We’re framing a country walkout ranch right now. It has 9′ first floor ceilings. Of course they sent out 104 5/8″ precut studs. Also of course, they don’t send out 9′ foam sheathing….they send out 1/2″ x 4′ x 8′ foam sheets.
So anyways, I’m watching all my proteges and I’m wondering if they know the best way to sheet this wall that I built. It was a 28′ long wall with just studs (my kind of wall!).
The boogerer’s question of the day regarding the foam is: do you precut your pieces or lay them and cut them in place? If you precut your pieces what are the dimensions for the 9′ (nominal sized remember) wall?
I’ve got a few crusty old milkbones to offer for the boogerer’s prize.
blue
Warning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information…don’t listen to me..just ask Gabe!
Replies
Six sheet horizontal, one sheet vertical with the top fillers pre-ripped and run horizontal to finish it off.
I need exact measurements on the pieces for the cut man.
Warning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
What's covering the 1/2" foam sheathing?
Is this foam sheathing for insulation value or structural?
Foam is never structural around here.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
Quiz #2.
On the same house, I had to frame the garage walls. Instead of foam, we used all osb. They shipped 4x8x1/2" sheets.
The stud length was 121", with a single bottom plate and a double top plate. My question again is: do you lay all the full sheets and then nail and cut in place the rest? or precut the pieces? If you precut, what are the exact size pieces that I should tell my cut man to cut?
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
NO fair deleting!
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
Hope I understood the question right. Whole sheets vertical[no cuts] and an 13 in.rip on top,if you keep your sheathing flush at top plate.Blocking at 95 1/4 from floor. Metal or wood let-in bracing.I DIDN'T DO IT...THE BUCK DOES NOT STOP HERE.
Question #2....29 1/2 in rips on top.How long is garage wall? Need length to answer if you'd cut a vertical pc.I DIDN'T DO IT...THE BUCK DOES NOT STOP HERE.
That's a real good question FramerT.
The garage wall was the same length....28'.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
Blue,
I would put two bottom plates on and make the studs 119 1/2".
Cut seven pieces 2' - 6 1/4" to give you the same overhang, although you could let the top hang down a little on the cap. Use two full sheets for this and find a piece of scrap for the last piece. If the top hangs an inch below the cap, you could possibly make some minor adjustments to make the last piece out of the scrap from the two full sheets; but this is getting way too in-depth.
Since this is osb, I would probably cut the top pieces in place.Les Barrett Quality Construction
I'm curious Les...what would your motivation be to cut the studs at 119.5". The extra plate seems like wasted lumber...so your going to have to come up with a real good explanation for me to overule one of my most important tenets....."NEVER USE MORE LUMBER THAN NECESSARY!"
BlueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
Long day
Close to midnight
Started to prepare argument
Too tired to deal with it completely tonight
Rest assured - you won't have to overhaul any of your tenets.
I am going to catch some sleep.Les Barrett Quality Construction
Rest well, I'm looking forward to your input.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
28 ft wall
9 ft tall
Foam sheathing.
>>>7 sheets standing up (no cuts if you didn't booger the layout!!)
Leave the bottom off cause it will have to overlap the floor system and if you hang 1/2" foam down off the bottom of the wall before you stand it I GAURANTEE some Idiot will step on it.
Go back after the wall is stood and put in the proper size pieces.
If you do this any other way you really are boogerin!!!
At least that what Gabe told me!!!
;P
Mr T
I can't afford to be affordable anymore
Ok after a little thought.....
wall finishes out to ~109-1/8
nonstructural sheathing
7 vertical sheets left 1" down from top.
1 sheet ripped to 4 equal pieces (12" nominal)
rips placed horizontally at bottom cutting last one off at 4' to make 28' total.
Even Gabe could figger this one out!
Mr T
I can't afford to be affordable anymore
Exaclty Mr T..you get the milkbones.
I doubt that Gabe would figure that out. He'd be calling me a hack for skipping that one inch...
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
We don't cover the floor system. That gets a six inch batt on the inside and the little 1/2" foam doesn't add much. The floor system without the foam is still significantly higher r value than the 3.5" walls with 1/2" foam.
Yes...I'm a boogerin fool.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
Blue,I don't know where or what thread that I read this in that you wrote someone gave you Sh!t about using a nail gun to frame. Is this true and if so what planet was this person from?Joe Carola
Joe, when I switced over to guns in the early nineties, I was criticized by a lot of people including one superintendent. I used to carry a Senco engineering study that proved that gun nails had superior holding power over hand pounded sinkers. I had to produce that several times to prove that gun nails were okay to use in framing.
It's the same story over and over. Carpenters at first refused to embrace the power saw. Painters fought the roller....then later fought spraying. Plumbers are still fighting PVC. There's still people that think trusses will fail. I had a teacher in carpenter school that warned us.."alll the trussed roofs will be failing in the future....they should outlaw them".
Now, guys like me fight things like speed squares....but I'm right...they retard mental growth.
Some things never change.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
OK, I'm back.
You will need at least 22 studs, more likely 24.
With 22, figure you are cutting off nearly two feet from each 12-footer to get 121 inches- let's just say two feet. So you end up with 44 feet of scrap, although you may be able to use it elsewhere. If you cut 22 10-footers to 119.5 and use a couple of fourteens for an extra plate, you have saved enough lumber to make it worthwhile.
Also, on my previous solution, I gave a solution for for a slab situation. Obvious to me in the clear light of a new day is that there is a deck to consider. If you have 9 1/2" for joists, 1 5/8" for the mud sill, and 3/4" for the subfloor, you get 12", or roughly one extra foot, depending upon where your mudsills came from. I see a lot of variation in mudsill dimensions. The extra 1/8" is for the inevitable growth that takes place when you put rough lumber together.
Having said that, I would probably install blocking at the bottom and install foam or osb at the top of the wall. I would then rip five pieces of sheathing or osb at a time to the remaining length and fill it in after the wall is standing.
Les Barrett Quality Construction
Edited 11/20/2004 11:20 am ET by Les
Les....I was anticipating that answer regarding the studs. I kinda knew you were figuring on using 10' studs instead of 12'ers.
I like guys that think like you....I gave that a moments thought too before I started cutting the 12's.
I'm kinda funny though...I usually know where the drops are goiing before I cut the studs to length. In this case, I needed lots of 21" blocks for our overhang. So....before I cut the studs to length, I mark the 21" blocks, cut them first, then cut the remaining 2" of scrap and let it drop. The pile of precise 21" blocks will wait patiently till I get the wall framed. Here's a pic of those 21" blocks that came off the ends of the 12' studs.
I also cut some of the drops in half for the brick rack blocks in that picture.
I mentioned earlier to Piffin, we don't foam over the floor systems. Instead of 1/2'" foam, they just put 6'' batts which deliver a high enough r value without the foam. That meets our Michigan energy code.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
I thought you might have another reason for the 121" cuts.Les Barrett Quality Construction
I mentioned earlier to Piffin, we don't foam over the floor systems. Instead of 1/2'" foam, they just put 6'' batts which deliver a high enough r value without the foam. That meets our Michigan energy code.
blue,
do you use osb to fill in the rim joist ? why not just finish it with the foam ?
carpenter in transition
Tim, we frame the rim joist out flush with the foam.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
Which all brings to mind . . . if structural strength is the issue, do you lay sheathing vertically or horizontally. (not foam mind you, ply or OSB).
I heard that vertical is stronger. Something about more nails per sheet.
It seems logically that running against the stubs (horizontally) would be stronger.
???
I did a lot of investigating on OSB strength after IMERC questioned the OSB orientation of some of the headers in a SIP wall I posted a while back. Differing axis strength on OSB was news to me back then.
The panels have a greater strength in their length than in their width. For optimum compression force resistance the panels get oriented vertically - for optimum shear resistance the panels get oriented horizontally. The key word is optimum - most panel applications will not be adversely affected by either orientation.
I believe that is where the word oriented in OSB comes into play. It is my understanding that the strands are oriented in line with the long side, making them stronger in that direction. Considering how long the product has been out, I doubt that it makes much difference. I know that I always put a nailer behind every seam, which would make horizontal placement more labor and material-intensive. On roofs, we lay them horizontally, which also makes sense when you analyze the seams and the overlap. I don't know if it makes sense when you consider the strand orientation or not. I have built some shear walls in larger houses that had windows almost the size of the wall element they occupied. The header went all the way across. I don't know if this really makes sense. I wouldn't mind have a better understanding of the principles behind shear walls and exactly which forces are being considered.Les Barrett Quality Construction
Go to http://www.shearwalls.com and buy the book. I have about 5 or 6 copies and found that it really helped me (us) in our understanding of how a shear wall works.
It is stronger to put sheathing vertical if the edges all can be nailed vs sheathing installed horizontally without blocking. If the sheathing is installed horizontally and ALL panel edges are blocked, then that is stronger than vertical sheathing with ALL panel edges blocked.
Tim...you taught me something today! Thanks...I hope its true....
Can anyone verify Tims assertion?
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
It may be possible that the sheet will be stronger set vertically with all edges nailed, but that does not mean the wall will be stronger.
If such an orientation was true, a floor would also be stronger with sheets running with the joists and blocked on the ends.
You are talking about different kinds of strength here. Aligning sheathing with the studs adds to shear strength, but will still alow flex between studs more than perpendicular application, niot that that is important unless you are using vinyl siding and when the hiouse gets vinyl, who is concerned with quality anyway?
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
Tsk, tsk...a low quality vinyl job is a lot lower quality than a high quality installation of vinyl.
You shouldnt stick your noses up so much against those that prefer vinyl....unless your willing to trim...
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
Stuck my foot in it there, didn't I You'll have to learn how to frame all over again when you leave the state and get somewhere that shearwalls and tie ins are required. You use any housewrap or tarpaper over the sheathing and that box frame? Or do you just let the water that gets behind the siding rot out the floor system?
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
Piffin, I definitely would have to learn how to frame if I ever leave Michigan...if I frame...which I wouldn't.
If I had to sheath all the way down to the mudsill, I'd order 9' sheets and hang them over while the wall was being framed. I'd put the wrap on too, also hanging it down.
The Michigan code now requires a wrap on all exterior walls. It used to only require wrap behind brick, but it changed this year.
Actually though, it is quite rare to have siding down near the foundations. 90% of all houses have brick on at least the first floor. I know of one sub that is using hardie on the first floor...and the houses aren't selling.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
Now it all makes more sense. That brick stabilizer...At least you don't suffer from that problem they have south of you a bit where they place brick with no weepholes and no tarpaper wrap of any kind, then try to replace the sheathing fom the inside after ten years!
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
Gordsco: In some ways you make an interesting point about, "if vertical were better than a floor application would also be done parralel with the joist". However, the load application is different. In a wall, I would think, you are interested in racking. This is not the main issue in a floor. The same question could be raised for roof sheathing. There I would think racking would be an issue. ????
To me running across framing members in all cases would be better, but I read that in wall framing vertical was better. More nails, perhaps?
Not claiming to know any answers here, that is why I asks. As typcial of forums such as this, you get six differenct answers, and have no way to know who has the knowledge.
Jack, I run all my osb horizontal on walls. The wind isn't going to rack it. It won't meet shearwall requirements, but we don't have the need for shearwalls.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
I watched some show a couple of years ago about the strength of plywood.
The question was:
Is plywood stronger along the 8' ?
Across the 4'?
Or is it just as strong both ways?
After the test was done, it was conclusive that plywood under load, sagged less across the 8' length than the 4'.
So did MDF, and suprisingly, drywall. I can't remember if they tested OSB.
I always run sheets horizontal on walls, whether its plywood or drywall. and I always stagger the sheets as much as I can. Having a plywood or drywall joint from floor to ceiling is just begging for a bowed stud IMO. The only time I break from that tradition is on a curved wall, because, as I explained earlier, it is easier to bend sheet goods standing up.
Blue,
I'll look for some info about that, but I took the "Common Structural Myths and Misconceptions" class at JLC LIVE about 2 weeks ago in Porland, OR and that is what the speaker mentioned. I've heard that elsewhere too, but I'll look for it in writing.
I suspect that the reason horizotal w/ blocking is stronger comes from the blocking kinda like bridging it helps transfer the racking load from the top row of sheathing to the bottom row.
plus it effectively shortens the studs reducing thier slenderness ratio which increases their compresive strenght and bending resistance.
How's that for pulling some engineering out of my arse??
Mr T
I can't afford to be affordable anymore
Hehehehe...I was thinking the same thing myself Mr T! Great minds think alike!
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
I run all my osb horizontally...for two reasons. Sheet stock should be run perpindicular to framing members and it's easier to hit the studs with the stapler because I'm only have 4' to traverse and less chance of running off course.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
Second what Tim said. Your wall sheathing is contributing more as a shear element than as a flexural element. Unlike subfloor.
That is why when Jack and I frame his dad's garage, we'll use the 7/16 OSB on the 97.125" wallframes (framed using precuts) vertically, not run horizontally. All edges will be nailed.
Just wall height, 8 sheets
6 - 4'x8'
2 - 4'x4'
7 - 13-1/8'' x 4'
that would leave a 4-1/8'' x 4' scrap___________________________________________
Common sense is a gift from God that cannot be taught.
send it back and get the right foam.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
Yup. I'm reaching for the phone. Send me what I ordered. Now. I must not be a framer. (Oh, yeah, I'm not!)
"If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and a man." - Mark Twain
Does it matter that you are sheating with foam? Or is the puzzle the same whether you are sheathing with CDX or OSB, as long as the sheet size is 48 x 96?
If it is just a case of doing 48 x 96 on your wall that is 28-0 wide x 109-1/8" high, I would split one sheet to nominally 48 x 48 halves, then brick lay two courses of sideways sheets up to the 96" level (that is seven sheets so far), then use two more full panels, ripping three at 13-1/8 x 96, then taking a 13-1/8 x 48 rip from the last panel.
My leftover piece is 48 x 82 3/4".
Edited 11/19/2004 5:31 pm ET by Gene Davis
Place 7 full sheets vertically, Precut seven pieces from the eighth sheet. If you use a utility knife to cut the foam, the blade width is inconsequential. Cut each piece about 13 3/4" (six cuts). This allows you a 5/8" overhang at the sill plate and does not take into account whether the perpendicular walls also have foam. If so, there would be an extra inch to deal with there for a wall which would be foamed at 28' - 1" and the sheathing would be 28' - 2". You could probably let the extra inch of sheathing be taken up under the corner trim.
Les Barrett Quality Construction
Edited 11/19/2004 6:22 pm ET by Les
Awright....enough of this already!
Obviously there isn't a "right" way nor a "wrong" way. On my jobs, just like y'all, I try to teach the boys "my way"....which may or may not be right, depending on your point of view.
Keeping in mind that I'm ALWAYS trying to reduce material waste and also to reduce installation time...this is what I would like to see done.
The first wall was the 9' wall, which actually measures 9-1 1/4". I run all the bottom sheets vertically...so that uses exactly 7 sheets....IF...the stud layout co-operates (it did). That leaves the top section of the wall, which measures 13.25". But....I don't want the foam ripped exactly to 13.25" because I can only get 3 pieces out of a full sheet. I instruct my rookies to cut the sheet into 12 strips, which can be done in two rips, if they want to precut the sheet (rip in half, stack, and rip in half again). After laying the 12"strips, it will leave a 6' drop.
That's the foam wall.
What do I/we do with the 6' drop? I use that piece FIRST...on the next wall...when I get to the top section again. By doing this, we create less drops and eventually if I'm working alone, I will end up with only one drop at the end.....along with small (less than 16") scraps.
I used to figure the exterior wall dimensions and rip all the 12" rips before we started framing the walls, but I don't do that anymore. I use the "cut as you go" method instead.
Note: that small 1 1/4 void is always left exposed on 8' walls, so I figure it is okay to leave the same exposure on 9' walls.
blue
ps The osb wall is next....Warning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
I install the same way, except that unless you do not install a let-in brace, you have to o.s.b. the corners and after four full sheets of foam.
Also, I put the 12" rips on bottom. I first pop a line at 8'-1 1/2" from the top of the wall. The 1 1/2" left at the top will allow room for the rafters. After I pop the line I install the 12"x8' rips along the bottom. Then I can sit the 8' piece on top of the rip. I nail every thing from the ground that I can reach, then climb on top of the wall and nail the rest.
In some parishes (counties for the rest of the country) we have the fire block behind every joint. So, by putting the blocks at 12" up I can reach them easy and make the plumbers mad with a single effort.
Kyle, in our parish (we call them countys but I'm willing to learn new terms too!), we aren't required to put blocks in on 9' walls, so the blocking isn't a factor. We use simpson t braces to "windbrace" the walls if were foaming it.
We also install all of our sheating before we raise the wall...so the order of installation of the pieces isn't really a factor.
If I was sheathing the wall after standing it, like your locality does, I would follow your regimen too. It makes a lot more sense to install the blocking at a level that does not require ladders!. I would make one slight adjustment to your system however. Instead of snapping a line (I despise line snapping!), I would simply install the 12" rips flush with the bottom, then install the blocks centered on the rip edge! That how I do it when I'm installing blocking on wall greater than 10'.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
The reason I posed this question is because yesterday, I had to temporarily team up with my best framer Ben on the garage wall. He's a hard worker...dedicated...but too stubborn to think things through. He's under 30...so he tends to rush headlong into things without taking the long view.
After we framed the wall, and we started sheathing it, he asked me...."you wanna carry the sheets or nail it?" I grabbed the stapler. He layed it. After we got the easy osb laid...he automatically started laying the top pieces horizontally (I should mention that we never precut anything...we tack everything in place and cut it in it's final resting place). Of course, when he automatically laid it....I resisted and told him I think it might be better to lay it vertically. I pulled out my tape....measured...and mentioned that I'd rather lay it vertically because I could get three pieces out of each sheet.
A few minutes later Ben says "your right....you can get 12' per sheet...I can only get 8'!".
That's the difference between an old buck and a young buck...but the real time savings come from not having to handle, store, sort, separate all the big chunks of wasted sheetstock.
The other thing I'll say is that I've noticed a lot of big sheet stock storing on recent jobs.....I really think I need to give everyone a sheet stock lesson again! It's hard though....I really want all the kids to be teaching me something new....
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
After laying the 12"strips, it will leave a 6' drop.
That's the foam wall.
I don't know blue, help me out here.
28ft wall. Four 8ft long 12" wide rips out of a 4x8 sheet to fill the remaining top foot of the wall after the 7 verticle sheetings are placed.
I keep getting a 4ft length of the12" wide strip left as a drop.
be a bean counter
Oh yeah...Rez....you can tell I'm not a bean counter! I'd have a 4' drop!
But..the fact remains...I use that 4 footer first on the next wall!
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
I'd just use that 4 ft. drop piece as my seat cushion at lunch time!I DIDN'T DO IT...THE BUCK DOES NOT STOP HERE.
The garage wall poses a different situation. Typically I lay all the osb horizontally, because structurally it's stronger, and I have an easier time hitting all the framing members when I'm stapling it off. I staple each sheet as I lay it.
Again...the stud layout co-operated...and I could start with a full sheet. After laying the full sheets, the last one cuts in half and it still remains exactly 7 sheets.
Its this top piece that causes me to rethink my strategy. If I lay the next sheets horizontally, I'll only be able to get one piece out of each sheet because I need to fill 29.5". That would leave a 22.5" drop. In fact...it would leave THREE drops.......HORRORS! Of course since I don't want to handle, store, and try to find uses for three drops, I look to see what happens if I cut the pieces vertically. I can get three pieces per sheet...so naturally I cut them up that way. I lose 7.5" per sheet (header filler?) and I have to cut two sheets up to get the first 24' done. But the wall is 28' long and I'm still short! That's okay...I just continue on cutting the 29.5" off the next full sheet and save the drop for the rest of the garage....I'll be needing the same size top fillers for the rest of the walls!
I don't know how my ways compare with yours...and I'm sure most of us out there in the field would make wise choices as compared to trying to figure out this little test....I wasn't trying to trick anyone...but I'm sure most thought this was some sort of trick question.
This post is long enough.....final comments in the next one.
blueWarning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!