Full Home Remodeling in South Pasadena
A South Pasadena whole-house remodel that begins with structural plywood on the cripple walls and anchor bolts at the sill, then builds the new layout above.
Structural plywood, nailed edge to edge on a close pattern, is the first material we specify for the cripple walls of a South Pasadena house being remodeled throughout. Those short stud walls that lift the floor off the concrete can fold sideways in a strong earthquake when they carry only siding. Sheathing turns each one into a stiff panel, and anchor bolts through the sill keep that panel from sliding off the concrete.
Why plywood on the cripple walls
Ground motion shoves a raised house sideways at its lowest framing. Studs alone offer little resistance to that push, so the cripple walls can lean until the house drops onto the dirt. Plywood sheathing with the nail spacing the engineer sets resists the racking. Vent holes are cut so air keeps moving through the crawlspace, and blocking is added where panel edges meet. Each panel works only if the sill under it is bolted down, so the bolts and the plywood go in during the same stretch of work, while the floor above is open for the remodel and the crew can reach every bay.
Hardware chosen to last
Connectors with a heavy zinc coating hold up against the damp that collects at the top of a foundation, and pressure-treated lumber goes in wherever a new sill touches concrete. On the main floor, the same remodel can add plywood to chosen walls, tied down at each end with hold-downs, so the load path runs unbroken from roof to footing. These choices are drawn on the engineer's sheets and inspected before insulation hides them. The layout the designer wants, an open kitchen or a moved hall, is then framed on a base made stiff from the bottom up.
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Partitions that hold up nothing beyond their own drywall can be removed as part of the remodel permit. A wall under a ceiling or roof load needs a beam, a post at each end and a concrete pad where each post lands. Sheathed walls chosen for bracing stay put, or the bracing moves with them on the engineer's sheet.
Alongside the remodel, as one phase, suits a house that is being opened anyway. The crawlspace is entered for plumbing and wiring, and the bolts and plywood go in before any new wall above is framed. Doing it first and alone is also possible while the remodel waits on drawings. The quote shows the retrofit apart from the finish work.
Expect a flashlight tour under the floor and in the attic. We note anchor bolt spacing, the condition of the sill, whether the cripple walls are sheathed, how the girders sit on their posts, and how the rafters are tied to the walls. Cracks in the foundation are photographed. The designer receives those notes before drawing the new plan.
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Describe the house and what it needs. We look at the structure first and send the quote in writing.