How Much Weight Can I Hang From My Garage Ceiling?

I want to hang my tractor in the garage, so I need to know how much weight I can hang from the garage ceiling. This article contains estimates; your mileage may vary. Consult a structural engineer before hanging heavy loads.

A Southern Pine garage ceiling with 2×6 joists spaced 16 in. on center has a 4,000 lb. per sq. ft. (psf) weight load capacity. If that garage ceiling will potentially support snow, then the hanging weight for this garage ceiling drops to 2,000 lb.

If those joists are spaced 24 in. on center rather than 16, the clear roof supports 3,500 lb. psf, and the snow roof supports 1,500 lb. psf.

Takeaways

1. A 2×6 Southern Pine garage ceiling spaced 16 in. on center with no snow has a weight capacity of 4,000 lb. psf.
2. Add snow to that roof and the max capacity you can hang drops to 2,000 lb. psf.
3. That 2×6 ceiling spaced 24 in. on center carries 3,500 lb. psf.
4. If you need to account for snow weight, this drops to 1,500 lb. psf.

 Disclaimer

This information is educational and does not necessarily apply to your specific situation. Overestimating the weight that the ceiling joists can hold can result in injury or death.

1. These are rough estimates.
2. Actual load capacity varies with construction materials and joist spacing.
3. While I will give you the math to determine the maximum load, don't hang a Volkswagen from the ceiling just because you can. Leave a margin for safety.
4. The weight should be distributed evenly. Concentrating too much weight in one spot can cause problems even if the total weight is within the limit.
5. Finally, before hanging anything significant from your garage ceiling or making any changes to the structure, you should definitely consult with a structural engineer or another qualified professional to ensure safety.

Ceiling Storage Starts with the Ceiling Joist

Standing in your garage, look at the structure of the ceiling.

See those horizontal boards placed parallel to each other?

Those are the ceiling joists.

The joists rest on the tops of the walls (called the wall plates), and run from one side of the garage to the other (not from front to back).

They support the garage roof by distributing its weight across the walls of the garage.

Joists are almost always made of wood, but a few outliers are made of metal.

This Winch Hoists 2200 lb., But is it Safe?

What if I told you that you could lift 2200 lb. using this electric winch? You hook the heavy mower or motorcycle and literally only press a button to get it off the floor and onto the ceiling.

Now, you have a garage with 2×6 joists spaced 24 in. on center located in Toronto. Is the winch safe to use to capacity?

Here's the winch, and the answer to the question is below.

Ceiling Joist Factors That Affect Their Weight-Bearing Capacities

Typical residential garage joists in the United States are commonly made of 2×6, 2×8, or 2×10 lumber.

Joists are usually spaced 16 or 24 inches on center (measured from the center of one joist to the center of the next).

The exact amount of weight that a joist can support varies based on its size, the type of wood it's made from, the span, and the spacing.

Allocate 10 Pounds Per Square Foot to “Dead Load”

When it comes to the weight, there are two types of loads to consider: live load and dead load.

A live load is a temporary weight resting on the joists, such as snow.

A dead load is the weight of the roof, and anything stored on the joists. This can be the storage of household items and a ceiling.

When calculating how much weight the ceiling can bear, you'll set aside some of that for the existing dead load already resting on the joists.

For example, if a given configuration of joists, materials, and dead load is designed to handle 50 pounds per square foot (psf), you cannot use the entire 50 psf in your load calculation.

The rule of thumb is to set aside 20% of the maximum load capacity (of 50 psf) because the joists have to support the dead weight of the roof.

20% of 50 psf is 10 psf that you will subtract from the capacity, which is now a maximum of 40 lb. psf., or 4,000 lb. per 100 sf area.

Theoretically, then, the weight you could hang from a 50 psf capacity spread over a 10 x 10 ft. section would look like this:

1. 10 x 10 = 100 sf.
2. 50 psf capacity – 10 psf dead load = 40 psf capacity
3. 100 sf x 40 psf = 4,000 lb. weight capacity that could be spread out in the 100 sf.

That does not include accounting for snow, which we will do next.

How Much Weight Can You Hang from a 2×6 Joist Ceiling?

The weight limit for a typical garage ceiling with 2×6 joists spanning 9 ft. is typically 50 lb. psf. Spread over a 100 sf area, taking into account the weight of snow, the maximum load can be reduced to as little as 1,500 lb.

This means a 100 lb. of ladders or kayaks will hang without issue, and for that, I recommend you look at the Best Ceiling Rack page.

One excellent way to store bicycles on the ceiling is my favorite ceiling pulley you can read more about it here: Best Ceiling Bicycle Pulley

Starting with 2×6 joists, let's calculate a theoretical ceiling load limit, based on the parameters below.

Remember, your mileage may vary, and you are responsible for the dangers posed by hanging anything from a garage ceiling.

The inventory we're going to hang from the ceiling will be spread throughout the 100 sf. area in the examples below.

But we need to account for the live load (snow) and dead load (the roof) before we know the weight the ceiling can hold.

The given maximum capacity of a Southern Pine 2×6 spanning 9 ft. is 50 lb. psf.

We will subtract 20% to account for the roof's weight for 16 on center joists, or 30% of the roof's weight for 24 in. on center joists.

If the roof supports snow, we will subtract another 40% from the 50 psf as well.

So in the table below, if the joists are 16 on center, assume 20% of the 50 psf to support the dead load of the roof itself. There's no snow concern so that deduction is 0%.

But when you add in the need for the ceiling joists to support snow, now you need to subtract 20% of the 50 psf for the dead weight of the roof, as well as 40% of the 50 psf for the live snow load.

We'll do those calculations below the tables.

When you subtract the dead and live loads from the maximum load capacity, you have the amount of weight that you can hang from the garage ceiling.

Subtract the live and dead loads from the 50 psf capacity to get the garage ceiling weight limit.

• A 2×6 Southern Pine garage ceiling spaced 16 in. on center with no snow has a weight capacity of 4,000 lb. psf.
• Add snow to that roof and the max capacity you can hang drops to 2,000 lb. psf.
• That 2×6 ceiling spaced 24 in. on center carries 3,500 lb. psf.
• If you need to account for snow weight, this drops to 1,500 lb. psf.

Southern Pine Joists, 16 on Center, and No Snow

For the first example, there is no possible snow load.

For the first example, the parameters are:

• joist material: southern pine
• joist size: 2×6
• joist spacing: 16 in. on center
• span: 9 ft.
• garage location: a place that NEVER gets snow
• capacity: 50 psf
• dead load reduction: 50 psf capacity x 20% dead load = 10 psf dead load
• live load reduction: 0 psf
• formula: 100 sf x (50 psf capacity – 10 psf dead load) = 4,000 lb.

Southern Pine Joists, 16 on Center, with Heavy Snow

For the second example, move the garage to a region that gets heavy snow.

Let's say the local building code in your snowy region requires structures to be designed for a snow load of 20 psf. This represents a 40% reduction in capacity to account for the live load from the snow.

In other words, reduce capacity by 40% to account for the live load of snow.

We subtract the snow live load from the weight you can hang from the garage ceiling.

• joist material: southern pine
• joist size: 2×6
• joist spacing: 16 in. on center
• spanning: 9 ft.
• garage location: a very SNOWY place
• capacity: 50 psf
• dead load reduction: 50 psf capacity x 20% dead load = 10 psf dead load
• live load reduction: 50 psf x 40% live load = 20 psf live load
• formula: 100 sf x (50 psf capacity – 10 psf dead load – 20 psf live load) = 2,000 lb.

Southern Pine Joists, 24 on Center, with No Snow

Now go back to the snow-less example, but change the distance between the boards from 16 in. to 24 inches on center.

The jump in distance means there are now fewer joists between the walls.

This means, for example, that you can fit 7 16-on-center joists in a 96-inch space, but only 5 joists if they're spaced 24 on-center.

|16 |16 |16 |16|16|16| = 96 inches containing 7 joists

|24….|24….|24…|24…| = 96 inches containing 5 joists

It takes a structural engineer to tell you the lost load capacity of this change A rough estimate is that the fewer joists lead to a 20 to 40% reduction in load capacity. We will use 30% for the example.

Now the snow-less 2×6 ceiling weight capacity is:

• joist material: southern pine
• joist size: 2×6
• joist spacing: 24 in. on center
• span: 9 ft.
• garage location: a place that NEVER gets snow
• capacity: 50 psf
• dead load reduction: 50 psf capacity x 30% dead load = 15 psf dead load
• live load reduction: 0 psf
• formula: 100 sf x (50 psf capacity – 15 psf dead load) = 3,500 lb.

Southern Pine Joists, 24 on Center, with Heavy Snow

Now we will pile the snow load onto the joists for our last example.

In this scenario, the Southern Pine 2×6 joists are 24 on center and will support a roof full of snow.

• joist material: southern pine
• joist size: 2×6
• joist spacing: 14 in. on center
• spanning: 9 ft.
• garage location: a very SNOWY place
• capacity: 50 psf
• dead load reduction: 50 psf capacity x 20% dead load = 10 psf dead load
• live load reduction: 50 psf x 40% live load = 20 psf live load
• formula: 100 sf x (50 psf capacity – 10 psf dead load – 20 psf live load) = 2,000 lb.

We subtract the snow live load from the weight you can hang from the garage ceiling.

• joist material: southern pine
• joist size: 2×6
• joist spacing: 16 in. on center
• spanning: 9 ft.
• garage location: a very SNOWY place
• capacity: 50 psf
• dead load reduction: 10 psf (20% of the 50 psf capacity)
• live load reduction: 20 psf (40% of the 50 psf capacity)
• formula: 100 sf x (50 psf capacity – 10 psf dead load – 20 psf live load) = 2,000 lb.

Summary

Materials and measurements affect the weight a garage ceiling can hold.

Remember, anything hanging on the ceiling can fall, an event that can be fatal.

Leave a margin of error in your calculations.

Hanging a bicycle is no problem, but what about hanging a tractor from the garage ceiling?

Getting any of these parameters wrong can lead to a smashed tractor, broken bones, and a lost life.

Be careful, and hire an expert structural engineer for large jobs.