Home Improvement Forum

I think you should frame your walls around the opening. As Shannon mentioned you can drywall to cover the buck with drywall. However i would say for future proofing and not making the next person curse your name, frame right at the masonary wall. Then apply the same thickness materail to shim out th...

What is the box made off of? Can't really tell if it goes under the window frame or just butted next to it. I mean if the box was set first and then window went over the box or they are independent of each other. If the window is attached over it then you have no other option that taking the whole t...

Yeah... so the issue is that 5 out of 32 joists are lower, so i have 27ish joists that need to be strapped. The settling has happened around the stair header and windows. They are face nailed and overtime moved a bit. The rest are supported by the foundation and the main I-Beam. Luckily i should be ...

Can you add some pictures here?

I thought about that too. I have 7' 10" ceiling so u can afford few inches off

To add to what i mentioned above, how do you suggest to level a ceiling for wood plank boards vs drywall

Clean way is to remove them and re do it otherwise you have to create a jamb extension. You can doo that with wood but easiest would be with drywall. Butt it next to the exiting jamb and caulk however i think it would not look as nice. If you go with wood extension you should be able to fill the gap...

Hi Shannon. Sorry for the confusing post lol So im thinking of doing wood planks as my finished ceiling. However the joists are out of level and the result would be wavy ceiling regardless if it is wod planks or drywall. I know that wood planks can be applied directly to framing but some advise agai...

Hey guys, So I am done with framing, insulation and electrical in my basement. Next thing is to do the ceiling. However I am not sure what is the best course of action. The room is 29x14 ft. The joists have settled overtime so the lowest joist is about 1/2 to 3/4 lower than the highest. So here is w...

Thanks. What do you think about kerdi pans? Or do you still prefer old school mud pans if a tiled floor is desired

You might be better off with a larger inline fan if you have access above. Oversize the fan to compensate for the length. I had to run my fan duct foe only 4 or 5 feet but had to put a slight bend close to it and used flex. My bathroom is 7x7 so 50 CFM is enough. I have a Panasonic with 80 or 110CFM...

hey guys, I just realized that GoBoard has released a shower system which looks pretty neat and super simple. It is the same stuff they used for their boards but now they have their own drain and shower tray system. Not sure on the price but it should be cheaper than Kerdi. here is the website: http...

Gotcha. The joists have cross members ties in few spots. I won't be able to easily sister anything more than 4 ft since dusting is in the way. As for blocking, do you mean full size blocking veritaclly added between the affectes joist and ita neighbour?

Thanks Spruce. I was reading that along the grain cracks are pretty common. However anything else across the grain is not good. He told me to worry if I see a vertical crack which would be across the grain. I read that cracks in knots are common however it is best to beef them up as you said. My fra...

The cracks in the nut also is only on 1 side

Hey guys, My house is from the 60s and i see some occasional horizontal cracks in some. They are mostly hairline cracks. None goes through it (no cracks from the other side) One in particular is a bit longer. I can see that some joists are bowed slightly. I guess as the wood dried over the years it ...

Yeah, i like those wafer lights. Im actually going to use the directional one for my staircase ceiling. Only thing i know about the wafer ones is that light is very direct since it is on the surface rather than the cans. I have a laser level which is super handy. However my room is longer perpendicu...

Hey guys, Im planning on putting in recessed cans in my basement ceiling which is open for now. Im planning on putting up shiplap panels once done. So here are two things im thinking about: 1) my joists are seriously out of level (like 1/2 o 3/4 difference between lowest and highest spot) so i need ...

Thanks. Yeah im doing wood panel on ceilings so there is really not much of noise isolation there. Some floors above get cold but thats most likley due to the rim joists not being sealed. I bet spray foaming it will make huge change since the heat is not escaping from those areas and get channeled t...

Hey guys, Is it worth it to insulate the ceiling in the room im finishing? Very mixed opinions. Some people believe all it does is to help with noise isolation and some believe it keeps the floor above warmer. We are spray foaming the wall and rim joists so no heat loss will occur so the heat has to...

Yeah i have a Milwaukee multitool with a plunge cut head

Unfortunately i think this was the original builder... yeah my house has all conduits and EMTs but i take super caution when cutting into walls. I usuaully cut a small hole and use my camera in unknwon walls. Which tool to use for cutting? Sawzall is unpredictable

Hey guys, I have a weird situation and I am wondering if you have runt into before or not. For some unknown reason to me (im baffled by it and it does not make sense), the tongue and groove panels were installed before the stringers. To make it even more confusing, the skirts were installed before t...

Thanks Shannon.

Thank you. Im putting down a new bottom plate so it going to be covered. Im just going to slide the anchor a bit down. I have been using the 5/16 large hex Tapcons and they have been very nice so far

Hey Shannon, This is a non issue but i was curious about the typical depth of i beams in older houses. My house is from the 60s and 2 main beams run in the middle. Each beam is embeded in the foundation and it has posts supporting in in few places. Im framing close to one and had to remove a rotted ...

No need to pull. Just screw the subfloor into the joists ever 8 or 12 inches. If any nail pops up, just hammer it down. Nails have great holding power but due to movement and people walking on floors, the board can push the nail head up, hence the squeaking noise. Screws bite into the materials and ...

The subfloor is usually around 3/4 inch. Flooring is not structural and does not need to be secured to the joist. You want your subfloor and flooring to be able to move with seasons. I think securing it into joists can make it buckle it easier. Just imagine tiling. Backerboards are screwed into the ...

Thanks guys. Im going to stick to the tape and maybe spray some great stuff around the opening. Another thing, do you guys think it would be fine to leave the cavity uninsulated? So this rim joist and joist setup runs for 50 ft. The basement is divided into two rooms. Im framing the one which would ...

I should be able to do it with tape with no issue. Mastic gets a bit tricky since i have to apply the top with gloves.
The butyle tape is much stickier and stronger than regular foil tape