Thanks to all for the replies. We ended up going with the suggestion to use
Tapcons to secure the pressure treated horizontal 2x4 to the wall, and we
used "sill seal" that we had on hand between the 2x4 and the wall. We
placed the Tapcons every 16 inches in the vertical mortar joints between the
cinder blocks. Then we used a nailing gun to attach the second regular wood
2x4 to the first pressure treated 2x4. It all worked perfectly and that
part of the job is done.

Regarding the suggestions about building out the wall using 2x6's etc., it's
a little hard to explain here exactly why we didn't do that. But, the brief
version is that the sewer pipe will not be part of an exposed wall.
Instead, kitchen base cabinets will be in front of the sewer line in a
kitchen, and a bathroom tub/shower will be in front of the the sewer line in
a bathroom. And, yes, there are fire stops at the top of the walls etc.

Again, thanks for the ideas. The Tapcons worked great.


"RogerT" wrote in message
...
I am looking for suggestions on how to attach a 2x4 to a cinder block wall.

Here is the scenario. The 2x4 will be running horizontally on the
interior of a basement wall below the ground level. It will be attached
flat to the wall similar to a ledger board. The wall is made of cinder
block (not cement block I assume because the property was built in 1948).
The basement was completely gutted down to the exterior walls and all new
walls were framed out with 2x4's for a complete remodel of a basement
level apartment. All of the exterior walls were framed out with 2x4's with
the studs about 1/4-inch away from the wall and secured at the top and
bottom with top plates and bottom plates.

However, about 15 feet of one exterior wall has a 4-inch PVC sewer line
running along the bottom of the wall about 6 inches above the floor level.
So, the wall above that sewer line cannot be attached to a bottom plate
along the floor because the sewer line is in the way.

What I want to do is run that wall down to a wood "bottom plate" that is
actually attached to the wall instead of to the floor. To do that, I want
to attach a horizontal 2x4 flat to the cinder block wall with anchor bolts
of some sort. Then nail a second 2x4 on top of that to create the new
"bottom plate" for the wall above the sewer line.

Since the 2x4 will be attached to the wall below the outside ground level,
I was thinking of using some type of rubber or similar strip to try to
isolate the wood from making direct contact with the cinder block to avoid
moisture and termite problems. And, maybe I would use pressure treated
wood for that one 2x4 -- but I'm not sure about that idea.

So, one question I have is what to use between the wood and the wall --
rubber, tar paper, or what?

And, the second question is how to attach the first horizontal 2x4 to the
wall. I know there are different types of anchors that could be used.
One possibility would be anchors that go through the cinder block where
the hollow part is and anchor from the back. Another possibility would be
anchors that just get drilled into the cinder block but make sure that
they go in where the block is solid all the way through.

Any suggestions or ideas would be appreciated -- especially regarding what
type of anchors to buy and use to secure the 2x4 to the wall.

Thanks.