A new windowsill

Thursday, May 12:

The new wall is starting to take shape with the installation of this windowsill.

I cut four 2x6 studs, each 46" long.   In new construction, these likely would be spaced 16" center-to-center. For my purposes, I just spaced them out equally, with approximately 13" between each.  First I nailed the sill on each end.  Then I nailed each stud at the top, making sure they all crowned in the same direction – to the outside of the house.

When working with old and new lumber, frequently there are surprises.  Due to an uneven wall, and a floor joist that bowed out slightly, the lower ends of these new studs were hanging about 1/4" over the outside edge of the beam that I needed to join them with.   I took some pipe clamps (the red and blue gizmos in the photo) and was able to squeeze them in most of the way prior to nailing them. What little overhang was left I smoothed with a chisel.

Going to this sort of trouble with the pipe clamps and then a chisel likely sounds like obsessive-compulsive behavior. Certainly, most carpenters wouldn't bother with such a small detail.  But i want to avoid any irregular surfaces that might damage the stucco underlayment when I install it.  Also, I enjoy trying to impose my will on crooked wood – to put it back on the straight and narrow.

This is the view from the dining room, showing how I squeezed the studs tight against that edge-joist using the four long pipe clamps.  (I inherited these pipe clamps from my Dad and have used them in all sorts of projects over 40 years.)   Then, I got up on a ladder in the dining room and shot nails through the edge-joist into the bottoms of the four studs to help hold them tight against the joist.

After toe-nailing the studs into the beam, I cut some short blocks and pounded them down flat between each stud – setting them 1/2" back from the edge. 

Why the 1/2" setback?  Because I intend to place a small sheet of 1/2" plywood into each opening so that it forms a flush outside surface with the studs.  This will give me a firm backing as I am troweling stucco against the wall next month.