ᐅ Carport structural calculation for verification – Thank you!
Created on: 18 Mar 2026 05:57
M
Mariopa
Hello dear members,
I have planned a green roof for my carport. Unfortunately, the seller at the trade fair exaggerated a bit and said the saturated dead load is about 40 kg/m² (8.2 lb/ft²). After reading the planning documents, it turns out to be 80 kg/m² (16.4 lb/ft²).
To avoid overloading the carport, I tried to calculate the structural load. Since this is my first time and I don’t want to make any mistakes, I would appreciate it if someone could check my calculations:
Here are the figures I came up with:
EPDM membrane 1.5 kg/m² (0.3 lb/ft²)
Green roof 80 kg/m² (16.4 lb/ft²)
Wooden boards, spruce, 1.2 cm (0.5 inch) thick, 6 kg/m² (1.2 lb/ft²), larch C24
Rafters 6 x 12 cm (2.4 x 4.7 inches), spacing 80 cm (31.5 inches), span 2.84 m (9.3 ft), 4.5 kg/m² (0.9 lb/ft²), larch C24
When I enter this into the well-known online calculator with a snow load of 85 kg/m² (17.4 lb/ft²), the result shows it is just sufficient. To be on the safe side, I would reduce the substrate weight by 25%, lowering the load by 20 kg/m² (4.1 lb/ft²).
Is my calculation correct, or are there major mistakes?
The support beams (7 meters (23 ft)) should be fine, 8 x 24 cm (3.1 x 9.4 inches), larch C24, 12 kg/m² (2.5 lb/ft²).
The posts (8 pieces, 2.5 meters (8.2 ft) high) with 12 x 12 cm (4.7 x 4.7 inches), larch C24, 3 kg/m² (0.6 lb/ft²) as well.
Thanks if someone could take a quick look over a coffee and let me know if my calculations roughly make sense or if there are any significant errors.
Thank you!
I have planned a green roof for my carport. Unfortunately, the seller at the trade fair exaggerated a bit and said the saturated dead load is about 40 kg/m² (8.2 lb/ft²). After reading the planning documents, it turns out to be 80 kg/m² (16.4 lb/ft²).
To avoid overloading the carport, I tried to calculate the structural load. Since this is my first time and I don’t want to make any mistakes, I would appreciate it if someone could check my calculations:
Here are the figures I came up with:
EPDM membrane 1.5 kg/m² (0.3 lb/ft²)
Green roof 80 kg/m² (16.4 lb/ft²)
Wooden boards, spruce, 1.2 cm (0.5 inch) thick, 6 kg/m² (1.2 lb/ft²), larch C24
Rafters 6 x 12 cm (2.4 x 4.7 inches), spacing 80 cm (31.5 inches), span 2.84 m (9.3 ft), 4.5 kg/m² (0.9 lb/ft²), larch C24
When I enter this into the well-known online calculator with a snow load of 85 kg/m² (17.4 lb/ft²), the result shows it is just sufficient. To be on the safe side, I would reduce the substrate weight by 25%, lowering the load by 20 kg/m² (4.1 lb/ft²).
Is my calculation correct, or are there major mistakes?
The support beams (7 meters (23 ft)) should be fine, 8 x 24 cm (3.1 x 9.4 inches), larch C24, 12 kg/m² (2.5 lb/ft²).
The posts (8 pieces, 2.5 meters (8.2 ft) high) with 12 x 12 cm (4.7 x 4.7 inches), larch C24, 3 kg/m² (0.6 lb/ft²) as well.
Thanks if someone could take a quick look over a coffee and let me know if my calculations roughly make sense or if there are any significant errors.
Thank you!
N
nordanney18 Mar 2026 09:27Mariopa schrieb:
One last question: you really consider posts and load-bearing beams to be unproblematic, right? Yep
N
nordanney18 Mar 2026 09:27Mariopa schrieb:
One last question: You really consider posts and beams to be uncritical as well, right? Yep
M
MachsSelbst18 Mar 2026 09:31What kind of permanent load does a carport have, apart from the dead load of the roof and snow load?
85 kg/m² (17.4 lb/ft²) means you are not allowed to add any more load, whether it’s snow, soil, or tiles...
Whether it works out with the deflection at 40 kg/m² (8.2 lb/ft²) or not doesn’t matter. The carport is designed for 85 kg/m² (17.4 lb/ft²).
You obviously misunderstood the part about the snow load.
85 kg/m² (17.4 lb/ft²) means you are not allowed to add any more load, whether it’s snow, soil, or tiles...
Whether it works out with the deflection at 40 kg/m² (8.2 lb/ft²) or not doesn’t matter. The carport is designed for 85 kg/m² (17.4 lb/ft²).
You obviously misunderstood the part about the snow load.
@MachsSelbst:
I understand what you’re saying, and the question isn’t about what the carport is designed for. It’s about how much dead load is possible with a rafter dimension of 6x12 at a spacing of 0.84m (33 inches) and a span of 2.84m (112 inches).
According to my calculations, that is 200kg (440 lbs), consisting of 120kg (265 lbs) dead load (green roof and self-weight) plus 85kg (187 lbs) snow load.
And that was my question: whether this calculation is correct.
I understand what you’re saying, and the question isn’t about what the carport is designed for. It’s about how much dead load is possible with a rafter dimension of 6x12 at a spacing of 0.84m (33 inches) and a span of 2.84m (112 inches).
According to my calculations, that is 200kg (440 lbs), consisting of 120kg (265 lbs) dead load (green roof and self-weight) plus 85kg (187 lbs) snow load.
And that was my question: whether this calculation is correct.
H
hanghaus202318 Mar 2026 10:14If this is an existing roof, why do you want to turn it into a green roof?
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