Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
the walls are built, you will bring each pair of wall plates back onto the floor for assembly.
Prior to removing the wall plates from the floor, we need to mark them to assist in their
correct relocation when they are brought back for assembly.
Mark the top of the top wall plates with direction arrows
Mark the top of the wall plate with the direction that the wall plate is facing. Some people
will refer to the north and east while others might refer to the road and a tree. The term
of reference is irrelevant, as long as it is consistent. Draw an arrow on the top of the wall
plate and write a 'N' for north near the arrow, or 'E' for east. Mark the top of each wall
plate in this manner (see Figure 6.5). Normally these marks would be made roughly in
the centre of the wall plate, however if the wall plate is five or six metres long you may
wish to put two marks on it. These marks can be done with pencil or a permanent
marker, as you do not need fine detail for future reference.
Figure 6.5
Markings to indicate the direction of timber framed walls
It is easy to identify the position of the walls on the surface of the floor as the floor is
marked, however, when the walls are standing up in position there is nothing to show the
position for the junction of the walls at the top plates. These required marks will take two
forms.
Mark the wall junctions
Mark the wall junctions so that when you are joining the walls in the upright position it
is easier. First, using a sharp carpenter's pencil draw a line up the side of the wall plate at
the junction of the walls on both sides of each wall (see Figure 6.4). Next, hold a ruler
or square on top of the top wall plate across the junction of the wall plates and draw a
sharp line. If the junction has more than two plates intersecting, draw a line across each
intersection. That is the completion of the relocation markings. Once the walls are
assembled and in position it may be that the roof or ceiling may be fixed to the top of the
walls. If this is the case it will be much easier to mark the position of them while the top
plate is on the floor rather than two and a half metres or so in the air.
