# Dead wood 2x4 for drywall missing in corner_ideas to fix



## tearitup (Jan 4, 2015)

In at least one room corner, "dead wood" 2x4's are missing - overhanging the top plate to attach ceiling drywall.

Missing on both sides of the room's corner where walls meet - ceiling to wall joint cracks, sags a bit. Ceiling joists are 24" OC & nearest one is 20 - 24" from the corner.

It's on an outside wall, under a valley rafter, on 5:12 roof, so almost no room in attic at that spot to nail on dead wood.

I can get to it - crawling on belly, but no vertical room for hammer or drill. Maybe ? a right angle drill attachment would fit, to put a few screws at an angle thru new dead wood . 

Looking for alternatives to fixing this from the super cramped attic side. From inside the room - somehow ? add something to screw the ceiling drywall to - that doesn't involve cutting large sections of ceiling drywall, catching all the insulation, attaching dead wood, then patching & refinishing.

Lot of work to ensure the corner doesn't crack again.

- Thinking possibly cut out ~ 1" x 6" strip of ceiling drywall - right next to vertical wall / joint. 
- Brush/ blow most insulation off top of plate. 
- Slip a 3/4" board thru slot & lay on top plate. 
- Before slipping dead wood thru slot, put a couple screws in the part that'll over hang top plate - for meto grab & pull down on, while toe nailing some screws thru side of the top plate (& thru the drywall) , into the dead wood strip.

Hopefully avoiding large drywall patch & large amt of insulation - that really needs to be put back. 
Thanks.


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## Bud9051 (Nov 11, 2015)

Hi tearitup,
If I'm following you, your concern is the lack of a nailer (dead wood) on top of the top plate to provide a place to secure the ceiling drywall?
In my experience, they don't use one. Typically the ceiling is installed and then the walls are held up tight against it to provide support. Depending upon where this is occurring it may also be related to truss uplift. Do you have trusses and which walls are involved?

Bud


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## tearitup (Jan 4, 2015)

Thanks Bud - you're part right.

Biggest issue I see - really need to remove most the rough, hand stippled ceiling texture & joint mud - before re-taping, refinishing. Or there'll be a "bump" where new tape, mud & texture goes over the existing.

The ceiling drywall pushes up w/ light finger pressure. The wall drywall may be under it, but only thing holding the ceiling - prevent cracking - is joint tape. Mesh would be stronger. I couldn't sand on it, much less scrape old texture. Risk breaking off the corner of ceiling drywall. Unless take hours to gently sand. This is two outside walls - 90 deg corner. 

I could close off this corner / area w/ plastic, use a power sander & shop vac to sand old texture - less upward pressure on floating ceiling. But sounds like more trouble than crawling in attic w/ 90 deg drill attachment, or like I mentioned -cutting slots. Maybe I'm wrong.

No trusses but around here, on walls parallel to joists, and in corners - they add dead wood 2x4's on top of plates.
The ceiling 1/2" drywall was installed before walls. In this corner, the wall rock- on one wall is also loose. Either no full stud behind one wall - near ceiling - or didn't nail it.

In a corner at the ceiling  W/ 1/2" rock, not having all 3 pieces secured is asking for cracked joints. Which happened. I checked & the closest joist to the corner is => 24" away. No, they didn't frame it right.


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