On May 30, 10:22*pm, Hoosierpopi wrote:
OK, I may be calling the two-by at the bottom of a stick built wall
section the "plate" in error. It may have another name and I'll be
happy to learn it as well if that is the case.

No, you have it right.

But, for now, I have a question as I re-build the awkward work of a
previous owner with whom we can not converse (or trust were we able!).

Tis fellow had "opened up" the kitchen/dining area by simply removing
nine or ten studs and the "plate" they had been attached to. As the
flooring was either added to (there is a layer of three quarter inch
(5-ply) plywood on top of a sub-floor of one-half inch (4-ply)
plywood.) or originally built in two steps. The is, the 4-ply is laid
over teh floor joists but is under the plates for the walls and the 5-
ply lays over that - butted up to the plates in question.

MY CONCERN is that there is insufficient nailing area with half of the
plate covered ny the 5-ply. I was intending to added pieces of two-by
along the plate I uncovered/replaced (I am replacing the wall section
DUFUS removed as it supports the - you guessed it - roof!) which would
provide a hefty back stp for any molding to be added later on.

Then again, is this necessary? Is the three quarters of an inch
standard some how? For some reason, I thought the plates were nailed
to the flooring - but half-inch flooring seems terribly weak and
adding the 5-ply after teh walls were up abut before the house was
finished (as opposed to a retrofit) seemed extraordinary.

If you "know" this two-layer approach is or is not "standard" I would
appreciate the references.

How subflooring is handled is dependent on the type of finish
flooring, code and degree of (in)competence. You didn't mention what
the joist spacing is, so it's a bit unclear whether the 1/2" was an
uninformed decision or a laughable one. I would suggest it doesn't
matter.

On the flip side, their intention all along could have been to put the
3/4" on top for some seemed-like-the-best-way-at-the-time reason.

The 3/4" above the floor is acceptable for backing the wall covering
and whatever trim you decide on. The studs offer plenty of backing
support on their own, so unless you have some unusual high-abuse area,
or are using unusual molding, starting and stopping in unusual places,
you're probably good to go.

The DUFUS also "opened up the Kitchen" by removing the beams that tie
the two walls of the home together and nailing pretty wood (flooring)
to the underside of the roof rafters - OH, Boy do I have work to do to
fix that "improvement" before the walls tilt out! But that's a "whole
'nuther story/"

You say before the walls tilt out - how long ago did the collar ties
(or ceiling joists/beams) come out? You could, of course, replace
what was removed, or you could use cables or rods with turnbuckles
attached between opposing rafters. It keeps that open look, if that's
what you prefer.

R