Rot

[lb99]

:shit: as a way to vent my frustration over my current ex issues, I got a hammer and powersaw and got started on those rotten weatherboards on the south corner of my house

anyways, I found the corner stud and the one next to it are rotted badly, as well as the bottom plate.

How do I go about repairing a corner stud?

[Jonno.]

What kind/how old is the house?
Is it single story?

You should address the water problem first though.

[lb99]

is a single story 50yo state type house, rimu frame, matai weatherboards. the water problem stems from long term neglect letting the weather get a hold (has probably needed paint for 20 years) and maybe a seriously fucked roof sometime recently.
Had a new coloursteel roof put on 3 years ago by previous owner, but judging by how fucked the ceilings are the old roof leaked badly for ages

[Laava]

Geez bro, where to start? Have done many repair jobs of the type you describe and there is many ways to skin a cat! If you are not wanting to spend too much money, I suggest you carefully remove ALL the rotten bits you want to remedy and re-evaluate. If this is a house you really want to keep, you might consider removing all the cladding on those two walls and then replacing rotten studs, put batts in then building paper and replace weatherboards. Sounds like a big job I know BUT if you end up doing the whole house, it will make a big diff to comfort and value! Alternatively you can cut back plate and studs to remove manky bits and then find some metal plates at your supplier to re-strengthen where the new timber replacement joins up. Sometimes these jobs are easier done than said, they are not fun at all but just get stuck in and it will kind of work out by itself. Hope this helps, feel free to post up some pics for more detailed advice. Cheers Al

[FJRider]

Ex state house ... obviously the Goverments fault. :yes:

[sinfull]

Sounds like you've removed cladding from either in or ouside and have the studs exposed ! I'd just go hire, beg, borrow, or steal me some acroprops (speelling) to crank up iether side of the rotton plate and go hell for leather ! but you'll prob find you won't need props and that corner wont droop when ya hook out the corner stud ( you'd think, if the rot's that bad she'd be drooping now, if that was gonna happen)

[lb99]

Alternatively you can cut back plate and studs to remove manky bits and then find some metal plates at your supplier to re-strengthen where the new timber replacement joins up.l
was considering this, cutting out the rot and replacing with good timber, then splinting the repair but I am not sure if this is legit or not.
We have plans to remove a window close by and put in a ranch slider so will probably do it at the same time.
all of the rooms need relined, so we are insulating as we go.
would prefer not to remove any more weatherboards than neccissary, cause they cost money and are hard to remove without splitting.

[lb99]

Sounds like you've removed cladding from either in or ouside and have the studs exposed ! I'd just go hire, beg, borrow, or steal me some acroprops (speelling) to crank up iether side of the rotton plate and go hell for leather ! but you'll prob find you won't need props and that corner wont droop when ya hook out the corner stud ( you'd think, if the rot's that bad she'd be drooping now, if that was gonna happen)

no droop, she's a pretty rigid house.just not sure how to go about replacing the corner stud.
I would prefer it if I could do it with out destroying the corner of the house.

[jamessmith]

if your doing the rooms. Id strip the gib, fix tiimber complete. (hate doing reno's and fixing someones fuckup from 20 years ago) insulate and reline. easy.
fixing the water entry problem on the outside first ofcourse.

[Jonno.]

Cut the bottom plate first. It's a lot easier to remove the plate first then replace the stud then the reciprocal. Cut it square around a meter back from the visible rot and cut through all the nails and hack it out. Replace and fix to foundations (dynabolts).

I'd recommend cutting a stud and placing it next to the rotting stud, fixing it in place, then removing the rotting stud and then building out from that. Be wary of is fixing for weather boards. Also get the correct timber.

Also hiring a cordless nail gun + saber saw will make your life a lot easier. It would be a lot better if you knew someone who had some idea of how to do this.

[Jonno.]

was considering this, cutting out the rot and replacing with good timber, then splinting the repair but I am not sure if this is legit or not.
We have plans to remove a window close by and put in a ranch slider so will probably do it at the same time.
all of the rooms need relined, so we are insulating as we go.
would prefer not to remove any more weatherboards than neccissary, cause they cost money and are hard to remove without splitting.

What do you mean by this?

[Ixion]

is a single story 50yo state type house, rimu frame, matai weatherboards. the water problem stems from long term neglect letting the weather get a hold (has probably needed paint for 20 years) and maybe a seriously fucked roof sometime recently.
Had a new coloursteel roof put on 3 years ago by previous owner, but judging by how fucked the ceilings are the old roof leaked badly for ages

Rimu? Or totara?

Either way, yes , you can safely and legally cut out the rot and splice new sections in. Bunnings are your friend for metal splice plates. Just find a Bunning bunny and explain what you need he'll point you in the right direction (Placemakers are good for that stuff too)

Not especially hard. Weatherboards being what they are, if the inside is gib lined and you don't mind remedification on the wall paper, it's easier to pull the gib and fascia (? Bit between wall and ceiling) and replace the stud from the inside. If the rot's spread upward more than about a foot , probably easier to replace the whole stud. Especially as both rimu and totara are hard to nail or screw to . One splits if a fly farts within half a mile, the other requires fission plasma tools to make even a tiny dent, ordinary nails just bend.

Splicing the bottom plate, cut it back till the join is over a bearer. You'll probably have to skew nail the studs , but so be it. If necessary you can skew nail from the outside right through weatherboard and stud into the top plate.

Bear in mind that corner studs are usually in triplets (maybe pairs, but prolly not on ex-State, they was well built) ,one facing each way and maybe a third to allow wall cladding to be fixed. =check the other one(s) .

I done lots of these back in the day.

[lb99]

What do you mean by this? uhh which bit? ixion covered what I mean to do as a repair.
there is a window close by that wants to be turned into a doorway to improve indoor outdoor flow, so we will probably do that while we have the wall in bits,
all of the rooms are being re gibbed one by one, we are insulating them from the inside as we go.

[lb99]

Splicing the bottom plate, cut it back till the join is over a bearer. You'll probably have to skew nail the studs , but so be it. If necessary you can skew nail from the outside right through weatherboard and stud into the top plate.

Bear in mind that corner studs are usually in triplets (maybe pairs, but prolly not on ex-State, they was well built) ,one facing each way and maybe a third to allow wall cladding to be fixed. =check the other one(s) .

I done lots of these back in the day.

Rimu, in triplets, got the weatherboards off on the affected bit coz they were rotten, thats what led me to get started, the inside is lined with t&g so will leave that alone for now.

on the corner studs I could be cutting back as much as 1200mm up the stud, not sure if all 3 are rotten but 2 certainly are.

I work for a construction company (as a drainlayer) so I will nab one of our builders to have a quick look next week.

am keen to have a go but dont want to have my house fall down around me while im at it.

[Laava]

You will be surprised how much destruction you would have to do before your house would fall down! Good on you for getting stuck in tho! You will have it done in no time!

[Swoop]

...put batts in then building paper and replace weatherboards.l
Building paper is no longer acceptable. It provides too much ventilation and water protection, so we must now use plastic crap that seals the moisture in. [/sarcasm]

Rimu? Or totara?

One splits if a fly farts within half a mile, the other requires fission plasma tools to make even a tiny dent, ordinary nails just bend.
The fission-plasma tools will be required for the aged rimu! Pre-drilling is your friend here!

[Laava]

we must now use plastic crap that seals the moisture in. !

What do you mean? What is wrong with Frameguard II or Difflex? They are breatheable membranes both of them.

[Swoop]

Uh-huh...
I wait for the next rounds of the building crisis. Linea weatherboards, polystyrene insulation in wall and ceiling cavities, "breathable" membranes which then require cavity battens as well...

[Jonno.]

Err, what do you think the flaw is in the cavity system?

[Swoop]

Cavities are fine. The crucial element is letting air circulate and getting everything "breathing". NZ has historically had houses without insulation and now there is the great rush to get up to spec with houses from other parts of the world. The typical kiwi approach is to do any job via the cheapest method possible and so we are left with giant cock-ups like "leaky building syndrome"... which is shorthand for "crap designing and building".

The old black building paper worked fine. A nice gap where the upper and lower roll overlapped certainly permitted a bit of ventilation into the cavity yet kept water out. I live in a 40yr old house that doesn't have any membrane, yet is totally rot free. I guess most council's would have kittens if that method was used today...

Simply put we are adding extra, unnecessary layers of complexity and cost onto items that function best when kept simple.
Then James Hardie comes along with their crap products and fu*ks everything up...

[The Stranger]

Uh-huh...
I wait for the next rounds of the building crisis. Linea weatherboards, polystyrene insulation in wall and ceiling cavities, "breathable" membranes which then require cavity battens as well...


Cavities are fine. The crucial element is letting air circulate and getting everything "breathing". NZ has historically had houses without insulation and now there is the great rush to get up to spec with houses from other parts of the world. The typical kiwi approach is to do any job via the cheapest method possible and so we are left with giant cock-ups like "leaky building syndrome"... which is shorthand for "crap designing and building".

The old black building paper worked fine. A nice gap where the upper and lower roll overlapped certainly permitted a bit of ventilation into the cavity yet kept water out. I live in a 40yr old house that doesn't have any membrane, yet is totally rot free. I guess most council's would have kittens if that method was used today...

Simply put we are adding extra, unnecessary layers of complexity and cost onto items that function best when kept simple.
Then James Hardie comes along with their crap products and fu*ks everything up...

Just wondering, are you per chance a builder?

[Jonno.]

Cavities are fine. The crucial element is letting air circulate and getting everything "breathing". NZ has historically had houses without insulation and now there is the great rush to get up to spec with houses from other parts of the world. The typical kiwi approach is to do any job via the cheapest method possible and so we are left with giant cock-ups like "leaky building syndrome"... which is shorthand for "crap designing and building".

The old black building paper worked fine. A nice gap where the upper and lower roll overlapped certainly permitted a bit of ventilation into the cavity yet kept water out. I live in a 40yr old house that doesn't have any membrane, yet is totally rot free. I guess most council's would have kittens if that method was used today...

Simply put we are adding extra, unnecessary layers of complexity and cost onto items that function best when kept simple.
Then James Hardie comes along with their crap products and fu*ks everything up...

If it always worked fine I wouldn't have had a job for the last 2 years :bleh: