Use of Trusses in 1950s Houses

Change in Roof Pitch

• Houses with attics used more wood because of higher roof pitches in the years before the 1950s. These homes also took longer to build. With truss development, attics disappeared and the roof pitch came down, but houses also got bigger. This reduced the traditional high-pitched roofs to houses with 3:12 roof pitches. A house with a 3:12 roof pitch has a roof that rises 3 feet for every 12 feet of length.

Less Wood

• Builders switched to trusses because it reduced the amount of work it took to build the house. Because of the engineered construction of trusses, smaller pieces and less wood could be used, with the trusses still providing the strength needed to support the roof. Because of the way trusses were built, they filled the space that the attic formerly occupied. What previously took a week or more to complete was reduced to a two-and-a-half day process using trusses.

Environmentally Sound

• Truss fabrication saved trees because constructed roof systems required smaller-sized wood. Rafter-constructed homes required large logs or beams, usually from old growth forests. Trusses made from 2-by-4 or 2-by-6 triangular shapes fitted together came from sustainable-growth trees, such as Douglas fir instead of older trees.

Costs

• Using trusses in the mass-produced homes of the 1950s kept costs down on several fronts. Gone was the need for large timbers and extra attic space. Trusses provided smaller roof areas that required less materials -- because of the lowered pitches -- and further reduced the costs of roof sheathing and shingles. Other costs saved involved wages because trusses reduced the man-hours to complete a roof. By using pre-fabricated trusses, all the on-site carpenters had to do was nail the trusses in place with brackets along sill plates and sheath and shingle the roof.