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Post date: May 28, 2015 12:39:25 AM
This house has quite a variety of walls.
Double Outside Walls
The outside walls, and some of the inside walls, are 10 1/2” thick (studs only). They are made of two parallel 2x4 walls, spaced apart the width of a 2x4, which is 3 1/2”. The photo on the left shows an example. The studs are 24” on center, except at corners, windows, doors, and intersecting walls. Even there we have support every 24” for the trusses overhead.
The wall between kitchen and mud room is made of 2x8 lumber (7 1/2” wide). This allows the refrigerator to jut into the wall instead of into the kitchen (and leaves room within the wall for secret hiding places). The photo on the right shows this wall.
8" Wall
6" Wall with Staggered Studs
The wall between garage and kitchen is 5 1/2” (nominally called 6”) with staggered 2x4 studs. This leaves room for all the wiring that comes out of the power panel and communications panel. Photo is on the left.
Thicker walls usually result from using more insulation within the wall. Of course, on interior walls this is not the case. In addition to the reasons above, we have recessed bookshelves, air ducts, and pipes that are wider than the (in the past usual) 2x4 wall. I will have one 2x4 wall - the partition between the shower stall and the toilet. It is not built yet, or I would give you a picture.
We also poured concrete for the entry porch (‘portal’ down here) and the apron leading into the garage. The photo shows this concrete covered with plastic. This is to prevent the surface moisture in the concrete from evaporating before it can combine chemically with the portland cement - which would make it weaker. This porch floor will be tiled with slate eventually.
Entry Portal
Pocket for Lintel
Just for good measure, the last picture on the left shows the pocket we have left for the lintel in a double 2x4 stud wall. The big horizontal beam you see is called a 'header'. This one is in the inner wall, and is big because it supports the roof above. If you squint you can see shelves left and right in the outer wall that will support the lintel - a big, visible beam in the outer wall above a door or window. It is mostly for appearance in this house, because the outer wall is just a skin and not very heavy. We will seal around the wall sheathing before we lift the lintels into position.
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