Marc's Patio & Garage Studio

Well I got a lot done today. I got the top, top plates (I’m using double top plates) of my two interior (outer leaf) walls attached to ceiling. That’s 2, 2x4’s. :roll: It took a lot of prep work. :o I ripped the rest of the drywall off the wall in the garage. The other side of this wall is my desk in our family room. I managed to knock a few things of the desk (& shelves above) from the banging including my older but still nice Canon G2 digital camera. It still appears to work. I removed unused left over wire in wall from where my electric service panel used to be. I sat and stared at this wall trying to figure out how I’m going to attach new wall to existing frame and how I’m going to re route electric, cable & telephone cables currently in family room wall. I decided not to rip out drywall from the ceiling to attach top plates of new wall to ceiling. There is no code I could find that says I have to directly attach top plates to framing above. I even saw an “internet how” to that suggested using construction glue only, for attaching a new top plate to drywall. I crawled up into attic 3 times today. Around 12pm on a sunny central Florida day in August, I installed 2x4 bracing between joists from the attic. After the 20 to 30 minutes up there I had to take a shower. My clothes were completely drenched in sweat. I should have done that task 1st thing in the morning but hey… I’m a guitar player. :twisted: I did two drywall repairs to ceiling. Previously I removed an old chimney shoot from ceiling. The square hole that was left I cut and placed new drywall in, but did not mud and tape it. Some times I get in a procrastination mode about tedious projects. This hole and another small hole created by removing the concrete block wall had to be repaired as new walls are going directly beneath them. I sat down and stared at the walls again. :?: I got to figure out how I’m going to install drywall on a wall garage side at a bottom corner where I’ve decided my AC unit is going to be about 3” a way from new wall. I may have to use construction glue to attach drywall to the 2x4 frame in the places where I can not reach to put in drywall screws. That is IF I CAN USE AN ADHESIVE? Then lay down a thick bead of caulk to lay the bottom of drywall into. This would be kinda similar to one of John’s inside out walls. The plywood box seen in pic "interiorwall 015 and 017 below is a “plenum” that my AC unit sits on top of. The vertical 2x4 is where my new wall will go parallel to the box and perpendicular to the existing wall. The side of the box facing the wall is about 3 feet wide and 2 feet high. I made a trip to HD with my son… and all through the day he came out with me to “help” that is make me constantly turn my head to see what he’s doing and I took breaks to play “The Cars Movie” video game with (for) him. Side note: I’ve gotten my son an almost complete collection of all the Matchbox Cars that go with this movie. I did lot’s of hunting and eBay’n to get them all. These cars a very hard to find, they get sold out as soon a store opens a box. At HD I got 2x’4 and a few new tools, including a 10 pound sledge hammer and a plumb bob. Then I got the 2 tops plates attached to the ceiling. Spent a bit of time debating in my head how by myself I was going to get these in place against the ceiling, so I could attach them. I ended up using 8’ 2x4’s and some extra small pieces of wood to jam the ends of the 2x4 plates at the walls against the ceiling. At the new corner where they met I used my 8’ ladder and small pieces extra wood. See pic. I cut a small piece of my peg board, which is a ¼” thick and used that to give my space between new walls and truss above. The pain in the butt today was my stud finder :( which did not accurately enough find the bottom chord of truss (ceiling joists) and the new braces I installed. In the end I just drove the screws into the plates through the drywall and “felt” if I was hitting wood above or not. If not was more the case and I moved over an inch for the next try until I knew I was going into wood. I got a few extra holes up there that no one will ever know about except me and the fool who would climb into my attic and look for them. Since I’ve gone to all the trouble to make these walls strong by adding the bracing and using double top plates, I figured I need to go up into attic to confirm my hit and misses with the screws. That’s when I said I’m done for the day. 8) First thing tomorrow morning I will climb into attic and score my self on these hits and misses. Then I take more pics of existing conditions for architect(s) to redraw my exterior walls and then go to architects office. I can’t burn myself out tomorrow working on my room, I got a big gig tomorrow night requiring a lot of energy on my part. Marc :twisted:

I find that with both my stud finders the only way to be reasonably sure is to go from both sides, mark where the "peak" led happens, then split the difference. (And sometimes that even works :? ) Soooo, does "Lenny" have a bud named "Squiggy"? Sure would 'splain a lot... :roll: Steve

Hey Marc, I know that "hey, I just put up my top plates" feeling all too well. ;-) However, you mentioned that you used screws. I found out by calling my building department that I cannot use screws for framing -- they must be nails and there is a nailing schedule that you have to follow. I discuss this in quite a bit of detail in my thread starting here. Basically, the longer/thicker the nails, the fewer you need to use. I don't want to advise you too specifically in this area, because your codes are probably slightly different than mine. So, you may have to undo the screws and drive nails instead. I know that it seems counterintuitive (you'd think screws would be better[/i]... But when you figure that nails are generally stronger than screws in terms of shear, it actually makes sense. Be sure to get an early start on that attic work, Marc. Our bodies aren't accustomed to that kind of extreme heat up there. In my old house, the attic temperature regularly reached 130°-140°F (54°-60°C). Heatstroke is life threatening can come upon you very quickly, which can cause you such confusion that you could become trapped up there. How much time would go by before someone would know you were in trouble, and how quickly could they get you out of there? :shock: Knowing how urgently you're proceeding, I worry a bit about how you might try to push yourself and not realize in that moment the danger of doing so. --Keith :mrgreen:

Hey Steve,

I find that with both my stud finders the only way to be reasonably sure is to go from both sides, mark where the "peak" led happens, then split the difference. (And sometimes that even works )

Yup that's exactly what I was doing. My stud finder uses a circle on the display which gets smaller until you hit the edge. I mark both edges (which sometimes is 3" or so wide when you know it should be 1.5"), go for the middles and still miss. Different wall material seems to mess with thing. It won't work through stucco at all. Lenny... at this point what I'd like to do when I'm all done with inspections is call him and see how many curse words I can get out before he hangs up on me. :twisted: Sharward, My 1st thoughts when reading your above post was: 1. Nobody is going to know there are screws there except me in this upper top plate. 2. Aren't screws stronger then nails? ... then I read the link to your thread. In my case these walls are interior are they are not subject to code for wind sheer, however exterior walls are in Florida. BUT I am going to remove the screws and replace with nails. I've left the 1/4 space so that I won't create a small up force on above trusses. Nails should let the wood move with temperature more then screws. Before I read your thread I would have argued screws win over nails... but now I know that's not the case. Thanks. :D Time to go in attic. Marc

Score on hitting the joists and braces: Of all that I could somewhat clearly mark with stud finder I was right on. :D The one brace my stud finder could not find (above one of my drywall repairs), I completely missed by an inch. :? Keith, about the heat thing... I am aware if it. Two months ago while working on that play house I'm sure I came close to or had heat exhaustion... One day I worked outside in the heat, in the direct sun, digging dirt all day. That night and following 2 days I was done... had chills and a bunch of weird symptoms. My wife who used to work as a life guard said I had heat exhaustion and it was not fun. So, I drink lots of water before and after I go into attic and never plan to stay up there more then 10 Min's when no one else is home. I've not set a max time for being up there but 20 to 30 Min's seems to long. Especially when crawling/squirming through a space that I can barely fit through. 8) BTW I have lot's of plywood up there so I never have to put any of my weight on the drywall. I know what can happen. :roll: Marc

OK, Just got back from architect office. I talked to Peter, the owner not Lenny. Got a new more expensive plan in the works. Footer. He talked about placing a footer under edge of existing slab BUT, then disregarded it. It looks like I'm going to remove the edge of my existing concrete patio slab... he said 12" or 16" can't remember which. I will drill in vertically to the existing slab and place re bar to tie to new footer, which will be the entire length of Patio edge, not just where my room is going. There are a bunch of other details I'm not going to post about until architects redraw. There is no need to cut across my patio slab for a footer under neath the wall which will separate my room from new smaller patio. That wall will be tied in well enough to the other new and existing walls for wind shear. Header: Looks like I'm going to completely rip out the existing 2x4 frame header. He called this a "pony wall". Take it out completely entire length of existing patio. New room wall will be attached via Sampson ties to bottom chord of gable end truss above. Then I will have to make a new header for the new patio screen wall out of 2x8 or 2x10. This means I'll be ripping out way more stucco and wood than I had planned on. We talked about interior walls in Florida. I was explaining to him how I could not find any code... he said there is none. At one point he said use deck screws to attach new wall end stud to existing wall... I told him briefly about this forum, what was wrote about on Keith's thread about nails verses screws... he guessed something like "California they use nails only for Earthquake sheer, no screws" He said I could assemble my interior wall basically anyway I like. As far as actual code goes the only reference I found in Florida building code, was interior walls should be built to a national standard & there is a book/reference but I can't remember what it's called. Regardless the inspector is not going to look that much at my interior wall. What impressed me the most about Peter is when I explained to him what I was actually doing and then he questioned me "What STC rating are you going for" At that point I sighed with relief. At least he and I are on the same page BUT he warned just like Lenny if I would have applied for a permit for a sound isolation room I would went through hell as apposed to a storage room. With my answer of STC 65 or better he immediately said "room within a room" which as I recall Lenny was clueless on. Unfortunately Peter is going to send the drawing back to Lenny to redraw, only if Lenny does not have time to do it will Peter put his hands on it. Hopefully next week 3rd redraw will be done, and in 2 weeks it'll be back out of the building permit office and I can cut some more concrete. Go to go. Marc

All pretty good news -- very good about not having to do any "cross cuts" on your patio slab. :-)

guitardad72 wrote:

. . . I will drill in vertically to the existing slab and place re bar to tie to new footer . . .

Do you mean horizontally? Too bad you're looking at two weeks before you're cutting concrete. I had hoped for your sake you'd be doing that sooner, given the season we're in and all... :roll:

guitardad72 wrote:

he questioned me "What STC rating are you going for" At that point I sighed with relief. At least he and I are on the same page . . . With my answer of STC 65 or better he immediately said "room within a room" which as I recall Lenny was clueless on.

I'm glad Peter has more of a clue than Lenny. I'd have been even more impressed if he had followed that up with, "Well, STC numbers are crap for what you're doing... What kind of low end TL numbers are you aiming for?" ;-) --Keith :mrgreen:

horizontal is flat, vertical is up and down. slab and footing would lay horizontal , so your re-rod would need to go in vertical to tie them together 8)

I've heard of drilling holes horizontally into the edge of a slab in order to tie it with rebar to a newly poured footing beside it -- with a closed cell foam expansion joint glued to the edge of the slab, of course...

Hey Keith, yes I had a brain fart there. Unconfirmed plan is to cut off 12” to 16” of my patio slab. Drill horizontally into the patio slab; insert rebar with epoxy to tie into new footer. I drew a quick pic attached below. Peter talked about using a “cloth” or something for the expansion joint. I got to do research on that. The two week time frame is a guess. I’m hopeful it could be less but it may take longer. It’s out of my control. Hey Jammin Dad, thanks for stopping in. I just got back from a great gig, well great money anyways. Between going to architect, making an HD run to buy a 20oz framing hammer (inspired by all the nail verses screw talk on Sharward’s thread), housework and getting ready for the gig… all I had time for today was to remove those screws from top plates and put nails in. Guess I won’t get an inspection on my interior walls this week unless I decide to let the inspector, inspect while I am not at home, I got gigs in the daytime through the rest of the week. I think at this point I need to be here for inspection. I’m sure he’s going to wonder why I’ve not built my exterior frame. Then again not being there means he can’t ask me any questions. I got to sleep. Marc

Good move on the nails, Marc. :-) Congrats on your gigging too. :-D Although I'm sure this is one time you wish you had a bit more time on your hands. Actually, you will want to dig underneath the slab a bit so that its edge is supported by the footing a bit. I think this also (along with the rebar) makes it less likely to tip away from the slab over time. See Rod's book on this subject. I bought a 50' x 6" x 1/2" roll of closed cell black foam expansion joint material at Home Depot and used Liquid Nails to attach it to my cut slab as a buffer between it and the new footer/foundation my buddy and I poured. It even has a perforation about 1/2" from the top edge so that a small amount of it can be easily removed after the pour. It worked great. --Keith :mrgreen:

Congrats on your gigging too. Although I'm sure this is one time you wish you had a bit more time on your hands.

Yup wish I had more time, & I don't really need a congrats on the gigging, (although thank you, thank you so much) it's what I do: play guitar and/or sing and convince people to give me money for doing that. The building inspection office and architect's have made it real clear to me: I got to build what's on the plan. However my "Quick Drawing" was of an unconfirmed plan. If the plan actually looks like the quick drawing then, once my form is inspected I can only see benefit from digging out a little more and getting under the slab. That is as long as I put something in for an expansion joint. I take it that foam was 1/2" thick and got completely compressed in-between old and new concrete. I just finished mowing the lawn. I got a little less than 5 hours till I have to pick my son up. Then I may have some time with my son tonight to work. Let's see what I can get done. 8) Marc

guitardad72 wrote:

I take it that foam was 1/2" thick and got completely compressed in-between old and new concrete.

Actually, I don't think so. It still looks 1/2" thick from the top. Perhaps it gets gradually compressed the deeper it goes -- I'm not sure. Eventually I'll be filling the slot with caulk or some kind of compound before ultimately putting an epoxy type floor coating in the garage. --Keith :mrgreen:

I got most of these two walls up today. See pics below. I messed up one of my 2x4 studs, so I’m one short in the corner. I miss counted by one, so I’m short another stud on the shorter wall. This stud will have to be toe nailed in so no big deal not having it today. It’s going right next to my end stud which will be attached via tapcon screws to the concrete block wall. I did not get any drilling into sole plates, end studs and concrete today for tapcon screws & redheads. I'm going to add bracing inbetween the studs. I got just a few more nails to put in as I ran out of time. :( The most difficult thing today was pulling out my shims, made from peg board that I used for ¼” expansion space between top plates and truss above. A few got wedged into the ceiling drywall. For two of them I said screw it and cut part that was sticking out off with a utility knife. That’s when I cut myself. Guess I should have pulled the shims out before I put the wall assemble in. I tried quite a few tools try to push and pull them out including my 2 foot long square, which was a mistake. After a couple hits with the hammer on the edge of square I realized if I continued I might destroy the thing. I didn’t damage to bad though. :twisted: Got to mention, at this point I’ve not read any of the foundation/concrete section of Rod’s book. I skipped it because previously I did not think I needed to read it, but that has changed. :oops: I’ve decided I’m going to fill the empty cavities of my concrete block walls myself. Shouldn’t be that hard and Peter the architect/engineer said I will require no inspection or change in permit to fill those cavities with concrete. I also put in a pic of new wall against AC plenum. The plenum is not square. There is 3" between the end stud and plenum. At the next stud there is 4". When I stick the drywall down there I think I can which a ratchet extension and a corner attachment to get a couple of drywall screws down there. 8) Last pic is my mess of tools with no home. :roll: I got lots of gigs over the next few days so, hopefully by or on Sunday I’ll be done with these interior wall frames. I’ll be toting Rod’s book around with me, pondering what and how I’m going to do the next task. 8) Marc

Isn't progress fulfilling? 8) Looking great, Marc. You can and should be proud -- especially squeezing in all this productivity admist so many gigs. :) --Keith :mrgreen:

I just had an inspection on the 2 interior walls today and passed. :mrgreen: He said “close it in”. I didn’t say anything about why my exterior walls were not up, and he did not ask. 8) Hope fully this weekend I’ll get some drywall up on these walls and have some sense of security. :roll: One benefit of getting these interior walls up 1st is that I can finish & paint garage, re-build my storage area(s) in the garage and put my tool peg board back up. I can take all the stuff out of our baby room and through out the house that belongs in the garage, back into the garage. This will make my wife real happy so she can start getting organized for the baby. But then again once baby's room is empty, I have to paint and carpet it. BTW it’s only 100 days till our new baby’s due date. :shock: I had 2 gigs today and decided to get a sub for my afternoon gig, so that I could finish and get an inspection on these walls. Turns out my evening gig wants me to start early for a special event. I would have had another reason to get a sub for the afternoon gig and the evening gig is paying me enough extra to make up for loosing the afternoon gig. It’s a great day so far. :mrgreen: Only mishap was installing the redheads through bottom plates and into garage slab. I used these things called Trubolts: http://www.ramset-redhead.com/RH/trubolt.asp In order to get them in the hole I banged on them with a hammer. I guess I put too much into it and damaged to tops of three trubolts enough that I could not get the nut on. Had to buy a file (actually got a 3 pack of files) to file the kinda smashed tops of the trubolts, so that I could get the nut on them, which took about ½ an hour for the 3. Once these things are in the holes they don’t want to come out, or at least I could not figure how to get them out. I also got some R13 Kraft insulation to temporarily put in the family room/garage wall. There was no insulation in this wall previously and I know a lot of heat is coming into the house through this wall as right now there is only wood panel board. I will tear the paper off this insulation later and reuse it. I’ll post some pics later of the finished, inspected frame. Marc

guitardad72 wrote:

Only mishap was installing the redheads through bottom plates and into garage slab. I used these things called Trubolts: http://www.ramset-redhead.com/RH/trubolt.asp In order to get them in the hole I banged on them with a hammer. I guess I put too much into it and damaged to tops of three trubolts enough that I could not get the nut on. Had to buy a file (actually got a 3 pack of files) to file the kinda smashed tops of the trubolts, so that I could get the nut on them, which took about ½ an hour for the 3. Once these things are in the holes they don’t want to come out, or at least I could not figure how to get them out.

That's exactly what I used on my outer leaf plate in that spot where I had to drill a hole in my new concrete. They're made like roaches in the roach motel -- "they 'check in' but they don't 'check out.'" That sleeve slides down into the "wedge" shaped area, which makes the bolt widest at the bottom and thus unable to be pulled out. That's the point of them! :) The tighter you crank down on the nut (without stripping, of course), the stiffer the bolt becomes. The trouble with them is that you have to get the hole wide enough to get the bolt in, but not too wide that they slip out. --Keith :mrgreen:

The trouble with them is that you have to get the hole wide enough to get the bolt in, but not too wide that they slip out.

What do you mean by that? Do you mean someone might not possible look up the directions and by the right size drill bit? :roll: I got a box of 25, 5 ½” long, ½” diameter Trubolts for $14.95 with a big label on the box “Use ½” drill bit”. So I bought a 12” long, ½” diamond tip drill bit for $20. I got extra Trubolts I should be able to use else where and a drill bit that should last me for years. :D Today I got rained out at my gig, so I came home and got some work done. :D I completely removed and rerouted every wire & cable from my family room/garage (studio to be) wall. I got the wires now running down the wall behind my air conditioner where I now have access, in a spot that will be an outside corner to outer leaf studio walls. I then put temporary R13 paperback insulation in that wall. Adding just the R13 insulation to a wall with 1/4" wood panel made a huge difference to the amount off sound passing through that wall. I was surprised. :shock: Reroute of co axle wire for TV and internet was easy. 8) Reroute of AC cable was a bit confusing. :? Electric service panel used to be in this wall. Electricians installed one junction box where the panel used to be for a circuit(s) that started within that wall. They knew my studio plan and that I would move it later. I already have a problem with my family & living room circuit: 2 sometimes 3 computers, TV, office and studio equipment in family room and 52” HDTV, surround sound amp and video equipment in the living room all on this one circuit. Electricians put my family/living room AND garage/patio all on one circuit which used to be separate circuits Ouch… code for garage and outside power is to be on a GCFI (only thing GCFI on circuit now is at the end of the run, an outside ceiling fan which I installed), plus that’s just way to much stuff on one circuit… BUT at least I’ve not tripped that 20 amp breaker... yet. To make it more confusing there were 2 other OLD wires (starts of a circuit) in the wall, one used to be hot water heater and the other used to be for a removed furnace. Today I just rerouted the wires leaving everything as is on the same circuit. I located in attic the point where the circuit/wire run goes from family room to living room. On my next Home Depot run I’ll get a GCFI circuit breaker and a few junction boxes. I’ll then put my family room and living room each on there own circuit and put the garage/patio on its own GCFI protected circuit. I did have a permit and had an inspection on my electric service upgrade/panel move. Inspector only shook the big wires in outside box to see if they were tight, signed off and left. If he would have looked, these 2 circuits being together would have failed AND… I just got to take a picture (next time I’m in attic) of the pile of junction boxes above my family room/garage wall. They are all just scattered, not attached to anything and the one I took apart today didn’t have the wire clamps tight. I’m going to install a piece of plywood up there to mount all the junction boxes onto. Note: I allowed electrician to just leave them there so that I could put them where I wanted which is not above ceiling of studio. Maybe I should have done that the day of upgrade :oops: oh well I’m doing it now. I called Peter today to check on status of drawing. Lenny was with him. They said revised drawing will be ready Monday. Lenny yelled to the phone “you’ll pass the inspection, build the thing”. I asked Peter to tell Lenny “I want a F’n footer”. I thought about drywall today but did not want to get drywall from HD in the rain. We’ll see what happens over the weekend, though I got a wedding Saturday night. I cancelled/ got subs for all my daytime gigs next week except Friday. Still got night gigs though. I wonder how much progress I can make. :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: Pic below is finished inspected interior wall. Marc

Lookin' good, my friend! :-) Isn't it amazing how the little stuff adds up, time and money? What I meant about the hole sizing thing is that even with the correct size bit, it's a tight squeeze, or it's easy to have a wide spot in the hole that causes the bolt to ride too high. I'm not a fan of those wedge bolts: I'm glad I only had to use one of them. Keep up the good work! --Keith :mrgreen:

Today I got the drywall up on the garage side if these 2 interior, outer leaf walls. See 1st, two below pics. I did not have time to mud and tape today. I still have to get backer rod and more caulk. The most time consuming part was installing drywall onto frame with my AC unit 3” to 7” away. I had to run to HD to by a stubby screwdriver. In the 5” to 7”, to get a screw in the corner I had my arm almost fully extended and had to stand in alternating awkward positions. The stubby screwdriver got the screw through drywall into wood and then I used a ratchet to get screw in completely. See 3rd pic. For the 3” area, bottom corner I decided to cut some cleats out of 2x2. I put the drywall in place and marked stud locations on drywall. Pulled drywall out and screwed cleats into drywall (also predrilled holes for deck screws used to attach cleat to 2x4 studs. I had already marked exactly where this piece of drywall would sit vertically and horizontal. I pulled my ¼” shims off floor and wall. I don’t have any backer rod yet, so I laid down a thick bead of caulk along floor and wall, I put some construction glue on the studs. Very carefully with a helper (father in law) we lifted this piece of drywall into place. I used some clamps and father in law to hold drywall in correct position and screwed cleats to 2x4’s (on the inner side of wall). On the other side got as many drywall screws in as I could. I tried to get a screw into 3” and 4” areas (of space) and failed. I then thought “nail”. I managed to pry a 2” nail into the drywall by hand enough in a 4” area to then swing a hammer on its side, in the small space. Must have took 50 or more hits per nail (I did 5), banging the hammer against plywood then nail and I got it in. See 4th and 5th pic below showing either side of this. I was hoping to add another layer of drywall to this longer wall on the garage side but that will be almost impossible, the AC unit is just way to close. I’ll add drywall later in between the studs, with green glue. I’ll have to work around those cleats though. The shorter wall I will ad 2 more layers of drywall on the garage side, finish and paint. I’m dang tired. Marc

Excellent work in tight quarters there, Marc! 8) Congratulations on the tight fit. Perhaps after a good night's rest if you want to reconsider adding another layer of drywall, maybe you can use construction adhesive in that area to attach the third layer. I know, gluing layers together is generally frowned upon, for good reason... But perhaps in a small area such as that, the consequences won't be substantial. I would think the extra mass would benefit you. In addition, you could also put scraps of drywall in the 2" area so as to wedge the new wall against the platform that the air handler sits on. Then you'd be absolutely certain that the drywall won't budge! 8) I know this is a pretty significant milestone for you in that you've successfully closed a security hole. :) Keep up the good work, man! :D Oh, and if you haven't ordered your Green Glue yet, you may want to get going on that. It takes a week for it to arrive here in California. --Keith :mrgreen:

If you ever need to bang on the end of a bolt like that again, first run a nut part way onto the threads, but NOT far enough so the bolt's threads come clear through the nut; then bang on the NUT, watching to see that it doesn't rotate further onto the bolt while you're at it. Once the bolt's in as far as you want it, remove the nut. Most times, this won't damage threads AT ALL. Also, if you have access to a REAL fastener supplier, ask for "coupler nuts" in the size your bolts are - these are REALLY thick nuts (like an inch or more) designed to "couple" two bolts or pieces of allthread together. One of those coupler nuts screwed onto the bolt at least 3-4 threads and I GUARANTEE your threads will survive... Steve

Knightfly, Thanks for that tip. Makes a lot of sence. I may or may not use these bolts again (I got 17 left) to secure my inner 2x4 frames to floor BUT I've got a lot to do and think through before I get there... including how I'm going to even out my floor, whether or not I'm going to float the inner walls and exactly how I'm going to secure the inner walls to floor. I must admit, now that I am actually building, a lot of techniques I've read about, things I've (almost) made decisions on "how I am going to... "I've forgotten. Information overload. I have to take breaks and look things up. Sharward, One thing that got me while looking at your thread... it appears you are using acoustic sealant in between drywall pieces on same layer not just around perimeter of layer, as apposed to mud/tape joints of drywall pieces together and backer rod/caulk around parameter. Maybe I read wrong, maybe I missed this some where on this web site OR definitely if it's on your thread somewhere I missed it. I should review your thread again but with its length I'm dreading it. I don't think I'm going to need Green Glue until my "storage room" has passed its final inspection. But speaking of ordering things... later today when I need a break from working, I'm planning on ordering some cases acoustic caulk, backer rod and may as well get a case of Green Glue.

Perhaps after a good night's rest if you want to reconsider adding another layer of drywall, maybe you can use construction adhesive in that area to attach the third layer. I know, gluing layers together is generally frowned upon, for good reason... But perhaps in a small area such as that, the consequences won't be substantial. I would think the extra mass would benefit you. In addition, you could also put scraps of drywall in the 2" area so as to wedge the new wall against the platform that the air handler sits on. Then you'd be absolutely certain that the drywall won't budge!

Well... that would be a 2nd layer against that wall, yes I've thought of using glue to attach in the tight spot as opposed or in addition to adding beef drywall between studs on other side. BUT that platform which air handler sits on is a kinda plenum where the 2 air returns meet. This plywood box with a 2x4 frame is going to give me triple leaf effect so I am planning on using more mass around it to compensate. Let me draw a pic to explain… OK a diagram and a pic of inside box from family room side, through grill is attached below. I want as little hard contact between plywood box and drywall as possible, the air handler does make noise and vibrates a bit, so I don’t think a permanent wedge would work. Wedging the drywall in with some wood till the glue dries may be an option. In the end I think I’ll put some insulation between the plywood and drywall and cover with acoustic fabric. If I don't add drywall on the garage side, I'll put beef up between studs. This may be my weakest point in isolation not to mention the entire corner assembly of intersecting walls. Got a plan though with lots of small pieces of drywall to beef up corner, and since I’ll be splaying the inner wall/2x4 frame I’ll have the air space. AND all eyes in Florida including mine are on Hurricane Ernesto. Forecast is for it to be close to me on Wednesday as a Hurricane 1. Since it’s coming from the other side of the state, and it’s only a “1” the only thing (at this point) I’m worried about is losing power for a few days. BUT that’s presuming like every other hurricane (so far) that the eye or high winds stay 50 miles or more away from my house. I'm suppose to get revised drawing today. Once I have that and figured it out I'll be concentrating more on the patio slab/footer and exterio walls. Marc

Hmmmm... I just put mud and tape on those walls. Have to make another HD run before I can do more on the walls. After hugging that wall now installing screws, mud and tape and staring at the space inside plywood box and 1st layer of drywall, I think I am going to add another full layer of drywall with green glue. On the short wall I'm just going to have 3 layers of drywall, no green glue. I think that'll equal it all out :twisted: Marc

guitardad72 wrote:

it appears you are using acoustic sealant in between drywall pieces on same layer not just around perimeter of layer, as apposed to mud/tape joints of drywall pieces together and backer rod/caulk around parameter . . .

Yeah, I'm just using acoustic sealant on all the seams, no backing rod. It's already pretty much air tight -- I just did that because it's quick and resilient. I know that technically I should probably use mud and tape. I'll definitely do that on the seams of the final layer of my inner leaf though (the one people will actually see). I'll definitely use backing rod and acoustic sealant on my inner leaf tops, bottoms, and corners on every layer. --Keith :mrgreen: