Securing Lumber To Roof Rack

Load your sheet of plywood on the roof rack.

Securing lumber to roof rack.

Oh and remember to prepare two other pieces of wood for later use. Use a tie down that wraps around the item and the rails. Then secure the front and back ends of each lumber bundle with ratchet straps to prevent movement photo 1. If you have an suv and need to haul lumber often a trailer would be a better option than a roof rack.

For infrequent use though truck rental is a better option. That prevents the bundle from sliding forward backward or side to side. The second option is the side racks. I ve seen others to do and they always seem to slip the rope thru a loop bring the rope back on itself then tie the loose end to the stretched.

Next secure the load to the rack using ratchet straps photo 2. I own a small suv actually the wife s and i ve had to transport boards this way for years. Ask for help from friends if the sheet is too heavy. Can t tell you how many times i ve had to do this.

In the case of a naked roof you should be looping the rope through the car through the doors not the windows and around the object on the roof and a towel or blanket should be used to protect the roof of your car from the object. Attach a metal roof rack or a hard plastic or foldable clamshell. Not only that but the cost of a roof rack is easily 5 10 times more expensive than a one day truck rental. For a video and step by step instructions on how to tie down a kayak please see our article on how to tie down a kayak to a vehicle.

Place the two pieces of wood you have left side from step 2 on top of the plywood sheet. The basic steps to properly and safely secure cargo to the roof of your vehicle are the same whether you re securing your cargo to roof cross bars side rails ladder racks or baskets. Start by loading dimensional lumber onto the rack with the narrow edges resting on the crossbars. On each side of the roof you ll see a rack that runs the length of the roof of the vehicle.

With the third option crossbars with side rails you can secure an item to the side rails and run tie downs from front to back securing them to the crossbars. Wood says side rails and crossbars are ideal but you can move whatever you you need to without them. Use ropes to make sure it does not move around. Adam davis dec 10 15 at 15 03.

These work great for. Wrap lumber in a tarp to secure it and place a blanket down on the roof under the load to avoid scratching your vehicle s paint. Secure it to the roof rack. Tie down the boards lengthwise and widthwise similar to how you d secure a mattress.