Main Man
Registered User
I own a commercial building and I'm planning to widen an existing exterior basement door in a two story building. The township is requiring that the opening be designed in accordance with 2015 IBC. The current wall is 2x4 construction with a brick facade. There is currently a single steel door that is 32" x 78". I like widen the opening and install double doors (~5'-9" rough opening width) to accommodate the installation of equipment in the basement. My issue is that the existing wall height (floor to bottom of double 2x4 plates) is only 86". If I install a double 2x12 header that only leaves a rough opening height of about 74.5". I'm having difficulty finding doors to fit this opening size. Does anyone know if there's an alternate to using the double 2x12 header allowable by the 2015 IBC such as a steel header or laminated beam that would increase the rough opening height? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you in advance.