For our evaluations, we built a four-by-eight-foot wall from common materials: wood and metal studs; drywall; copper, black, pex, and PVC pipes; and nonmetallic sheathed cable. Then, we scanned ...

Headers take the weight of the materials and occupants above and transfer it via the trim studs down to the floors and foundations below. In most wood-frame dwellings, headers are thick beams ...