Q: The attic in our 4-year-old house creaks, and when it’s windy we hear cracking noises as well. The sounds are loud, waking us up. The builder sent a fellow to add 2-by-4s to some of the trusses. It ...

DEAR TIM: I need your opinion about my roof. I’m afraid it’s going to collapse because when the wind blows it makes a scary popping noise. It actually sounds like the roof could rip off the house.

WHILE there are a few misconceptions around timbers fire performance, structural timber for roofing is both commonplace and performs well under fire conditions. As with every aspect of building, ...