I was inspecting a house and the 3 ply 2x10 built up girder beam had a 1.5” hole bored through for added in CSST gas tubing. I can’t find in code or anywhere else if the beam notching rules apply to built up girders, or just floor joists.
Also there were staggered splices where the boards met, but they were somewhere mid span and had obvious sagging movement at the splice, but the other 2 boards were continuous and straight. Is there a rule about seams not being over a pier or column on a built up girder?
On a built up girder the pieces are fastened together to act as a single unit in theory and if it’s done correctly. It’s not too uncommon. Although it’s better if the joints fall over a support. It depends on the load really. Consider what it’s supporting. If you can’t land all the splices on a support then it’s best to over engineer the girder. Quality gluing and fastening is key. I suppose some people here will say that if you can’t land them over a support then engineering is required.
IRC requires all beams to be supported at the end. This includes multiple ply beams. All members must act as one by screwing them together. Chances are if the load required multiple ply beams then it’s likely it needed to be engineered. LVL beams allow holes in the middle third of the span and middle third of the depth.