I wonder which came first, 16" spacing or 4' sheet stock, sort of a chicken
and egg type of deal.
  What's the framing practice in metric countries, guessing it's not 16"
centers and 4' plywood?

Phil


On Thu, Apr 17, 2014 at 5:32 AM, CheekyGeek  wrote:

> I have no specific knowledge or source (would love to see the real history)
> but I suspect that the 16" standard came about as a result of engineering,
> in combination with the standardization of the lumber production industry.
>
> We've all heard of the 2x4 and we all know that today it isn't 2"x4". 16"
> is a logical progression of the 2x4 sequence and so may, mathematically
> have something to do with it (along with the standard of 8' ceiling
> heights, perhaps?). I know in older homes the 2x4s ARE 2"x4".
>
> I'm guessing an engineer did the math and calculated that, at an 8' ceiling
> standard, and a 16" on-center wall panel stud standard, the necessary
> strength could be provided by less material in the stud (and the lumber
> industry could get more material from the same tree) and so the 1-1/2" x
> 3-1/2" 2x4 was born. (Leaving the 16" on-center standard alone).
>
> But, like I said, this is all conjecture. I'd love to see the history of
> the development somewhere.
>
> A man understands one day that his life is built on nothing, and that's a
> bad, crazy day. - Cosmo Castorini, Moonstruck
>
>
> On Thu, Apr 17, 2014 at 8:17 AM, Michael Blair  wrote:
>
> > It's a code requirement in California for any dwelling space.  Every
> house
> > I've lived in has 2X4s on 16 inch centers.  My great-grandfather built
> all
> > houses this way.  My house now was built in 1925 -- 2X4s on 16 inch
> > centers.
> > The 1906 house I lived in had 2X4s on 16 inch centers.  The Victorians
> I've
> > worked on had 2X4s on 16 inch centers, so the standard has been around
> for
> > a very long time.  Fiberglass insulation specifically for walls comes in
> > 16 inch wide rolls.  Roof insulation comes in 24 inch wide rolls.
> >
> > Why?  You'd need to ask a structural engineer for the rational.
> >
> > Mike in Sacto
> >
> >
> >
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