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Posted by on February 22, 2007, 1:11 pm
Very good points all around. The 1" isnt noticeable inside. You are
right, any changes I make to correct this issue will cause my side
wall/facade to need corrections to discount this inch. We are adding
a mansard roof on top of the existing structure so it could be really
tough to hide that inch.
On the lower floor there is a room that spans the 30 feet and it isnt
noticable there. On the addition floor there is a center hall and
rooms on each side that are around 13 feet wide. If I didnt notice it
in the large room breeak the 1" up into 2 rooms and a hall should
certainly hide it further.
> tdmail...@yahoo.com wrote:
> > I am involved in a project where I am adding an additon to a ranch
> > house. House is about 25 feet wide about about 40 deep. Most of the
> > projects I work on are total gut jobs so I dont worry about saving
> > existing structure. However this house has a really good first with
> > new kitchens and baths so I want to keep from demoing the ceiling and
> > ceiling joists.
>
> > Joists go across house as expected. Thetopplateon the rght side of
> > house is about 1 inch lower then the left with a slight(1/2") pitch
> > toward the back.
>
> > I was wondering what methods others use to level thetopplatebefore
> > adding a new floor in cases where the existing ceiling and ceiling
> > joists are to remain. In cases where I am am demoing the existing
> > celing joists and the slope isnt bad I sometimes shim under each
> > joist.
>
> > However for cases where I am leaving the existing ceiling joists (to
> > support exisiting drywall ceiling) and installing new joists I have
> > been doing is scribing and cutting the rim joist to follow the
> > contor. I like to install a rim joist because otherwise otherwise I
> > end up with a bunch of point loads which dont line up with the stud
> > wall(since the existing joists line up with the stud wall).
>
> > What I did in the past was a buy a engineered wood rim joist one size
> > over(assuming slope is less then 2 inches). I placed the enginnered
> > joist on thetopplatetemporally, shiming the low side until level.
> > I then ran a scribe down the outside of the building along thetop
> >plate. This left me a line on the rim joist that followed the slope
> > of thetopplate. I then trimmed it down with a circular saw so now
> > the contour of the rim joists makes the contor of thetopplate.
>
> > This was time consuming but seems to work well. One thing that makes
> > it even mroe time consuming is the fact that the existing ceiling
> > joists in most cases extend flush to the edge of thetopplate. This
> > causes me to have to cut these back 1 1/2 ". I then connect them to
> > the new rim joist with simpson angle brackets.
>
> > I was wondering how others do it when framing new floor joists in
> > parallel to existing whentopplateisnt level.
>
> What first comes to mind is, provided the structure below is sound (not
> sinking/settling/rot/decay i.e. why is it out 1"?), why would you be
> worrying about 1" in a remodel of a house where the structure below is
> likely also out that same 1"?
>
> An inch out of whack isnt much to deal with in construction but it also
> isnt much for the homeowner to live with given the first floor is likely
> the same. How do you deal with exterior details that will all now have
> to be tapered or cheated to accommodate the leveling of the new
> construction? The outside walls will be taller on one end than the other
> and so on. Do you cheat the inch out in the siding? Taper your last
> course? Will the correction show in the outside corners? Are the first
> floor walls plumb? Leaning? As I said, an inch aint a biggie, but the
> point is still the same. Its not to say it cant, or shouldnt, be done
> just why and what are the repercussions of it.
>
> Your first concern should be where did the inch come from? After that
> would be why the need to level the second story in the first place given
> the rest of the house is out an inch and seems to be acceptable enough
> to the occupants that they want to save it. After that would be how will
> you deal with the everything else affected should it be taken out.
>
> I cant say we have ever done a second story addition over a first floor
> which was out of level enough to be concerned with so I can only
> speculate that in this case I would likely let the second floor mirror
> the first. If it were out enough that the we, and the homeowner, were
> concerned with it we would likely sister new joists/sleepers inbound of
> the walls leveling the interior floor a bit but leaving the new second
> floor exterior details parallel/in-line with the first. This would
> result in a more level floor in the second story addition though it
> would have to be taken out in the interior finish.
>
> The way I look at it is, imagine you had a structurally sound home that
> was leaning 6" out of plumb in 8'. When you add the second story do you
> build it plumb in effect putting a "kink" in the house or do you carry
> the second floor up matching the first so from the exterior it looks
> good? This is only an inch but the principal is the same.
>
> As for cutting back existing joists we find it is fastest with a
> chainsaw. Snap a line, square down from that line, and do a nice job
> cutting them back. If your no good with a chiansaw a sawzall is second
> best but 1/10th as fast. I dont consider a chainsaw a great carpenters
> tool but in some cases its handy and a real time saver as long as you
> can cut a clean, straight line.
>
> Mark- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -
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