Header Question To the Editor: "Sizing Up Wood Headers" by Robert Randall (4/92) is a good and useful article. One question though: What is the load factor of the building addition drawn below? Johan Bouwer Waterloo, Ontario Robert Randall responds: The situation in the sketch is a load factor 25, functionally the same as the upper left case in the load factor table published. Half of the load of your roof span (indicated by "W" in the illustration) bears on the header. There are no floor loads involved. However, a case such as this must be approached with caution because you are adding loads to the existing wall. Wall framing, attachment details, and any headered openings in the existing wall must be
