Intro - Moisture Proofing - Subfloor - Lay Out Walls - Frame Walls - Corners, Doors & Ceilings - Electrical - Heating and Plumbing - Insulation - Finishing Walls & Ceilings
By Murray Anderson
The concrete walls in your basement are not going to be plumb, they will likely have bulges in them, and the corners probably aren't going to be 90 degrees. Your challenge will be to lay out and frame your basement walls so you will end up with plumb walls and 90-degree corners.In most houses, the main support beam is straight, and that can serve as your reference point to start laying out your walls. Drop a plumb bob from the side of the beam and mark the floor directly under the bob. Now measure from the mark to the concrete walls in a number of places to determine where the wall is closest to the mark. Working in from that closest spot, measure in the width of your framing lumber (a 2x4 is 3 1/2" wide) and add an extra inch. That spot will be the position of the back of your bottom plate. You want to leave extra space (at least 1") behind your finished walls to allow air movement.
Follow the same process (measure from the wall to the mark to determine where the distance is closest to the mark), then add 1" plus the width of the framing lumber to determine the location of the walls that run at 90 degrees and mark them. Use a chalk line to join the mark where the walls will actually be positioned.
To ensure your corners are true 90-degree corners, measure back 3 feet where two chalk lines intersect and make a mark. At an approximate 90-degree angle, measure out 4 feet and make a mark on the other chalk line. If you have a true 90-degree corner, the distance from the 3-foot mark on the chalk line to the 4-foot mark on the other line will be exactly 5 feet. If it's not, move the measure until the long measurement is exactly 5 feet. This will form a perfect 90-degree corner. Use the same process to lay out all four corners in your room and your building job will be greatly simplified.
Intro - Moisture Proofing - Subfloor - Lay Out Walls - Frame Walls - Corners, Doors & Ceilings - Electrical - Heating and Plumbing - Insulation - Finishing Walls & Ceilings
Murray Anderson is an experienced freelance writer with articles published in both the United States and Canada. He has written on a wide range of topics, but specializes in home maintenance and how to's.
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