Load Paths and

Tributary Area Examples

T. Bartlett Quimby, 2007

A Beginners Guide to Structural

Mechanics/Analysis
 Alaska State Fairgrounds
Farm Exhibits Building
Palmer, Alaska
Long Span Roof Truss Girders Mezzanine Area Awning Roof

Awning Roof with

Hip Beam

A large open exhibit building with long

span truss girders.
 Roof deck transfers load
Each joist supports to supporting joists.
an area equal to its
span times half the
distance to the joist
on either side.
Load rests on roof deck

The joists transfer The pier supports half the

their loads to the area supported by the truss
supporting truss Each truss
girdergirder supports
plus area from an
other
girders. area equal to itselements
structural span timesthat it
half the distance
supports. to the girder
The truss girders
on either side.
transfer their loads
to the supporting
piers and columns.

Long Span Roof Load Path

 The girders are not
single span so the
tributary area for the
columns cannot be
graphically determined
The area tributary to a
joist equals the length of
the joist times the sum of
half the distance to each
adjacent joist.

The area tributary to a girder

equals the length of the girder
times the sum of half the
distance to each adjacent
girder.
Columns Support Girders Girders Support Joists
Metal Deck/Slab System
Supports Floor Loads Above

Joists Support Floor Deck

Mezzanine Floor System

 The point load consists of
the reaction from the two
supported joists which
equals the tributary area (1/2
the cantilever span times the
Exterior
spacing joist
of the
carried
cantilevers)
load to
the
timessupporting
the pressure
cantilever
load on
the floorbeam
plus ends
the self weight
of the joist.

The load diagram for the

cantilever (excluding self wt)
consists of a single point
load at the end of the
Deck carries load to edge
cantilever.
joist and wall.

Cantilever Loads
 End Wall
Framing
The beam-columns do
not support
For lateral any roof
pressures, the
load, they are
siding spans between thehere to
resist lateral forces
horizontal that
girts (yet
they fancy
another receive from
word forthe
a
girts. They support an
beam!)the
The
areagirts
thatsupport
extendshalf from
siding to the adjacent
locations half way to the girts.
This is the
adjacent tributary area
beam-columns
on each sidefor andone girt.
from
floor to roof as shown.
The girts transfer their
lateral load to the
The beam-columns
supporting beam-
transfer their lateral
columns.
loads equally to the roof
and foundation.
 Hip Beam

This beam picks up load from

joists of varying lengths. In
this case the resulting load
distribution would have a The hip beam also picks up a
linearly varying component. point load reaction from a pair
The illustrated area is part of of the roof girders.
the tributary area at the roof
deck level.