Sill Plate

http://go.askthebuilder.com/NewsletterSignupNow founder, Tim Carter describes the importance of a treated lumber sill plate in a wood-framed house.
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Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• Sill Plate
• ACQ treated lumber
• ACQ
• treated sill plate
• treated lumber
• termite lumber
• preventing termites
• Tim Carter
• AsktheBuilder
• Ask the Builder
• home improvement
• home construction

[ChefTips]

Hi Tim.  That foam is genius!

[AsktheBuilder]

@ChefTips It's been around for many years. Simple, but highly effective.

[echtconservative]

Great video! On my (100+ year old) house the sill plate is non-treated lumber with no intact moisture barrier/air seal like the one shown. The house has been treated to prevent termite entry, but is the sill plate doomed to slowly rot from moisture wicking through the old stone foundation?

[AsktheBuilder]

@echtconservative Possibly. Go to my AsktheBuilder website. READ all my columns about borate treatments and wood. Type borate into my search engine. Read all of the columns. Pay attention to the ads you see. The product you need is probably right in front of you.

[mattrospecs]

the foam also prevents rotting of the wood due to the acidity of the concrete

[AsktheBuilder]

@mattrospecs I'd have to strongly disagree with you. For starters, concrete is not acidic, it's alkaline. Secondly, If the concrete and treated plate stay dry - as they should - there is no water present to aid in the growth of fungi. Finally, treated lumber contains chemicals that prevent rot.

[walterbrunswick]

This is a good video! We learned about this in carpentry theory class:)

[usta4070]

My sill plate is rotted out and has a soil like consistency from water dripping off the siding over many years. The rotted portion is about 15 feet long. I don't want to use wood hardener and epoxy to repair it since you can see daylight through the holes when you're in the basement. Does the wood have to be replaced to do it right? The problem was exacerbated when the previous owner built a deck that overlapped the area and even more water contacted the wood.

[ChefTips]

@AsktheBuilder

I wish our builders out here that build in colder climates would use this product. Maybe some do. I have not seen it being used. Thanks for the info!

[MandrewP]

You make good videos. They are clear and informative. Good job!