas. No restrictions or codes.