# Rotten sill plate in garage - repair strategy?



## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

Pics of the exterior, all 4 sides:


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

Some interior pics of the sill plate (notice the concrete walkway outside lying above some wood framing at the man-door location).


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

And a couple of general interior shots - note the large workbench I'm going to have to move to do the job. 

I plan on ripping out all the insulation prior to this project, and reinsulating once the will plate issue is fixed.


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

Remover the siding along the bottom of the wall up over 2 ft. mark a chaulk line at 24". Cut out the sheathing.
Mark the studs on the inside at 10" from the floor. 
Cut out the studs and remove them and the bottom plate.
Clean the slab off and lay 8" concrete blocks. Fill some of the voids with concrete and install 10" foundation bolts.( Check you local code on placement, just make sue there between the studs.)
Once it sets up install pressure treated 2 X 6 bottom plate to the blocks, lower the wall and toe nail in place.
Reinstall sheathing and siding. The sheathing and siding should be no closer then 6" from the grade when your done.


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## CopperClad (Jun 22, 2012)

What joe had said would work.. I would be worried about lifting the garage up 4'' and keeping it stabilized... sorry, I reread. Joe has a solid plan. Go with it !


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## CopperClad (Jun 22, 2012)

Actually, I think you just need to cut the studs at 14''.. Then it is a solid plan..


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

There's no need to try and lift the whole garage at one time, doing it my way you can do one wall at a time.
I'm stuck doing the exact same thing to a garage in a house I just moved into. No pressure treated bottom plate, slab below grade at the front, whole drive way slopes toward the garage.
What in the world were they thinking, hmm.


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## CopperClad (Jun 22, 2012)

Sorry.. I need to think more before I type. 8'' block. 10'' bolts.. 1 1/2'' plate. So my first response was right.. You would have to lift the garage 4 inches in order to clear the bolts and the bottom plate.


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

Thanks for the feedback so far. I'm going to expose my rookie DIY status with a few dumb questions now 

1. What is "sheathing"? I assume it is the plywood that is laid on the outside of the studs, between the studs/siding?
2. How do I go about removing/replacing siding without destroying it? I had one small piece fall off on the front of the garage (to the left of the pic that is facing the open door) at ground level, and basically couldn't get it back on right. I screwed it into the sheathing(?) but it is bent and warped. I'd be scared to try and remove the big, long pieces all around the perimeter!
3. Anchor bolts - do you just free set these in the wet concrete, with the threads pointed up? And then drill holes in the 2x6 so they poke through the 2x6 such that you can thread a nut/washer on it?


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

CopperClad said:


> Sorry.. I need to think more before I type. 8'' block. 10'' bolts.. 1 1/2'' plate. So my first response was right.. You would have to lift the garage 4 inches in order to clear the bolts and the bottom plate.


I must not be able to picture what's happening here, because I'm lost as to why the 4" lift is required....?


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## CopperClad (Jun 22, 2012)

I think I'm lost too.. :yes: It would only be 2''..


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

Simon96Taco said:


> Thanks for the feedback so far. I'm going to expose my rookie DIY status with a few dumb questions now
> 
> 1. What is "sheathing"? I assume it is the plywood that is laid on the outside of the studs, between the studs/siding?
> 2. How do I go about removing/replacing siding without destroying it? I had one small piece fall off on the front of the garage (to the left of the pic that is facing the open door) at ground level, and basically couldn't get it back on right. I screwed it into the sheathing(?) but it is bent and warped. I'd be scared to try and remove the big, long pieces all around the perimeter!
> 3. Anchor bolts - do you just free set these in the wet concrete, with the threads pointed up? And then drill holes in the 2x6 so they poke through the 2x6 such that you can thread a nut/washer on it?


Yes sheathing is the plywood.
Your not going to need the bottom piece again so you can use a cat's paw pry bar and just hammer it into the wood to dig out the bottom nails, once there out you tap in a flat bar under the siding to get the next nails loose, once they start to come out most of the time you can just tap the siding and the heads will stick out enough to pry them out.
There's most likly going to be hidden nails at the top of the pieces that will need to be cut out with a 12" Bimetal fine tooth sawsall blade.
It's not going to matter if there trashed, it's a common item at any lumber yard.
Yes the foundation bolts are in an L shape, the threads face up and need to be about 2 1/2" above the top of the blocks. 
They come with nuts and washers. There installed in the middle of the void in the block.
I use 1/2 bolt and drill the holes 5/8 with a paddle bit. I just slide the 2 X 6 againt the bolt and use a combination square to transfure a line from the middle of the bolt. Then I set the square againt the side of the block to the middle of the screw and make a mark on the 2 X 6. (you do it this way because it's near impossible to get all the bolts exactly in the middle.)
Now bore the holes.


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## CopperClad (Jun 22, 2012)

I agree that Joe's fix is the best option for you. The problem with it is that you can't slide the 2x6 plate onto the bolts with the wall being there.. Therefore you would need to raise the wall 2'' in order for that to happen.


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

I'd start with 2" but it may just a little more if some of the bolts are set to high.


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

So...how do I go about lifting the garage up 4" above it's current elevation? 
And how do I do it without destroying a whole bunch of stuff in the process??

Also wondering how much concrete I need to put in each of the cinderblocks...half full? Full? Will this concrete adhere to the slab below, or should I be drilling into the slab and putting some rebar in there to really tie the new cinderblock footing wall down to the slab?

Any idea how long this will take? It seems I might have up to 24" of "open" garage between the studs until I get the cinder blocks, anchor bolts, and sheathing replaced - which means I'll probably have to remove all valuables from the garage.

Also wondering if the cinderblocks can be finished to look like a smooth concrete wall afterwards, so the garage looks clean. I'm guessing I can just trowel on a thin layer of cement on the outside and then paint it white to match the siding?

Thanks so much again for all the help guys.

PS - some high res pics here, if any interest: http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/sets/72157630337258082/


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

And....should I be using regular cinder blocks, or these "bond beam" types, like this one: http://www.homedepot.ca/product/15cm-sm-bb-grey/969057

I assume since you suggested using a 2x6 on top of the blocks that I should be getting a 6" wide block (or 15cm like the one in the link above). Also assume that this is more than strong enough to support the structure above it?


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## 1910NE (Sep 5, 2010)

Simon, after reading this post, I find that we have three things in common. 
1) My 30X60 barn is in the exact same condition that your garage is, with regard to untreated lumber on a slab on or below grade. Eventually, once time/money allow, I am going to have to replace all four walls.
2) I think that Joes advice is probably the best solution to a problem caused by bad design.
3) I also have an S2R1000

Best of luck with your project!


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

Thanks 1910...but my S2R is just a wee little 800


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

Last question- in addition to my question about the bond beam blocks, I'm wondering how is this new sill wall being anchored to the foundation itself? I get that the anchor bolts set into the poured concrete are holding the 2x6 down, but what is holding the new concrete sill wall to the pad? I wouldn't think that it would "stick" without some drilling and maybe rebar insertions......?

S


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

Simon96Taco said:


> Last question- in addition to my question about the bond beam blocks, I'm wondering how is this new sill wall being anchored to the foundation itself? I get that the anchor bolts set into the poured concrete are holding the 2x6 down, but what is holding the new concrete sill wall to the pad? I wouldn't think that it would "stick" without some drilling and maybe rebar insertions......?
> 
> S


Sorry to bump my thread, but I'm wondering if anyone could answer the question quote above?

I'm also curious about this idea - instead of jacking the walls of the garage up so that the holes in the 2x6 sill can slide over the foundation bolts, could I just cut a notch into the 2x6 (a hair wider than the width of the bolt, and just deep enough into the 2x6 to center it, i.e. half way)? This method would allow me to just build some temp walls to support the garage weight while I cut away the framing to make room for the concrete blocks). I could even glue the piece of wood back in that I notched out if necessary.


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## Evstarr (Nov 15, 2011)

If you can't lift it to get the new sill over the bolts, you could slide the sill in and then drill thru it and the cement in the block voids and epoxy straight bolts in the holes. 
This would require that you wait longer for the cement in the block to cure I think.


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

Good idea Evstarr...that could work.

I'm still wondering though, how am I anchoring this cement block wall to the slab itself?


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

Simon96Taco said:


> Good idea Evstarr...that could work.
> 
> I'm still wondering though, how am I anchoring this cement block wall to the slab itself?


I'm no concrete guy but I'd drill and epoxy rebar into the slab. I'd also notch the plate for the bolts.


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

kwikfishron said:


> I'm no concrete guy but I'd drill and epoxy rebar into the slab. I'd also notch the plate for the bolts.



Good idea, I'll do some research on epoxying!

Tonight I think I'm going to go outside and do some digging along side one of exterior walls. I'd really like to know if this is a single, simple slab of concrete, or if the perimeter of the slab extends deeper into the ground for a foundation. 

My bet is I have a plain, simple, 4" square slab of concrete. 24 x 24'. That would fall into what I believe are allowable limits for a structure around here without having to have a foundation wall.


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

Simon96Taco said:


> Good idea, I'll do some research on epoxying!
> 
> Tonight I think I'm going to go outside and do some digging along side one of exterior walls. I'd really like to know if this is a single, simple slab of concrete, or if the perimeter of the slab extends deeper into the ground for a foundation.
> 
> My bet is I have a plain, simple, 4" square slab of concrete. 24 x 24'. That would fall into what I believe are allowable limits for a structure around here without having to have a foundation wall.



My quick mini-dig suggest that I do have a simple slab on top of gravel. Not sure yet exactly how thick (I'll need to strip some siding off the ground level). Couple of pics to follow!


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

kwikfishron said:


> I'm no concrete guy but I'd drill and epoxy rebar into the slab. I'd also notch the plate for the bolts.


Just thought about this some more. If I epoxy rebar anchors into the slab, I'm going to run into the same issue with having to lift the garage, otherwise I won't be able to put the cinderblocks over top of the anchors. Hrrrmmm....

Part of me wants to give up on the concrete wall idea and just slide a 2x4 piece of pressure treated lumber under there replacing the current sill and call it a day 8(


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## Simon96Taco (Nov 11, 2009)

It is starting to seem like really doing this job properly is a bit of a never ending task unless I tear the whole garage down – with the slab itself cracking, I don’t know how much I want to invest in a stem wall on top of it. I hate to say it, but I believe the best course for me is to simply address the rotted wood problem (with what is admittedly a non-permanent solution) in the exterior siding (bottom two rows) and the sill plate. Neither are actually rotten, but they’re definitely getting wet, and I don’t want to put in insulation without at the very least addressing these two things.

If I tear the two bottom rows of wood siding off and replace the first 24” or so with pressure treated (as advised above), is there a way I can waterproof the PT sheathing so that it a) matches the white colour of the garage and b) resists some of the water that will attempt to find its way into the garage/insulation? I realize that the concrete stem wall is the best way to keep the water out, but as mentioned, I feel like that would be throwing excess money at a project that might not warrant it.

Thanks again everyone,
Simon


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## Cbreakiron (Jun 9, 2018)

I know this is an old post but I have exact same issue with my garage. My plan is to support wall with a house jack...cut 2in off bottom of the studs in my working area. Cut out the sill plate and bolts holding it in place, clean the concrete very good, use concrete adhesive on 2 in blocks and place them down then a moisture barrier and pressure treated 2x4 go on top of that, should be a snug fit. Securing studs to the sill with plates. Then drilling through the sill and block into the concrete floor, vacuuming out debris, adhesive on a lag anchor then lag bolt the sill through the block into the concrete floor. That gives another 2 inches of water protection, and gets rid of the rotted stuff...replacing any studs rotted higher than that. Sound like a solid plan?


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