Exterior wall out of plumb - Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum

Second Look · 09-16-2007, 03:59 PM

Any ideas on how to plumb up an exterior wall? The house was built in 1925. In the first pic, you can see the chain I used to try to pull it in. Chain, cable winch, eybolt through a ceiling joist. It didn't seem to move at all, probably because the joist is attached to the top plate of the wall.

The wall leans about 2" out at the top.

firemike · 09-16-2007, 05:03 PM

Without better pictures, I would say you have the right idea, but you need to separate the top of the wall from the ceiling joists and/or roof framing. You can do this by either looking for the nails and pulling them out, or using a sawzall and cutting them. You might have to use a prybar to separate the wood members enough to get a sawzall blade in there. Once you do that, either a good sledge or the chain ought to move it.

Tmrrptr · 09-16-2007, 05:12 PM

...don't forget... you've also got the fixed dimension goods on the ceiling.

Rock on the lid will prevent ext wall from coming in...
r

nywoodwizard · 09-16-2007, 07:44 PM

First, are there collar ties or ceiling joist ? vaulted ceiling? Does the ridge have a sag? It looks as though the roof has pushed the walls out.If so the ridge may have to be jacked up and you must install some.Don't start pulling on anything until you know the answer.There may be other reasons as well.By you pulling on the wall with winches or whatever you may compound the problem by pushing the other side out or even cause something catastrophic.Do not cut anything, nails or lumber until you know and most important that you also know what you are doing.Be safe

LeeQuality · 09-16-2007, 08:41 PM

If the roof has a ridge and the ridge is sagging, it is putting outward pressure on the wall. If this is the case, I would start by pushing up on the lowest point of the ridge, while pulling in the wall at the same time. Support by connecting both outer walls together in multiple places.

Good Luck.

Second Look · 09-16-2007, 11:09 PM

Those are some great answers. The ridge isn't sagging but the rafters were. 2x4 rafters on 24" centers in the snowbelt (Rhode Island). I cut kerfs in the rafters and sistered them with 2x8's which took most of the sag out.

The ceilings are not vaulted and there are no collar ties (yet).

There's a gap between the finished ceiling and the interior wall, so pulling the wall in isn't going to mess up any plaster work.

The house is a simple rectangular layout with a hip roof, no valleys.

tom m · 09-17-2007, 08:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nywoodwizard

First, are there collar ties or ceiling joist ? vaulted ceiling? Does the ridge have a sag? It looks as though the roof has pushed the walls out.If so the ridge may have to be jacked up and you must install some.Don't start pulling on anything until you know the answer.There may be other reasons as well.By you pulling on the wall with winches or whatever you may compound the problem by pushing the other side out or even cause something catastrophic.Do not cut anything, nails or lumber until you know and most important that you also know what you are doing.Be safe

This is the right approach.

A W Smith · 10-14-2007, 08:37 PM

looks like the roof is projecting out those two inches as well. Be careful not to pull the wall out from under the seat cuts of the rafters. My experience has shown that once a ridge has sagged over the course of many decades it will not jack back up. think of the roof plane as a stressed skin. once it has taken a set the skin of the roof will not return to a true rectangle. even if it is ship lap 1 x 8 (I'm guessing due to the age of the structure) so when you pull in the wall you will likely have to cut back the rafter tails for an even soffit. But keep in mind there will be a slight crown from front to back due to the thickening rafter cross section at the seat cut and tail. You can hide this by crowning the gutter as well with leaders at both ends.