How to attach a veranda ledger board to a brick veneer house?

Question

Hi there,

I’m currently building a timber veranda attached to my house and I’m comfortable with the rest of the structure (posts, beams, rafters etc.), but I want to make sure I get the ledger board / waling plate connection to the house correct, as this is obviously the most critical part.

My house is brick veneer construction, so I understand the brick itself is non-structural, and the ledger needs to be fixed back to the timber wall framing behind the brick, not supported by the brick.

My current understanding is that the typical method is:

* Drill clearance holes through the ledger board

* Drill through the brick veneer

* Pre-drill into the timber studs behind the brick

* Install coach screws or structural screws fixing the ledger into the timber framing

However, I’ve read conflicting advice about spacers and correct location of the ledger board / waling plate, so, I’m hoping someone can clarify the correct method.

Specifically:

* Should there be a spacer between the ledger and the brick veneer, or is it acceptable for the ledger to sit directly against the brick provided the fasteners are anchored into the studs?
* Should there be a spacer between the brick veneer and the internal timber framing?
* I’ve seen advice suggesting that a spacer is necessary so the ledger doesn’t compress or load the brick veneer, which could push it inward into the air gap between the brick veneer and the timber framing when the bolts are tightened.
* In the NCC, I found wording stating that fasteners must be “positively anchored in the building structure and not fixed into mortar beds between masonry units.”

My interpretation is that this means the screws must pass through the brick and anchor into the timber framing, rather than relying on the brick or mortar itself. Is that interpretation correct?
* If I'm using a 190 x 45 mm (MGP10), what size coach screws or structural screws do you recommend? And I'm assuming they are spaced every 450 mm / 600 mm? (Depending on stud spacing)
* What is the best method for locating the timber studs behind a brick veneer wall from the outside? Since the brick hides the frame, I’m unsure of the most reliable way to identify where the studs are without opening up the internal plasterboard. For example, do builders typically:*  Measure from internal wall framing layout
*  Locate studs from inside and transfer measurements outside
*  Use a stud finder from inside
*  Follow typical 450 mm / 600 mm stud spacing
*  Or use another method?

I’d really appreciate any advice…   :)

Nailbag · Answer

Hi @Mitch2490

I can’t really add much more than the rather impressive ones @MitchellMc has already supplied.

One important point you made yourself is the inability to advise detailed and qualified information for your project. There are a lot of variables and building codes that need to be accounted for including your building insurance.

My advice would be to make a small investment and get your veranda professionally drawn up. The working drawings will provide all the detailed information and flag if a permit is required.

Nailbag

MitchellMc · Answer

Hi @Mitch2490 ,

Firstly, my apologies. After reading your follow-up I misunderstood your original situation.

When you mentioned a veranda with a ledger board, I assumed you were referring to an elevated verandah where the ledger is supporting the floor structure and the roof above it. In that scenario, the ledger connection is carrying significant structural load, which is why my earlier reply leaned heavily toward engineering input.

From your description and photos, I can see you're talking about mounting a veranda roof structure to the wall, rather than supporting a raised deck floor. That type of connection is generally much less involved structurally, as the main loads are usually carried by the posts and beams out the front rather than the wall itself.

In many cases, for attached pergolas on brick veneer houses, builders actually avoid fixing a ledger through the veneer altogether and instead use pergola brackets that connect back to the structural roof framing. These brackets typically pass through the fascia and roof line and tie directly into rafters or trusses.

A common example is brackets similar to the Bunnings 22° galvanised extended fascia brackets, which project out through the fascia and connect to the structural roof timbers. That way, the load is transferred into the roof structure rather than relying on stud timbers.

Regarding the threaded rods you found:

* The fact that they run through a mortar bed joint isn’t unusual in itself. Installers sometimes choose the mortar joint because it’s easier to drill and less likely to crack the brick.
* However, the detail that would matter most is whether there is a metal sleeve or collar around the rod where it passes through the brick.

If those rods have a metal sleeve around them, that makes me think they may be expanding masonry anchors (Dynabolt-style fixings) installed into the brickwork rather than rods that pass through the cavity and tie into structural timber framing behind. If that’s the case, they wouldn’t be suitable for supporting a pergola ledger or waling plate that’s carrying roof loads. I'd hazard a guess and say they were for a retractable awning that was never installed.

At this point, the key thing would be confirming what those existing rods are actually fixed into. If they truly were installed during construction as pergola mounts, they may already be tied into structural members. But if they’re simply masonry anchors in the brick, they unfortunately wouldn’t be doing the job you’d want.

Try tapping a couple with a hammer. If they go in slightly, they are likely an expanding fixing in the brick.

Mitchell

Mitch2490 · Answer

Hi Mitchell,

Thanks for the detailed reply — I completely understand that this may be outside the scope of advice you can reasonably provide. I also appreciate your point about the ledger connection being the most critical part of the structure and that specifying fixings and load capacity ultimately falls into engineering territory.

I haven’t started building the veranda yet. At this stage I’m just trying to get sense of what's required before progressing any further. I’m certainly not a structural engineer though — which is probably evident from my earlier use of the term stud when I really meant structural members within the wall framing.

Just to add a bit more context to my original question, there are already several threaded rods protruding from the wall where the veranda could potentially attach (see below). These appear to have been installed when the house was built but never used, along with a few post brackets that are cast into the slab.

From what I can tell, the rods pass through the mortar bed joint in the brick veneer and then continue into the timber framing behind it. What I’m unsure about is whether it’s normal practice for the penetration through the veneer to occur in the mortar joint, rather than through the brick units themselves.

The other aspect I’m trying to understand is the best way to identify what structural members these rods may actually be fixed into behind the veneer. Obviously, that can’t be seen externally, which is why I was asking about typical construction practice in this situation. For example, would these typically be anchored into something like a top plate, lintel framing above the opening, or standard wall studs, depending on the layout?

I was also wondering whether it’s sometimes possible to identify this from above by removing a few tiles near the eaves and inspecting the top of the wall framing or whether view is likely obstructed.

What stood out to me from looking at the existing rods is:

* All of them align with the same mortar bed joint
* The spacing is quite irregular and doesn’t appear to follow typical stud spacing (one gap is roughly 1800 mm)
* There are relatively few anchors across the 9m span — around seven or eight in total.

If extra coach screws are added through the brick veneer, do builders usually install a sleeve through the cavity to avoid loading the veneer and ensure the fixing bears on the timber framing?

So my questions were really aimed at understanding how a builder would normally verify what structural member those threaded rods are fixed into.

Appreciate the response and the time you took to explain it.

Thanks,