# Insulating from the outside



## monzamadman (Jun 10, 2013)

Hi everybody, I am wondering what,how I should go about this. I will be tearing off the old siding,and the boards under it and replacing it, I want to insulate the walls while I have everything off. What type of insulation should I use? What about vapor barrier?


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## nealtw (Jun 10, 2013)

WElcome the site. Depending on where you live, some zones want the vapour barrier on the inside some on the outside and some don't use any. I hope you planning on doing this a piece at a time the sheeting is structual.


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## monzamadman (Jun 11, 2013)

We live in minnesota,i am planning on doing a section at a time.As for insulation should i use faced or unfaced?If it is supposed to be on the inside shouldn't it be between the sheetrock and the studs?


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## WindowsonWashington (Jun 11, 2013)

In theory, your vapor retarder levels should be to the warm side.

In your application, you would want it to be unfaced in a perfect application but if you get enough R-Value to the exterior, it is less imperative.

What is the wall construction?  

Plan on spending some money on spray foam and getting it done right.  If you take your time, you can detail and build a really fantastic wall system.

Vapor Retarder Levels

http://www.buildingscience.com/documents/reports/rr-1012-residential-exterior-wall-superinsulation-retrofit/view?searchterm=exterior%20foam


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## nealtw (Jun 11, 2013)

There are a few ways to go, doing it wrong is as bad as not doing it. The idea is to stop air flow from inside from getting into the wall. Paper faced would go against the interior but there is no way to seal all the gaps. So if that's what you use you would have to seal all swtch and outlet boxes to stop airflow and then paint inside with a retarder paint. I would use poly 6 mill and wrap the stud and tuck it into the gavities. tape the joints and seal it to top and bottom plate with acoustic sealer and use batts. In a wet zone some gaps want to be left in the sheeting so moisture can escape to the outside, every bay.


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## monzamadman (Jun 11, 2013)

As far as I can tell the walls a regular 2x4 framed walls,I was told it could be balloon construction, don't know if that would make a difference. Unfortunately I have to do this myself to keep costs down,but it still needs to be right so I don't have any issues later. What I need is the best way to do it this way,as the siding and the boards under need replacing. This is why I am doing it this way.


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## WindowsonWashington (Jun 11, 2013)

Balloon framing does make for some more leakage but if you are stripping the walls on the exterior, you can cut and install blockers between the floors.  This should be done from a fire standpoint anyway.

Get some putty pads to go around all the outlets and penetrations in the walls.  

Check with code or engineer as to what the requirement is for either let in bracing or plywood sheathing.


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## monzamadman (Jun 11, 2013)

Thanks for the info, I will check what code is,and figure out if it is balloon framed.


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## bud16415 (Jun 12, 2013)

With your location and talking about balloon framing and the type of siding and sheathing you have it sounds like you have a century old structure. I have seen them with sheathing on the outside then siding and lath and plaster on the inside. I have also seen them with the sheathing on the inside then the lath and just clapboard siding on the outside. The third method is what I have found in the house I&#8217;m renovating now and that is sheathing on both the inside and outside (1&#8221; rough saw) lath and plaster on the inside and clapboards on the outside. In my case there is also hard siding circa 1950 over that and then foam and vinyl siding over that circa 2000. 

My concern in your situation is all that material really gone bad and needing replaced. You are really talking about a big job and chances are the original sheathing is still solid. In my case the sheathing is hemlock by the looks of it and it has darkened over the 100 plus years it&#8217;s been up there but is still 100% tough as nails. Without photos and until you open it up you won&#8217;t know for sure and is only a guess on my part. Quite often the lower one or two boards around overgrown landscaping might have rot and the south side the sun takes a toll on the clapboards. As Neal mentioned in these old places that sheathing was somewhat structural and many times run on the diagonal. They had it on there when they put the windows in and stuff is nailed to everything. Prying all that off may also cause problems with the interior walls if lath and plaster as you will be twisting the studs around getting the sheathing off.

I&#8217;m no insulating expert but I wouldn&#8217;t rule out just removing the old siding replacing any bad sheathing and boring holes and adding blown in insulation from the outside and then whatever the pros would recommend as wrap and foam then new siding. 

Just a thought and you may have already figured out you need it all gone.


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## WindowsonWashington (Jun 12, 2013)

Being able to get to the backside of the interior wall (plaster and lath or drywall) is a great benefit but will require the additional expense of pulling the sheathing.

If you are going for high performance envelope, that is what you are going to have to do.

Dense packing the walls, while not requiring the tear down of the sheathing, is going to be near impossible if you don't know what is in the walls or if it is balloon framed.


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## bud16415 (Jun 12, 2013)

It&#8217;s been my experience once you get the clapboards off it&#8217;s not too hard to figure out what&#8217;s behind the sheathing. You will see the nailing and if the sheathing is rough sawn as most of these old houses are there are gaps and such to poke around with a wire to find fire breaks and if the house is balloon or has plates.  You can always easily drill a few holes to see what you have also or to gage how well your walls have filled. I have also seen them putting foam in this way.


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## WindowsonWashington (Jun 12, 2013)

+1

If they are old skip sheathing, you will see everything you need to see.

Do not use that drip foam for closed cavities in my opinion.  I have used it on a couple of jobs and the results were disastrous in a couple of cases.  Much better suited for hollow blocks.

I have yet to use AirKrete but I would love to try it.


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## nealtw (Jun 12, 2013)

The foam they use for closed cavities is deffernt and chemicals can get into house that does not have vabour barrier.


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## monzamadman (Jun 12, 2013)

The house was built in the 20's or 30's, i do know it has boards running at an angle behind the siding,don't remember if it was rough sawn or not. There is no vegetation over grown, it was neglected for a lot of years, some since I have lived there. The siding is rotting,not on all places, and the boards behind are also in places, I also have to replace some windows as the wood around them is rotting too. There is nothing between the siding and sheathing, what insulation is there is compacted at the bottom. So let's figure it is a balloon framed house, if I were to do small sections at a time, that should not affect the rest of the house right?


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## nealtw (Jun 12, 2013)

The braces on an angle let into the studs were put there to keep the house square, because the board would not keep there. Plywood or osb on newer house do that job. So you could likey work on half of a side at a time. If the studs are rough cut, any blocking you have to put in if it is balloon will have to be ripped to fit. Hang a tarp first and roll it up above the work area because you know as soon as you open the wall the wind will blow and the rain will come. The area around the windows will likely be the worst and I would start right at one of the worst windows. Depending on what you find in some cases it is easier to change whole sections of wall.


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## monzamadman (Jun 12, 2013)

Someone help me understand why this is more difficult than just removing the old and putting new on.


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## bud16415 (Jun 12, 2013)

It&#8217;s not really any harder than doing just that. You mentioned cost so that&#8217;s a factor. You will be taking off &#8220;X&#8221; number of square feet of siding and sheathing and the sheathing will be most likely 1&#8221; thick. So you have to look at what will be going back onto get the same build or something less as to sheathing plus whatever kind of siding you will be using to make window trim come out correct. Maybe .5 plywood and .5 foam board. I just bought .5 foam board last night and it was over 10 bucks a sheet. 

Money aside it&#8217;s just ripping it all off and stuffing in some insulation and putting it back on. Neal pointed out you can do about half a side at a time without worrying about losing structure. Will you be doing soffits and fascia at the same time and or gutters as the type of trim you use up top should match the system you will be using. When its open it&#8217;s a good time to add any wiring in the walls also. You may also find some other damage in the walls when open and the perfect time to fix them is when the wall is open. 

If you are sure it has to go then I would say just go at it and keep a tarp handy if needed. 

Good luck and post some pics once you get started we would love to see the before and after.


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## nealtw (Jun 12, 2013)

It's not but what ever you expect to find when you get there will change, sometimes better and sometimes worse. No one that has done this before wants you to be really surprised when you get there. You will run into problems that are unexpected and there are people here that will offer suggestions on how to solve them. You have suggested some rot, we think "more rot" insects, mold and knob and tube wiring, all things that will have to be addressed when you get there. It may be easy and we hope it is.


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## monzamadman (Jun 12, 2013)

I thank all you guys for your help and I was not trying to be a dink,I was getting more confused than before I asked.i will be starting maybe this wknd or next and I will let you guys know how things go. Thank you again.


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## monzamadman (Jun 12, 2013)

I also learned of quite a few things I have never heard of before,or would have thought to look up,thanks to you guy's. I appreciate it.


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## nealtw (Jun 12, 2013)

Just think of it like, you're working by your self with 50 guys sitting on the lawn watching you while drinking beer.


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## WindowsonWashington (Jun 13, 2013)

Keep us posted and plan on taking a bunch of pictures and keeping us updated. 

A nice video/picture thread would be great when you get it started.


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## GBR (Jun 13, 2013)

monzamadman said:


> Hi everybody, I am wondering what,how I should go about this. I will be tearing off the old siding,and the boards under it and replacing it, I want to insulate the walls while I have everything off. What type of insulation should I use? What about vapor barrier?



After removing the diagonal sheathing boards and cavity insulation, canned foam/caulk any plumbing/wiring holes to prevent insulation R-value loss due to air infiltration/exfiltration. Caulk the drywall/studs/plates joints or if P&L, forget this step. Install asphalt paper-faced batts or poly, do not wrap the wood studs to concentrate any moisture condensation there. Stick the edges of the poly in the caulking, not to the wood studs. A vapor barrier/retarder is required for your location (zone 6 or 7; http://publicecodes.cyberregs.com/icod/irc/2009/icod_irc_2009_11_par002.htm) as that BSC link brought out; depends on the siding/sheathing perm rating; 

"Foil-faced isocyanurate 1 inch thick (R 6) installed over a 2x6 frame wall (R 19) meets requirement #9 in Minneapolis.  Therefore, a kraft-faced batt (Class II vapor retarder) is required on the interior of this assembly.

In Chicago where plywood or OSB exterior sheathing is used, an unfaced fiberglass batt can be installed within the wall cavity and gypsum board painted with latex paint (Class III vapor retarder) is required on the interior of this assembly.  If this assembly is moved to Minneapolis, a Class II vapor retarder is required on the interior (a kraft paper faced fiberglass batt)." From last page; http://www.buildingscience.com/docu...tanding-vapor-barriers/?topic=/doctypes/diges

Caulk under the structural sheathing, on the studs for complete air barrier, tape over the joints. What type of siding? Any foamboard?

Gary


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## monzamadman (Jun 13, 2013)

I will post as I make progress.


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## monzamadman (Jun 14, 2013)

Here is a before picture.


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## monzamadman (Jun 14, 2013)

Sorry Gary I just saw your post. We are going with vinyl siding(cost) I was not going to put the foam insulation on the outside.thanks for the links.


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## monzamadman (Jun 22, 2013)

Well got started,the insulated part is the addition.boards were not to bad they were 3/4 in and the new is7/16 so I had to tear it off. It appears that there is some of that cellulose insulation in spots and none in others. Have found some patch work.What a mess!


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## WindowsonWashington (Jun 23, 2013)

Good progress.

Pull the insulation, seal all the gaps cracks, seal the ribbon boards, electrical outlets, etc.


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## monzamadman (Jun 23, 2013)

Not as far as I was hoping get,tearing off was a pain and took a lot longer than expected. Did get as far as insulating and four pieces of sheathing u before it started to rain. Have to add some 2x4s to supplement some half rotten ones. Some spots were worse than I thought and some not as bad. Will add more pics this afternoon.


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## monzamadman (Jun 23, 2013)

Well only got two more pieces up today, very sore and burnt from yesterday,had to make a material run also. Then ran into some interesting stuff,see pic.


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## nealtw (Jun 24, 2013)

When you come across rot, you should dig, scatch, cut away as much as possible and then paint the area with a preservitve that contain copper. It's much like the treatment in treated lumber and treat the lumber that is going next to the affected area. We did the outside of a church like this  and in some places we cut the 2x6 studs back to 2x2s to get rid of the rot  We did the whole church like that one stud at a time with an engineer watching us . We nailed up some poly above and let it drap over a makeshift fram about 4ft away, keeps the rain out and still gives working room.


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## bud16415 (Jun 24, 2013)

Good looking job so far. The diagonal sheathing looks to be pretty sound except where the ends were near a corner or edge like at the spot where the addition was added. I have found the same thing in my old wood sided homes. It seems unless the clapboards have completely failed they and the little airspace behind them do a good job of keeping the diagonal sheathing dry and solid.

That was what I was trying to point out you may find in my earlier post. (#9) That and the bigness of the job you are undertaking. 

The house I&#8217;m renovating right now is about the same vintage as yours and built very similar with just about the same siding conditions. I was lucky enough (I think) that the siding work was done prior to my getting the place but we had to open the outside at quite a few places as we are adding and removing windows and doors so I&#8217;m getting to see the results of going over some of this old stuff rather than replacing it. 

I also have been lucky to get some help from an old timer who&#8217;s a family member that was in construction all his life. He&#8217;s 81 and still going strong. Over the last 3 months he has change my perspective about reusing and retaining materials that are still sound. But he is still very open about applying the new modern materials when needed. He&#8217;s convinced me the way they did the vinyl siding was the way to go in my case. 

Neal brought up a great point about treating any bad areas before replacing what is gone and also rigging some tarps to work under. I might add when you get higher on the house you might want to invest in a couple sections of scaffolding. Could save a lot of trips up and down moving ladders. 

The way you are doing it is the best sure fired way to see and inspect everything. You have the chance to seal it good and insulate best. Just keep working an area at a time and you will have it done before you know it. 

Also thanks for sharing the photos and doing a log of your progress so far. I&#8217;m sure there are lots reading and watching wanting to do the same thing.


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## monzamadman (Jun 24, 2013)

Thanks for the tips,today I ran into an even bigger problem,hopefully one of you guys know what yo do to fix this.This is a timber on the foundation to which the walls are attached.


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## nealtw (Jun 24, 2013)

Ya that's what I was talking about. 
How big is this timber and how deep is the rot or how much is left.
Is there anything between timber and concrete, tar paper, roofing material, anything?
Condition of wood higher under the window?
Condition of the end of the floor joists, and are they sitting on concrete or are they only nailed in place?
The floor does not extend over this timber, the stud sits right on the timber, yes?
Poke around with a screwdriver, start with a really solid peice of old wood and you will be able to judge how soft this stuff is?


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## monzamadman (Jun 24, 2013)

All I can see is the timber,then the inside wall, no floor joists are visible. The timber looks to be about 8 1/2 to 9 inches tall can't tell how wide as the wall sits on it. The 2x4s are half rotten those I don't have a problem figuring out how to replace. Some of the wall boards feel wet but I don't think it is a problem, now that the leaks will be stopped. The timber is at least half gone if not more.


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## monzamadman (Jun 24, 2013)

The timbers are right on top of the concrete nothing between them. I stopped poking and scraping after it got half way but it will go more.


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## nealtw (Jun 24, 2013)

You can't see the joists from under the house?
Drill a 1 1/2" hole thru the center of that timber, stay away from the nails under the stud, they likely are nailed into the joists.
Then with a saws-all cut a big enough hole you can stick you hand inside and feel around.


If I was at your house I would look at everything I could think of to develope a plan, so try to answer all the dumb question. You are the eyes for the rest of us.


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## monzamadman (Jun 24, 2013)

This is a picture of the floor joists(and cob webs) from the basement,when I cut the hole what am I looking for? Is it possible to cut out a section of that and replace it?


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## monzamadman (Jun 24, 2013)

Forgot to add the picture.


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## monzamadman (Jun 24, 2013)

monzamadman said:
			
		

> Forgot to add the picture.



The rest of them are bricked up.


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## nealtw (Jun 24, 2013)

What I am trying to figure out, is about three questions. Are the ends of the joist sitting on the concrete or do they have to be supported in order to remove the bad timber. Or is the timber thick enough and enough left to machine away all the bad stuff and fix it up. From the inside it looks like there is a 2x? under the timber.
Drilling a hole thru the center will NOT weakin it, we shouldn't need the bigger hole now that you can see in from the basement.
Side note, the grayish powder on the shiplap in your first photo today and on the underside of the floor sheeting in your last photo looks like mold and will have to be looked at too.


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## nealtw (Jun 24, 2013)

monzamadman said:


> The rest of them are bricked up.


 
Explain some more, can't make sence of this?:help:


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## monzamadman (Jun 24, 2013)

I think the floor joists are on part of the foundation, there is only the walls on the timber. The picture( the last one) was one of two or three spots that were open, the rest ate bricked up and you cannot see yo the outside timber, I think the powder you are seeing is from the old insulation, but I will look into that a bit further to make sure it is not mold.


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## nealtw (Jun 24, 2013)

You can buy a test kit for any suspected mold. better to be safe, while you have it open.
Back to the brick, Is the brick a wall on the inside all the way up to the floor or just the cavity above the wall, perhaps an earlyer repair.

We would need atleast 1 1/2" of the floor joist sitting on the wall but we have no reason to beleive it hasn't got rot on the bottom too. So maybe back to cutting the hole so you can get a hand in there to feel how much is sitting on the wall and how good the bottom of the joist is. How good is the floor in the basement?


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## monzamadman (Jun 24, 2013)

The brick fills the cavity between the foundation and joists.


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## nealtw (Jun 24, 2013)

monzamadman said:


> The brick fills the cavity between the foundation and joists.


Is that in the area that you have open now? Almost sounds like somebodys repair.


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## monzamadman (Jun 25, 2013)

The bricks are in the basement,and cannot be seen from the outside.


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## monzamadman (Jun 25, 2013)

nealtw said:
			
		

> You can buy a test kit for any suspected mold. better to be safe, while you have it open.
> Back to the brick, Is the brick a wall on the inside all the way up to the floor or just the cavity above the wall, perhaps an earlyer repair.
> 
> We would need atleast 1 1/2" of the floor joist sitting on the wall but we have no reason to beleive it hasn't got rot on the bottom too. So maybe back to cutting the hole so you can get a hand in there to feel how much is sitting on the wall and how good the bottom of the joist is. How good is the floor in the basement?



The floor in in the basement is fine,Today I will cut the "inspection"hole and will try to get a better look from the basement also. Thanks for all your time, and patience, I appreciate it,


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## bud16415 (Jun 25, 2013)

As Neal mentioned you need to get the rotten wood out of there by chisel, scraper, Jab saw etc. another method I find works good is drilling. I have a large flat drill bit (Spade bit) and an extension and you can drill overlapping holes at arms reach if needed. Its pretty easy to tell when you hit solid wood and thats the point to stop. 

One way to look at it is the rotten wood isnt holding anything up now so taking it out isnt doing anything structurally. Most likely it has been like that for many years. 

I have found many places similar in old houses and after getting the rotten wood out and trueing up as best you can what is left, treating the wood and patching the foundation to give a flat surface to build back up from, I have then replaced what I took out with chunks of pressure treated wood from inside or outside or both. I like to make the blocks a drive fit and taper the leading edge of the block and really pound them in and then a few screws to keep it together (or lag bolts). If the damage is just over a short distance this is what I have done. Now if the whole beam is bad thats a different problem but I dont think thats your case because you would have seen structural problems in the house. 

I keep an ice pick in my tool box. Great for starting screws and also for testing punkie wood. 

The problem that caused the rotting in the first place is  going to be corrected with your new siding and flashings.


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## monzamadman (Jun 25, 2013)

Ok this morning I cut out a section between the floor joists,this is what it looks like from the outside. My plan is to cut out what I need to replace above the bottom timber, and pt a new one in,in about a 32in section. We have a large timber from the side of our barn that feel off last year. It is the same size as what is there. There will be about 3 to 4 feet that I will have to patch in.


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## monzamadman (Jun 25, 2013)

That is not what it looks like under the house(ooops) this is.
The floor joists appear to be notched into the timber.


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## nealtw (Jun 25, 2013)

That answers a few questions, The joist on the right looks suprisingly good but the one on the left is what is suspected you find. A copper based treatment is not rated for inside houses but when you find stuff like this the building inspectors and engineers call for it to be applied to anything that might have rot and anything that will touch the old wood and anything that is sitting on concrete, as much as you can without doing more damage. A quick call to you city inspectors for a recommendation might be called for or talk to people at a real lumberyard.
Anything new you put down against concrete need poly or sill gasket between wood and concrete.


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## monzamadman (Jun 25, 2013)

Sorry guys no pics this evening, got the timber replaced, it is ugly but very functional. Not my best work which is why there are no pics. It went in so tight I had to use my splitting maul to get it in as far as it needed to be. 1000 times better than what was there. Thanks again fellas for all the info, I wouldn't and more than likely couldn't be doing this with out all your help.


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## bud16415 (Jun 26, 2013)

I have found on projects like yours there is a strong desire when these problems pop up to get a fix in place and keep moving. I have to always remind myself this is most likely the only time I&#8217;m going to ever have this opened up ever again nor do I ever want to open it again and I have to force myself to take a little extra time to do all the little details like Neal has been mentioning. 

As to pretty that&#8217;s not important as long as the fix is solid. Pretty don&#8217;t matter till you start hanging siding.


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## GBR (Jun 26, 2013)

Even in the 1950's they used brick/mortar for air-sealing/fire-stopping/floor joist lateral displacement/rim joist insulation, at least around here. Maybe they got rid of extra brick from the chimneys, as they match in my house. Appears they are sitting on concrete pavers about 1" thick on the CMU's in Post #39.... standard for the age.

Some insulation ideas;http://www.buildingscience.com/documents/published-articles/pa-remodeling-for-energy-efficiency

Fig.43; http://www.buildingscience.com/docu...ybrid-foundations-retrofits-measure-guideline

Gary


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## nealtw (Jun 26, 2013)

GBR said:


> Even in the 1950's they used brick/mortar for air-sealing/fire-stopping/floor joist lateral displacement/rim joist insulation, at least around here. Maybe they got rid of extra brick from the chimneys, as they match in my house. Appears they are sitting on concrete pavers about 1" thick on the CMU's in Post #39.... standard for the age.
> Gary


 
The bricks in there are new to me I was worried about the condition of the end of the floor joist. I would hate to tell someone to do something just to have them come back and say the floor sagged or something


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## monzamadman (Jun 27, 2013)

The ends of a couple of the joists had some rot, someone else has added some additional,patches I guess they would be called. We used that copper treatment where we could before we buttoned up the timber and everything else. I am confident we won't have any issues. The wrap at the top is to just cover a gap between what we had done and what was tore off. One more window to put in, a cover to build for the cellar,then I can start siding.


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## monzamadman (Jun 27, 2013)

monzamadman said:
			
		

> The ends of a couple of the joists had some rot, someone else has added some additional,patches I guess they would be called. We used that copper treatment where we could before we buttoned up the timber and everything else. I am confident we won't have any issues. The wrap at the top is to just cover a gap between what we had done and what was tore off. One more window to put in, a cover to build for the cellar,then I can start siding.



We want to get the siding started before we start on the upper half,dog likes to eat well everything and we can't have him eating the wrap.


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## bud16415 (Jun 27, 2013)

Just curious now that you have went up the walls a ways, have you found any problems higher up in the sheathing or even the clapboards with rotten wood and such? Or has it mostly been around the foundation?

Looks real nice what you have done so far.


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## monzamadman (Jun 27, 2013)

There has been some, it seems that where ever there is any seam, wether it is in the siding or sheathing there is some rot. We had to replace a small section,under the big window,of the interior sheathing.(the walls go,from inside to outside) Sheetrock,p&l,then wood the same as the exterior sheathing,2x4 exterior sheathing.


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## ChrisM (Jun 27, 2013)

I'm about to start a similar project only the house was built in 1987.  The kitchen is very cold in winter and after cutting a hole in the sheetrock I know why!  The insulation was just put in, not stapled and not the width of the wall cavity which is 24 on center.  Since we are residing the house anyway and the OSB is only half inch not thick enough to nail the siding to we're replacing it with 3/4 ply.  We'll be using r23 Roxul and aquabar as a vapor barrier sealing as we go.  I used this system in my garage walls and it's working very well, nice and toasty in winter, with the added benefit that insects and rodents hate Roxul!  I've read a lot of bad things about using 6 mil poly as a vapor barrier.  We're using NUCedar vertical pvc siding with the Homeslicker bonded to Typar housewrap.  Have the same siding and housewrap on the south wall and it looks just like the day it was installed two years ago.  The house is located in the Hudson valley.


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## monzamadman (Jun 27, 2013)

Well at least you have done it once before. This is the first time I have taken on a project this large. You gotta learn some how. Didn't get much done today, got the second window on and the cover for the cellar done. We put the white flashing up so that when the siding goes up it is white between the bottom of the siding and the steel. We will be using the flashing tape that we used around the windows to cover the flashing lip.


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## nealtw (Jun 27, 2013)

I don't know what the standards are there but here we install windows with this system, it allows condensation a way out from around the window.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2VOrk1MuWY[/ame]
Then you wouldn't seal the bottom of the window like you have.


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## WindowsonWashington (Jun 28, 2013)

+1

Do not seal the bottom edge of the flange.

The sill should be flashed but the nailing flange should terminate on top of that.


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## monzamadman (Jun 29, 2013)

I took yesterday off,had some personal things to take of. Now the video I watched and what you are telling me about the bottom of the windows is the same, aside from that what I have looked up tells me to put flashing on. We have a light rain this morning so I will look into it further.


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## monzamadman (Jun 29, 2013)

Well I have to,once again,thank you guys for bringing this to my attention,did some more looking this morning and,why I would think other wise,you all were right. So today I will be fixing my screw ups.


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## nealtw (Jul 2, 2013)

Just to keep adding to the confussion. We have plastic spacers that we put under the window 1/4 inch and 1/8 behind the lower flange, they are horseshoe shaped. Normally now that leaves use with 1/4" gap between the window frame and the wood framing. We don't insulated that anymore. they do a cord and caulk just around the inside edge giving any water condencing there a way to get out without ever hitting the wood. Cord comes in all sizes but is usually 1/4 or 3/8 round foam stuffed round the inside edge and sealed with a caulk that is made for this. The loss of insulation is no big deal as the window would be lucky to give an R5 anyway.


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## monzamadman (Jul 3, 2013)

I saw that in one video, so I put some small shims behind it. I was going to ask about sealing the inside but you answered that one two. I haven't been getting to much done,kept having issues,then had to go back to work.


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## monzamadman (Jul 8, 2013)

Still have not got to much more done,4 more ft up all the way down.pretty good start on the siding.


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## nealtw (Jul 8, 2013)

Looks good, the dog got bored? He was in all the other photos.


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## monzamadman (Jul 9, 2013)

He finally quit stealing stuff from me and went to lay down.


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## WindowsonWashington (Jul 9, 2013)

Sounds like one of my pups.


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## monzamadman (Jul 9, 2013)

He has a thing for boxes of staples and nails, and tools.


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## nealtw (Jul 10, 2013)

Flashing above windows and doors. Water does get behind vinyl siding and it is a good idea to get it out from around the window. the metal flashing slides in behind the house wrap. Notice how they have turned up the ends so the wind can't drive rain sideways. With a couple cute bends, they manage to fold it with out cutting the corner.


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## monzamadman (Aug 4, 2013)

It's been awhile since I have posted, it's been awhile since I have got anything done. We are getting closer,got the last window in, and all the corners set up, the f and j channel set for the soffit,will finish next wknd.


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## monzamadman (Aug 13, 2013)

Well thanks to you guys I finally got this side done. Thank you for all your help and advice.


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## oldognewtrick (Aug 13, 2013)

Looks great, thanks for the update.


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## WindowsonWashington (Aug 18, 2013)

+1

Great job!!!


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