Framing a Wall
By: Amanda Campbell
Updated: August 13, 2010
Today we're going to do a basic carpentry job. We're going to frame a wall to create storage space.
Framing a wall is a basic carpentry job that has many elements to it. In our case, we framed in a portion of a garage to create storage space. The area that we framed out was from the concrete ledge at the back of the garage to the interior wall of the house.
Tool List
* Stanley Fat Max Tape measure
* Bosch Circular saw
* Framing square
* Chalk line
* Lumber
* Stanley level
* Paslode impulse nailer
Measure from the wall outMeasure out from the back wall of the garage to the concrete ledge. You need to allow space back from the edge of the ledge for both the width of the bottom plate (2x4, which is 3 ½") and allow ½" for the drywall to attach to the exterior of the frame.
Mark along the ledge should be 4" back from the ledge. Do this measurement on both ends of the wall and mark the concrete.
Line up these two points and pop a chalk line to mark the concrete where your bottom plate will be attached to the concrete.
Take a straight 2x4, line it up on the mark of the bottom plate against the wall, and extend it up towards the ceiling.
Take a level and plum the board up.
Recommended screwTrace along the board's edge up the wall until you get to the ceiling and make a mark on the ceiling. Do this on the other end of the wall as well.
Take a chalk line and pop it between the two marks and now you've marked where your top plate will go. The top plate (2x4 board) will be nailed into the ceiling joists along this mark. And now your top plate for your wall is in place. In our case we also cut a second top plate. This was to meet local fire codes. Check with your city to determine what the codes are in your area.
Again, measure and mark the length of the plate you need. In our case we cut a second top plate and also the length of our bottom plate.
Now you're ready to do a layout and determine where the studs will go.
Do the layout on the garage floor or ground and once the wall is built, you will lift it and put it in place. In our case we decided to put our studs in 16" on center which is a standard measurement when framing a wall. Now 16" on center means that the center of each stud is exactly 16" away from the next. The reason you want to do it this way is so that when you put on drywall later, the drywall will "break" in the center of the stud and you'll have wood to screw the drywall to the stud.
Mark your plates with a tape measure and bring it out the length of your plate. Lock it in place. If you'll notice, every 16" along the tape measure is marked in red. Go to each 16" measurement on the tape measure.
Remember that the 2x4 studs are an inch and a half wide. Find the 16" measurement and come off ¾ of an inch in each direction from center. This will give you the space where your studs will be on the plate.
Mark the top and bottom plates this way all the way down the boards. Before you put in the studs, it's important to look at each one individually and see which way it's "crowned" or bowed.
Mark the boards with an arrow showing which way they are crowned. The idea is that you want all the boards to be crowned in the same direction. If you don't do this you'll end up with a wavy wall once the drywall is put on and that will not look good at all. After you get your studs cut to length, lay them in between the top and bottom plates and line them up with the marks you made earlier.
Nail board to ceilingUse an impulse nailer to attach the boards to the top and bottom plates. Once the wall is nailed together, lift it into place against your top plate you mounted earlier, line it up on the bottom with the marks you made for your bottom plate on the concrete floor.
Nail the top plate into the top plate that's already attached to the ceiling.
Use a zigzag nailing pattern to attach the wall to the top plate. In other words put a nail into one edge, come down a couple of feet and put a nail into the opposite edge of the board so you are zigzagging down the wall. This will give it more strength.
Finished areaOnce the top plate's nailed in, be sure the bottom plate is lined up on its mark and use a hammer drill with a masonry bit to drill through the plate into the concrete.
Once you've drilled through every couple of feet, use Tap-cons (which are screws especially made for concrete) to attach the bottom plate to the concrete. The threads of the Tap-cons actually dig into the concrete and will firmly anchor the wall.
After you finished framing the wall, you are ready to attach the drywall exterior.
