# Finishing Our Basement



## Total Tool (Dec 4, 2011)

That looks great.:thumbup:


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## Gary in WA (Mar 11, 2009)

I see a lot of fire-blocking missing, among other things, no permit, right?

http://www.diychatroom.com/f98/how-fireblock-framing-37190/

Gary


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## cprice12 (Jan 3, 2011)

GBR in WA said:


> I see a lot of fire-blocking missing, among other things, no permit, right?
> 
> http://www.diychatroom.com/f98/how-fireblock-framing-37190/
> 
> Gary


How do you figure?
All cavities are sealed...except for the geothermal pipes through the top plate in one cavity and maybe the cavity in the bathroom where the plumbing comes in...which both can be fixed since I put in a drop ceiling and I have access. There is no gap between the framed walls and rigid insulation board and drywall goes from bottom plate to top plate everywhere.
We even drywalled on the utility room side of the walls...and again, sealed from top to bottom.


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## Gary in WA (Mar 11, 2009)

I'm doing this from memory as your link is closed temp. by Google right now. 

The top of the foam requires fire-blocking between it (foamboard)/floor cavity above.
Require a p.t. bottom plate- maybe existing- hard to distinguish in picture. Suggest on a foam (poly) sill sealer for a thermal/air/capillary break: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com...ressure-treated-sill-plates-and-building-code Otherwise the studs act as thermal heat sinks connected to the bottom plate, sitting on the cold slab on the earth. If missing poly under the slab, water will wick to the warm studs through the warm bottom plate (temperature/pressure difference).

The foam/frame wall requires fire-stopping studs every 10' lineally along the walls as per code: http://publicecodes.citation.com/icod/irc/2009/icod_irc_2009_3_sec002_par031.htm

The foam tops and 10' rule are very important to keep an outlet fire localized in a 10' wide section of wall rather than run on the foams' surface horizontally in a flash or get into a joist cavity above and race across the floor bottom to access the floor above through a wire/plumbing hole possibly reaching the attic with the pressure difference of the "stack effect": http://www.wag-aic.org/1999/WAG_99_baker.pdf

I hope you air-sealed all holes in the floor sheathing above before drywalling. Check locally, the ceiling above the drop ceiling may need drywall per code- local AHJ.

Gary


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## cprice12 (Jan 3, 2011)

GBR in WA said:


> I'm doing this from memory as your link is closed temp. by Google right now.
> 
> The top of the foam requires fire-blocking between it (foamboard)/floor cavity above.
> Require a p.t. bottom plate- maybe existing- hard to distinguish in picture. Suggest on a foam (poly) sill sealer for a thermal/air/capillary break: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com...ressure-treated-sill-plates-and-building-code Otherwise the studs act as thermal heat sinks connected to the bottom plate, sitting on the cold slab on the earth. If missing poly under the slab, water will wick to the warm studs through the warm bottom plate (temperature/pressure difference).
> ...


I used pt base plates along the foundation walls and sill sealer foam under interior wall base plates.

I didn't drywall the ceiling, it's a suspensed ceiling...but there aren't holes in the subfloor above the finished area anyway. Any pipes and wires going through the subfloor occur in the unfinished utility area...except for a couple ducts, which I just realized.

You're suggesting I drywall above the drop ceiling? That's ridiculous. Who does that???

I did not fire stop on the top edge of the foam behind the exterior walls...which seems to be the only thing I didn't do. I have access to it through the drop ceiling...barely. Would a 2x2 on top suffice? Or fire foam?
And I assume fire foam is fine around the duct edges that go through the subfloor?

Thanks for the tips.


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## cprice12 (Jan 3, 2011)

Before we were finished with the ceiling, my dad was helping cut tiles. He probably cut the toughest shape one in the whole project. I goofy shaped one coming out of the octagon, against a boxed in duct, it seemingly had 8 sides. I set it aside until I was able to cut a hole in it for the recessed light, which wasn't going to be for a few days.

Later that night, my 2 year old daughter was down there and grabbed a pencil and proceeded to draw all over the face of it. She brought it to me and said, "Look daddy...it's so very beautiful!!"

After that initial moment of GAAAAHH!! I looked at how proud she was of it, then I took the panel, cut the hole in it for the light and put it up.
Best looking ceiling panel in the basement. :thumbsup:


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