We purchased our house about 4 years ago, and I've recently noticed that in the attic, several of the ceiling joists are not fully "bearing" on the hangers. This is a house build in the late 50's, so likely this isn't anything new, but for peace of mind, I'd like to get it reinforced. I've thought about using lateral ties, but don't know that's the best plan.
Do I need to fix this and if so, how?
Ignore the wiring, that's a whole other issue I'm fixing...
It's very likely that those joists were never fully put on the hangers to begin with.
It's extremely difficult to place a joist in a slot that is exactly large enough for it down to the millimeter. If you don't go down exactly parallel it will bind up and you have to employ various means of persuasion. Adding a quarter inch of margin makes it drop right in.
There is margin in the hangers to account for builders not flushing up the joist. If you dig down into that insulation a bit you will be able to measure how much metal is supporting the wood.
