Tall and Cripple Walls

Tall wall and or cripple wall framing is most commonly found at the first floor level in a home with a raised foundation. We might find this framing configuration in hill side construction or in the sub area from the top of the foundation to the interior floor elevation of a flat lot home. In older homes we can find an upper cripple wall configuration in a raised roof above the upper plate.

In today's picture we see a 1920's vintage garage where it appears the roof was raised approximately 30" to accommodate an interior loft configuration. A couple of issues have been created by these non permitted alterations. We've increased the exterior wall framing load on the original concrete footing/foundation. We've failed to add lateral support framing to the original exterior wall framing. We've also failed to install proper earthquake resistant "Simpson" framing hardware at the upper cripple wall to prevent failure during a seismic event.

Remember, always use licensed contractors, obtain the proper building permits and in this case structural engineering reports and when in doubt, error on the side of safety!

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