Renovation 4th Edition

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Renovation 4th Edition Page 46

by Michael Litchfield


  or endanger others as it’s being carried out.

  pry off trim without breaking it

  you’re working with a crew, mark these items

  (rusty nails are often the cul-

   Clean up as you tear out. Don’t allow

  “Salvage” or “Save” so they don’t get tossed. Most

  prit), use a fine nail set to drive

  trash to accumulate underfoot. Lumber or

  of the time, it’s easy to pop hinge pins and lift

  the finish nails all the way

  plaster lath with nails sticking out are

  doors out of the frame. But if hinge leaves are

  through the wood. Holes created

  particularly hazardous. If you’re working at

  encrusted with paint, use an old screwdriver or a

  by a nail set are small and easy

  any height—say, standing on a stepladder—

  chisel good for little else to chip away paint from

  to fill.

  know there’s a safe area to land if you need to

  the screw heads. Or apply paint stripper.

  come down in a hurry.

  To remove wood trim without damaging it,

   When demolishing outside or carrying

  first run a putty knife between the wall and the

  rubbish out to the Dumpster, drape heavy

  trim to break the paint seal. A utility knife isn’t as

  tarps to protect your plants and to avoid a lot

  good because its sharp blade can easily slice trim.

  of raking later on. After discarding large pieces

  Then gently tap a small flat bar (also called a

  of debris, two people can lift the tarp and

  painter’s pry bar) behind the trim, as shown in

  shake the remnants directly into the trash.

  the photo below. Pry up along the entire length of

  

  the trim, raising it little by little. Be patient.

  Organize debris. Maximize Dumpster

  Photograph woodwork assemblies beforehand.

  loads by putting in dense materials such as

  As you remove trim pieces, use a permanent

  plaster, concrete, and soil first. Place lighter,

  marker to number the back of each so you can

  bulkier items on top. If your community has a

  reinstall the trim correctly.

  recycling center, set aside recyclable materials

  such as unpainted wood, brick, glass, or metal.

  That may be cheaper than sending them to a

  landfill.

  TearOuT

  Before you construct anything in renovation, it’s

  usually necessary to tear out part of what’s there

  and beef up what remains. No sooner have you

  torn out plaster than you’re nailing up blocking

  for partitions to come. This natural flow from

  demolition to construction is a little frustrating

  for how-to writers who like to pigeonhole every-

  thing, but it’s a fact of life if you’re renovating.

  Frequently, you’re doing both at the same time.

  Conserve when you can. If you are gutting only

  part of a room, avoid damaging adjacent areas

  that are sound. When replacing a window, adding

  an opening, removing loose plaster, or exposing

  framing, try to isolate the area to be renovated.

  For example, if you’re adding a medicine cabinet,

  set your circular-saw blade to the depth of the

  Old casing is likely to be dry and brittle, so be patient when removing it. Score

  old plaster and lath, and cut back those materials along the edge to break the paint seal, then use a pair of flat bars to pry it up, gradually raising it along its entire length.

  Structural Carpentry

  197

  remOving PlaSTer and drYwall

  plaster is sound but sagging in a few spots, you

  may be able to reattach it with washered screws

  Whether you’re cutting a large hole for a skylight (see p. 443) or cover it with 1⁄4-in. drywall, as

  or gutting the whole ceiling, try to minimize the

  described in chapter 15.

  mess. By using a reciprocating saw with a demo

  Walls. Walls are easier to gut than ceilings

  blade to cut out 2-ft. by 2-ft. sections of drywall

  because debris won’t rain down on you. Start at

  or plaster, you’ll create a lot less dust and have a

  the top of each wall and work down, periodically

  compact load to carry to the trash.

  carting out debris before it restricts your move-

  That’s not always possible. If the old plaster

  ments. Again, use a reciprocating saw to cut out

  falls off the lath as you try to cut out sections, go

  2-ft.-sq. sections if possible; otherwise, break

  ahead and break it out. Use a crowbar to pull the

  them out. Tile walls must be broken out. If you’ll

  lath and plaster down together or use a hand

  be putting up new drywall or plaster, this is the

  sledge or a framing hammer to dislodge plaster

  time to pull old nails. Likewise, remove any old

  from the attic space above (place planks across

  wires and pipes.

  the attic joists) or from the back side of the wall,

  Before removing bearing walls, first shore up

  if it’s exposed. After separating and bundling the

  the joists or other loads they support. But if

  lath, shovel the plaster into buckets.

  you’re removing a nonbearing partition, you can

  Ceilings. Hard hats, please! If ceiling joists are

  do so after stripping plaster or drywall. Cut

  exposed in the attic, first take out the insulation

  through the middle of each stud using a recipro-

  from the area where you’ll be working. If it’s

  cating saw; its thin blade is less likely to bind

  loose insulation, use a dustpan to shovel it into

  than a circular saw’s blade. With studs cut, pull

  garbage bags.

  them away from their plates. To remove plates,

  If you work on the ceiling from below, use

  pry them up with a wrecking bar. Use a metal-

  movable scaffolding for ceilings 10 ft. or higher.

  cutting blade in a reciprocating saw to cut

  Otherwise, stand on 2-in.-thick planks straddling

  through any remaining nail shanks.

  sawhorses or stepladders. If the plaster is solidly

  adhered to the lath, use a reciprocating saw to

  remOving wOOd FlOOring

  “outline” sections. Then rock them from side to

  If old wood strips are solidly attached, floors are

  side until the nails holding them to joists work

  generally left in place to be refinished later or

  free. Hand the removed section to a helper on

  floored over. However, it’s sometimes necessary

  the floor, then proceed to the next section. If

  When demolishing, be as deliberate

  as possible. Here, a worker carefully

  breaks through old plaster so he can

  remove plaster and lath in

  manageable chunks.

  A skillful integration of old and new framing: After stripping interior surfaces and removing a wall to enlarge the room, carpenters installed a new 4x4 window king post and a third top plate to raise the old wall’s framing. Note: Old and new window headers line up.

  198 Chapter 8

  to pull up a few boards so you can install joists or

  blocking, run wires, or
patch-repair floor sections

  bracing For a loaD

  elsewhere. Partitions installed over finish floor-

  ing make it difficult to pry out floorboards.

  In addition to providing something solid to nail

  If you’ll be reinstalling the floorboards, try to

  stud wall plates to, blocking also braces a floor,

  pry them up in an inconspicuous spot, such as

  distributing loads between joists so that indi-

  along the base of an existing wall. Remove the

  vidual joists can carry roughly 10% to 15% more

  baseboard and try to insert a flat bar under the

  than unbraced joists. If you don’t need solid

  leading edge of a floorboard. You may need to

  blocking to nail wall plates to but still want to

  destroy the first row of boards to get them out if

  brace joists, consider installing bridging, which

  they’re face-nailed or, at the very least, break off

  the tongue on tongue-and-groove flooring.

  is metal or 1x4 wood pieces installed diagonally

  Successive courses will likely be toenailed

  between joists. Bridging is generally easier and

  through the tongue.

  quicker to retrofit than solid blocking and inter-

  If you’re gutting wall surfaces, the space

  feres less with pipes and wires running in the

  between studs is a good place to fit the curved

  joist bays.

  head of a wrecking bar to pry up a first row of

  floorboards.

  Reinforcing and Repairing

  the Structure

  edges are flush to the underside of the joists. If

  This section focuses on upgrading nonbearing

  there’s access, end-nail each block with three 12d

  structural elements: adding blocking, leveling

  nails through adjacent joists. If you toenail them,

  ceilings, straightening stud walls, bolstering

  use four 8d nails on each end. A pneumatic palm

  joists, and treating rotten or insect-damaged wood.

  nailer is ideal for driving nails in such tight spaces.

  Finally, add backing for the ceiling patch to

  adding blOCKing

  come and reattach plaster or drywall edges along

  joist centers, as needed. Metal drywall clips (see

  In renovation, it’s sometimes necessary to add

  p. 431) are a good alternative to blocking. Nail

  blocking (short pieces of wood) to bolster exist-

  them to the top edge of the top plate.

  ing joists or studs, to provide a nailing surface for

  new framing, or to provide backing for drywall or Blocking for walls. To effectively nail off a new

  plaster lath to come. If you are gutting finish sur-

  wall where it abuts an existing one, first cut into

  faces in a bathroom, that’s a great time to add

  the existing wall to expose the framing. Start

  blocking for tub grab bars, diverter valves, towel

  with a small exploratory hole to determine exactly

  bars, toilet paper holders, and the like.

  where the studs are. Then cut back finish surfaces

  to the nearest stud center on either side. Even if

  attaching top plates. To attach the top plate of

  your new wall runs directly to a stud in place,

  a new partition, first cut back finish surfaces to

  add blocking for metal drywall clips to reattach

  expose ceiling joists. Snap two parallel chalklines drywall patches.

  to indicate the width of the top plate. If joists run

  If, as is more likely the case, there are no

  perpendicular to the partition, cut out a 4-in.-

  studs in the spot where you need a nail-off, add

  wide slot to receive the top plate. Remove plaster them, as shown in the drawing “Where Walls

  or drywall sections, relocate insulation (if any),

  Meet” on p. 201. These nailers will be stronger if

  and pull nails sticking out of the joists. Use a util-

  you preassemble them and then sledge them into When studs bow into the room, use a

  ity knife to clean up ragged edges before nailing

  power planer to plane down the high

  place. Face-nail them together with 16d nails

  up the top plate, using two 16d nails at each

  spots. Make the first pass over the

  staggered every 16 in. Full-length nailers should

  point the plate crosses a joist.

  high point of the bow, then make

  be toenailed with three 10d or four 8d common

  If joists run parallel to the partition, cut back

  several successively longer passes to

  nails top and bottom. Or prenail metal L-angles

  feather out the surface.

  finish surfaces to joist centers on either side of

  to tie nailers to plates.

  the proposed plate so you can add blocking. Snap

  chalklines to indicate joist centers, and cut along

  Blocking for sole plates. Nail partition sole

  those lines. (Set a plaster-cutting circular-saw

  plates to the framing below, not merely to floor-

  blade to the thickness of the ceiling drywall or

  ing or subflooring. If the partition runs perpen-

  plaster.) Install blocking that’s the same depth as

  dicular to the joists, use two 16d nails at each

  the joists, spaced 24 in. on center. Cut blocking

  point the sole plate crosses a joist (see “Nailing

  square for a tight fit, and make sure that its lower Off Sole Plates” on p. 202).

  Structural Carpentry

  199

  Here, new joists are sistered to both

  However, if the wall is parallel to the joist grid,

  sides of existing joists with a 3-ft.

  try to locate it over an existing joist. If that’s not

  overlap. The red chalkline down the

  possible, add blocking between the joists so

  center of the joists indicates the

  there’s something solid to nail the sole plate to. If

  center of a new girder to come.

  the partition is nonbearing, use blocking the

  same depth as the joists, spaced on edge every

  24 in. on center. Cut the blocking square so that

  it fits snugly, flush to the underside of the sub-

  flooring. Use two or three 16d common nails to

  end-nail blocking through the joists. Blunt the

  nail points to prevent splits.

  Note: Bearing walls should be supported by

  two full-length joists directly under the sole plate.

  Add blocking to adjacent joists to keep the new

  joists from rotating, and attach both ends with a

  double-joist hanger. Because doubled joists are,

  in effect, a girder, they may also need post support

  beneath; see “Beam Span Comparison” on p. 244,

  which offers sizes and spans. But because local

  codes have the final say, consult a structural engi-

  neer in your area.

  Add backing

  STraigHTening STudS

  zzzzzz attaching Top Plates

  to nail off finish surfaces.

  Before installing drywall on recently gutted or

  newly erected stud walls, scrutinize them to

  make sure they’re flat. Stud variations of 1⁄8 in.

  (from flat) are generally acceptable, unless

  they’re in bathroom or kitchen walls—where

  studs should be within 1⁄16 in. of flat. There,
/>
  plumbed cabinets will make high and low spots

  glaringly obvious. Granted, you can scribe cabi-

  net backs to fit wavy walls, but it’s easier to

  Cut back

  Joists

  straighten studs while they’re still exposed.

  ceiling.

  eyeball walls for obvious discrepancies. Then

  PARTITION PERPENDICULAR TO JOISTS

  stretch strings across the studs at several heights.

  Top plate

  If the studs aren’t flush to the top or sole plates,

  Finish surface

  hammer them flush and screw on steel reinforc-

  ing angles (see the photo on p. 73) to attach studs

  to the new position; more toenailing might split

  2x6 blocking

  them. Next, stretch a string, chest high, across the

  2x6 ceiling joists

  wall to find high (protruding) and low (receding)

  spots. Mark them with a pencil. Finally, use a

  6-ft. or 8-ft. level or straightedge to assess indi-

  vidual studs for bowing. Scribble symbols direct-

  ly on stud edges, indicating high spots to be

  planed down (where studs bow toward you) and

  low spots to be built up (where studs bow away

  Top plate

  from you). Use special cardboard furring strips to

  build up the low spots.

  Plane down high spots. Before power planing

  the high spots, use a magnet to scan old studs for

  PARTITION PARALLEL WITH JOISTS

  nails. Nails will destroy planer blades, so if nails

  are too rusty or deep to pull, use a metal-cutting

  Where a partition runs perpendicular to joists, nail its top plate at each joist crossing. blade in a reciprocating saw to shave down the Remember to add backing for drywall or plaster lath, to which you can screw finish stud edges—or drive the nails deeper with a nail materials when you patch the ceiling. Where a partition runs parallel to joists, add

  set. If studs are nail free, plane down the high

  2x blocking to nail top plates to.

  spots in several passes, starting at the middle of

  200 Chapter 8

  Sistered joists. The most common way to rein-

  force a weakened joist is to nail a new one to

  it—a “sister” of the same dimension. The new

  zzzzzz where walls meet

  P R O T I P

  use 1⁄16-in.-thick cardboard

  sister needn’t be the exact length of the original

  furring strips to build up low

  but should be long enough to be supported

  spots on bowed studs. Strips typ-

  on both ends by the perimeter foundation or a

 

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