Greetings All,
I have a couple remodeling questions and I’m hoping some of you might be able to help me out….
1.) When installing an exterior patio door, if I am meant to have a certain sized rough opening, is there supposed to be subflooring under the door as it is in the rest of the room or is the door meant to be placed directly onto the bottom plate with no subflooring under it?
2.) When enclosing a room, such as a garage or basement, that has a concrete slab floor, what is typically done to the slab before placing any flooring in the room. Words that come to mind are sealing, painting, vapor barrier, etc. ???
3.) If you enclose a garage, for example, by replacing the garage door with a wall, what are the height requirements for electrical boxes in the newly enclosed room. Must they still be high on the wall such as in a garage, kitchen, or bathroom, or can they then be low on the wall such as in a normal living room or bedroom?
Thanks a bunch for any insights.
Gerald
Replies
1> The prehung exterior doors such as your patio door are installed on the subfloor, with a pan flashing under it.
Which brand are you thinking of?
2> A lot depends on what type of flooring you are installing, and what other prep work was done before the slab was poured,and ifd moisture problems are evident. Another varibale is whether there is radiant heat in slab.
3> either location
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1> The prehung exterior doors such as your patio door are installed on the subfloor, with a pan flashing under it.
Piffin,
Not all doors sit on the subfloor. Remember this thread years ago?
http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=26195.1
Joe Carola
I missed that thread somehow, Joe. I did have zeluck speced by archie once, but the owner looked at thirty grand per unit zelucks cf ten grand per unit Marvins and said, buy the Marvins.
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
The bottom plates are cut out at door openings and the door goes on the subfloor. Residential exterior doors swing into the room, in most cases. The door needs to clear the finished floor as well as any scatter rugs or mats. Most doors come with a 3/4" filler board attached to the bottom and this sits on the subfloor. Essentially this jacks up the door to allow for the finished flooring. There are always exceptions but this is the common approach. If you were placing the door directly on concrete and only using a thin floor like vinyl, you would not need to jack up the door. In fact, doing so may cause a tripping hazard.
Sill pan flashings are a good idea. If water finds it's way under the door, this will protect the subfloor and framing from water damage and rot. Water can get in a lot of places as time passes. Any joint, such as where the exterior casing attaches to the jamb, or at the threshold, jamb connection, also some adjustable thresholds, may leak as caulking or sealers get old and fail.
Generally, you don't have to do anything to the concrete before placing a finished floor. This depends on the condition of the concrete and the jobsite conditions. If there are drainage issues, the floor sweats or there are cracks where moisture comes up, those issues should be addressed. Certain things may be done depending on the type of finished floor you want to put down. You could put down vinyl flooring directly on the concrete but you wouldn't want to put carpet directly on it. Moisture will wick through the concrete and transfer to the carpet. The solution may be as simple as putting down some poly or using a non permeable pad.
You can put electrical outlets anywhere you want. They are often elevated in a garage for ease of accessibility.
Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
Thanks for your feedback everyone.
The project in question involves replacing a couple sliding glass doors with french patio doors and enclosing a garage by building a wall where the garage door used to be.
The intended use for the garage area will be as a family room. The slab floor is in pretty good condition, pretty much free of cracks and there is no visible moisture that I can see. It is incredibly cold though. Very cold to the touch and I imagine alot of heat is being absorbed into the slab. There is no radiant heat in the slab.
In the room where the patio doors are being installed there is a plywood subfloor and then there is a particle board floor over that about 1/2 inch thick. On top of the particle board is carpet pad and then carpeting. I'm wondering specifically if the area where the door is to be installed should have the 1/2" particle board there or if that should be cut away and then the door placed on the plywood subfloor directly. My instinct tells me that the floor should be at the same height under the door as in the rest of the room (without the carpet pad and carpet of course) so therefore the 1/2" particle board flooring should extend under the door jamb as well? That's what I'm trying to confirm.
My general belief about outlets in garages and kitchens and baths was that the outlets MUST (by building code) be raised four feet off the ground, not for ease of access but for safety concerns in a space where moisture may be present. Perhaps I am wrong in this belief? In any case, the room, after being enclosed, is no longer a "Garage" and so I wonder if it is OK now to place outlets at normal outlet height as they are in all other living rooms, bedrooms, etc.
Thanks again for your reply's. Any insights or or tips are welcome and appreciated.
Gerald
Oh, and the intended flooring to be placed over the concrete slab will be carpeting....
Gerald
1.) When installing an exterior patio door,
Well, it depends upon the door, then the construction/exposure etc. A good place to start is the door manufacturer's installation detailsm which are tyoically online.
You probably need a pan flashing under the door, but that can depend on how the door's threshold is designed (might need more than just a bent pan). The elevation changes from inside to outside matter, too.
2.) When enclosing a room, such as a garage or basement, that has a concrete slab floor, what is typically done to the slab before placing any flooring in the room.
Well, garage conversions are significantly different than basement finish outs--if only from the difference n preperatory work. Your location and climate can matter, too. Much depends upon what your AHJ requires (and some can be very picky about these things).
A "used" garage (vice one only used for storage) can also present challenges. The height of the floor in the rest of the house can help establish how "much" flooring will go in for the new floor, too.
3.) If you enclose a garage, for example, by replacing the garage door with a wall, what are the height requirements for electrical boxes in the newly enclosed room. Must they still be high on the wall such as in a garage, kitchen, or bathroom, or can they then be low on the wall such as in a normal living room or bedroom?
That's back to your specific AHJ. Requirements for bedrooms (or spaces ajudicated to be potential bedrooms) will have some specific NEC requirements. Spacing of electrical outlets tends to be every 10-12' horizontally, and 12" AFF, and no more than 8-9 per circuit (with many, many, many more variables than that simple description details--you need licensed electrical help for that).
Sadly, the answer for your question is "it depends."
have you checked your town/city's Planning & Development or Building Department or Engineering web page yet? This can have a wealth of information to help you (sometimes in a negative fashio of "thou must have this or that to procede." Do not forget to check for County & State requirements, too--they all vary, and not always in uniform ways.