Homebuilding: Installing Sill Plates

When construction a house, installing the sill plates correctly
will decide how level and square the accomplished stock
will be.

Hopefully the concrete contractor did his job and left you
with a reasonably level and square foundation. A good
concrete contractor can make a framing contractors job of
building a house a piece of cake. Even if the foundation is
slightly out of square, a good framing contractor can adjust
his sill plates and spoton the problem.

Carpentry Framing

When laying out the sill plates, snap chalk lines on the
biggest square of the foundation. This will ordinarily be the
main part of the house. After snapping the front or back and
one side, check for square. This is really done by using
the 3-4-5 method. Measuring 3' from the corner on the side,
and 4' from the corner on the front or back. Make a pencil
mark on the chalk line at these dimensions. Portion the
distance between these two marks on the diagonal and if
perfectly square will equal 5'. If it is not square, adjust
the shortest of these two lines so that your determination
equals 5'.

Once squared these lines can be used as a reference point to
square and keep parallel other sections of the houses
foundation, like a carport or sunroom. By using the biggest
square Portion of the house, your work will be more
accurate.

After your chalklines are all snapped, your ready to lay the
sill sealer and sill plates. The sill sealer is put on top
of the foundation wall first. This material comes in two
forms. One is very similar to fiberglass wall insulation
except thinner and with the same kraft paper backing. The
other is a 1/4" foam similar to laminate flooring
underlayment. Both materials come in widths to adapt
2x4 and 2x6 sill plates. I prefer the foam sill sealer for
its ease to work with and what I feel will keep drafts and
moisture from penetrating under the sill plate better. Both
sealers are installed butting up to the chalk line to the
inside of the foundation wall. Both are pushed down over
the anchor bolts till it pops through the sealer.

The face close determines the placement of sill plates
on the foundation wall. If the face close is siding,
the sill plates will close flush with the face of the
foundation wall. In this case I like to Portion in the width
of my sill plate, 3 1/2" for a 2x4 and 5 1/2" for a 2x6. If
the face close is brick, the sill plate will be 4 1/2"
from the face edge of the foundation wall.

Holes must be drilled in the plates to install them over the
anchor bolts. These 2x plates are ordinarily required to be
treated lumber to resist rot. To find the bolt hole in the
2x, put the plate up against the anchor bolts. Using a speed
square or a mixture square, put the square on the edge
of the 2x and against the anchor bolt. Hold your pencil
against the squares edge with the lead 1/4" away from the
blade of the square and draw a line. This will give you the
center of the 1/2" anchor bolt along the length of the 2x
plate. To get the town off the edge of the plate, Portion
from the chalkline to the town of the bolt. This will give
you the location to drill the holes in the plate. Drill a
3/4" hole in the plate. This allows some wiggle room to drop
the plate over the anchor bolts which are not always
straight up and down.

Once the holes are drilled in the plate, bolt it down with a
washer and hex nut. Continue the process by butting the next
plate to the one just put down and find the next set of
holes, putting the sill sealer down ahead of the plates. Toe
nail all joints where the plates butt one another.

This is an foremost step when construction a new home. By
installing the sill plates level and square, it gives a
solid reference to ensue when framing the rest of the
house.

(c) Mike Merisko www.sawkerfs.com

Homebuilding: Installing Sill Plates

When construction a house, installing the sill plates correctly
will decide how level and square the accomplished stock
will be.

Hopefully the concrete contractor did his job and left you
with a reasonably level and square foundation. A good
concrete contractor can make a framing contractors job of
building a house a piece of cake. Even if the foundation is
slightly out of square, a good framing contractor can adjust
his sill plates and spoton the problem.

Carpentry Framing

When laying out the sill plates, snap chalk lines on the
biggest square of the foundation. This will ordinarily be the
main part of the house. After snapping the front or back and
one side, check for square. This is really done by using
the 3-4-5 method. Measuring 3' from the corner on the side,
and 4' from the corner on the front or back. Make a pencil
mark on the chalk line at these dimensions. Portion the
distance between these two marks on the diagonal and if
perfectly square will equal 5'. If it is not square, adjust
the shortest of these two lines so that your determination
equals 5'.

Once squared these lines can be used as a reference point to
square and keep parallel other sections of the houses
foundation, like a carport or sunroom. By using the biggest
square Portion of the house, your work will be more
accurate.

After your chalklines are all snapped, your ready to lay the
sill sealer and sill plates. The sill sealer is put on top
of the foundation wall first. This material comes in two
forms. One is very similar to fiberglass wall insulation
except thinner and with the same kraft paper backing. The
other is a 1/4" foam similar to laminate flooring
underlayment. Both materials come in widths to adapt
2x4 and 2x6 sill plates. I prefer the foam sill sealer for
its ease to work with and what I feel will keep drafts and
moisture from penetrating under the sill plate better. Both
sealers are installed butting up to the chalk line to the
inside of the foundation wall. Both are pushed down over
the anchor bolts till it pops through the sealer.

The face close determines the placement of sill plates
on the foundation wall. If the face close is siding,
the sill plates will close flush with the face of the
foundation wall. In this case I like to Portion in the width
of my sill plate, 3 1/2" for a 2x4 and 5 1/2" for a 2x6. If
the face close is brick, the sill plate will be 4 1/2"
from the face edge of the foundation wall.

Holes must be drilled in the plates to install them over the
anchor bolts. These 2x plates are ordinarily required to be
treated lumber to resist rot. To find the bolt hole in the
2x, put the plate up against the anchor bolts. Using a speed
square or a mixture square, put the square on the edge
of the 2x and against the anchor bolt. Hold your pencil
against the squares edge with the lead 1/4" away from the
blade of the square and draw a line. This will give you the
center of the 1/2" anchor bolt along the length of the 2x
plate. To get the town off the edge of the plate, Portion
from the chalkline to the town of the bolt. This will give
you the location to drill the holes in the plate. Drill a
3/4" hole in the plate. This allows some wiggle room to drop
the plate over the anchor bolts which are not always
straight up and down.

Once the holes are drilled in the plate, bolt it down with a
washer and hex nut. Continue the process by butting the next
plate to the one just put down and find the next set of
holes, putting the sill sealer down ahead of the plates. Toe
nail all joints where the plates butt one another.

This is an foremost step when construction a new home. By
installing the sill plates level and square, it gives a
solid reference to ensue when framing the rest of the
house.

(c) Mike Merisko www.sawkerfs.com

Homebuilding: Installing Sill Plates