Submitted by S7onez t3_12291rq in DIY

Finishing my basement and putting up walls to make a bedroom. I would Hilti and anchor the baseplates but I’m concerned with the floor being only 2” thick it will crack/split the floor or weap water from underneath. With that being said I’m considering just using PL and glueing the baseplate down it’s not a supporting wall if that makes a difference.

What are your thoughts framers/construction gurus ?

Thanks I’m advance I appreciate your thoughts 🍻

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CraigSchwent t1_jdphalg wrote

Depends on which state you live in, there are different codes.

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--Ty-- t1_jdphu6y wrote

If your floor is only 2" thick it'll crack just from looking at it funny. How is it / why do you think its only 2" thick?

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S7onez OP t1_jdpiosu wrote

Ya I figured so which is why I didn’t want to nail/anchor it.

I was told 2” from the the builder and that the 2 post in the middle of the floor that support a beam have thicker footings underneath

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party_benson t1_jdpz9dh wrote

It wouldn't be part of the foundation then. So there is a big difference between floors and foundations. Foundations carry the load of the structure. If you just have a 2 inch slab and it's not connected to the walls it's not part of the foundation. You'd best go down to the planning office and get your blueprints and then go to whoever approves building permits and ask them what steps you need to do to follow code. This isn't something you want to wing or guess at.

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--Ty-- t1_jdqpz68 wrote

Yeah. Even for small structures like a garden shed, or a slab for a barbeque, it's always 4" min, and for an actual home, it's 6" min.

There are foundations that don't need a thick pour, like a raft foundation, where the actual footings can be 10" thick, but then the rest of the area is covered in just one or two inches, basically just to keep the dust and dirt down, but those types of foundations wouldn't be used for a basement that's meant to be occupied. At most, it would just be a crawlspace.

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age34act12 t1_jdqurby wrote

As long as you use a decent quality adhesive and cut the studs tight to fit it's fine for interior walls. Exterior walls that's covering the foundation will have a footer underneath the slab like the posts do. Treated lumber on the bottom plate will decrease in size as it drys out so if it ain't tight it ain't right!!!!

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CraigSchwent t1_jdqveh5 wrote

Sorry, can't help ya there, I know here in Colorado, US, I had to put down floating walls in my basement due to how much the ground moves (treated 2x4 secured to concrete and then the top plate of the wall is secured to the ceiling while the bottom plate is left about an inch and a half above the treated 2x4 to allow for movement)

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S7onez OP t1_jdqzxtf wrote

Ya this is what I was thinking nice and snug/tight fit then PL premium the bottom plate. Would you still run treated on the floor ? It won’t be penetrated and currently has a sealer on it

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jeffersonairmattress t1_jdr3iyu wrote

Scarify the concrete with at least one stripe by a diamond wheel in an angle grinder. If sealed, the PL will just glue plate to the film of sealer. Try to find treated fir- just for the plate. In AB it will be mostly hemlock.

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allangee t1_jdryd7t wrote

NOT A SNUG FIT from top to bottom. You need an expansion gap at the bottom or top plate. Basement floors can move (especially a 2" floor if you're correct).

You can find better articles, but this is the first one I could pull up.

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As far as fastening, PL is fine. In fact if you ever try to remove it, you'll probably split the wood before the adhesive would ever let go. I prefer tapcons because I've been known to put a plate or two in the wrong place. :) Tapcons let me "adjust".

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SpagNMeatball t1_jdsgqvg wrote

I remodeled my basement 15 years ago and I didn’t want to put nails or screws into the concrete. I used a high strength polyurethane construction adhesive to attach all of the base plates (PT 2x4) and I have not had a single problem with them. During construction I had to move a couple of pieces and the wood separated before the glue broke free.

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