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Community and Q&A

Capillary Break or Adhesive?

mritterjr | Posted in General Questions on

I’m getting ready to start framing a bedroom in our basement.  I was planning to use a strip of foam sill sealer beneath my bottom plate.  However, I was also hoping to glue the plate down with construction adhesive.  Am I correct in thinking I probably can’t do both?  Seems like the bond would break easily if the buildup was adhesive / foam / adhesive / plate.  Anyone have similar experiences and derived a good strategy?

Thanks in advance,
Michael 

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Replies

  1. Malcolm_Taylor | | #1

    Micheal,

    Yes, it's an either/or thing. If you want to glue down the partition walls you could use pt lumber for the plates. This would prevent rot, but still allow some moisture movement by capillary action if the slab was damp.

    Any particular reason you want to glue the plates rather than use a mechanical attachment?

  2. mritterjr | | #2

    Malcom,

    Thanks - re, mechanical fasteners, I was planning to glue and use Tapcons. I'm also using PT so belt and suspenders all the way around. Capillary break / PT lumber / adhesive / fasten. House is 60 years old and while there is the likelihood of some moisture in the slab, it's minimal due to interior perimeter drain tile. Actually, I might have just answered my own question and opt to go for the capillary break since parts of the plate will basically rest directly above the drain tile, thus increasing whatever minor risk of wicking there is.

    1. Malcolm_Taylor | | #5

      Michael,

      Save yourself some annoyance and consider using these instead. They are a lot stronger, rated for pt lumber, and much easier to install than Tapcons. https://www.grkfasteners.com/products/caliburn-concrete-screw

      1. mritterjr | | #6

        Yes, will look into these as I love GRKs other fasteners. Thanks for the link.

        1. Malcolm_Taylor | | #7

          Michael,

          I probably sound like a shill for GRK sometimes, but I find them all great too.

  3. Expert Member
    BILL WICHERS | | #3

    I would go with the capillary break over glue. Capillary action might hurt you down the road, but I've never had good luck with long-term use of glue in an application like this, so I don't trust it and don't think it gains you much if anything. I'd use bolts. I'm not so sure tapcons are rated for use with pressure treated wood, and that rating usually has to do with corrosion, so you risk the tapcons rotting away due to the preservatives used in the PT wood.

    Bill

    1. mritterjr | | #4

      Good advice, thanks Bill. I was debating between Tapcons and using a Ramset. Per their website the blue screws are rated for use in PT lumber, just FYI but good point I hadn't thought much about.

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