Impact of surface layers when replacing wall sill

[Erik EA]

Hello!

I have a question regarding the replacement of pressure-treated base plates on a 1970s house.

The house is on a concrete foundation and is made of brick. From what I understand, it is primarily in the exterior walls where the pressure-treated base plates occur and possibly the heart wall.

I have understood that in the aforementioned house construction, you can access both from the outside and inside. I understand that wallpapers and moldings are damaged if accessed from the inside, but how does it work with, for example, kitchens and bathrooms?

I have heard around 1500-2500 SEK/m for base plate replacement but if the surfaces in wet rooms and double bathrooms need to be redone, we are talking about a significant expense and huge impact.

Am I wrong? How do you know this for sure?

Best regards,
Erik

 

[BigR]

Hm, no fun.

Difficult without knowing more details. A wall structure with wooden studs and a brick facade, I assume. Besides the wall's and floor's different materials and dimensions, it's interesting to know how the sill/sill beam is positioned in relation to the concrete slab and the inner floor.

There are two ways to do it.

From the outside. Saw down sections of the lower rows of facade bricks and replace from the outside, then brick up again before the next section.

From the inside you can demolish as much wall and floor as needed to get access. If the sill is low, you have to tear up more of the floor.

In practice, you choose the method that costs/destroys the least. For example, you might prefer the outside approach for a bathroom and choose the inside if you're going to completely renovate the room anyway.

A company would likely calculate on replacing from the outside if they provide a quote.

If there's any job worth doing yourself, it's sill replacement. The materials are cheap, and it's not that difficult either. If you have to ruin all the newly finished surfaces indoors, it's a different story, of course.

 

[Erik EA]

Hm, not fun.

Difficult without knowing more details. A wall construction with wooden studs and brick facade, I assume. Besides the wall and floor materials and dimensions, it's interesting to know how the wall plate / wall beam aligns with the concrete slab and the inner floor.

There are two ways to do it.

From the outside. Saw down sections of the lower rows of facade bricks and replace from the outside, then rebuild before the next section.

From the inside, you can tear down as much of the wall and floor as needed to access it. If the wall plate is low, you have to tear up more floor.

In practice, you choose the method that costs/damages the least. For example, you would preferably go from the outside for a bathroom and might choose the inside if you're going to fully renovate the room anyway.

A company will probably calculate on replacing from the outside if they quote.

If there's any job that's worthwhile to do yourself, it's replacing the wall plate. It's cheap materials and not so difficult either. If you have to break all newly made interior surfaces, that's another matter.

Thanks for your input! But is there anything specific mentioned about the bathroom or kitchen when replacing a wall plate? I've googled almost obsessively without finding any direct information. Everyone mentions surfaces like wallpaper and moldings, but no one mentions the most critical, i.e., the bathroom.

Even when I check companies specializing in wall plate replacement, none mention the bathroom. Thus, the offered quote is difficult to assess if you don't know the scope from the beginning.

And if a bathroom has been renovated where there is a pressure-treated wall plate, is it reasonable to assume that it was also replaced then, or does that seem unlikely?

 

[BigR]

It's really difficult to say anything without a construction description. If you're replacing the sill from the inside, you'll obviously need to replace the bathroom, so that's an easy decision. Replacing it from the outside might work, but there's a risk of puncturing the waterproofing. I would take that chance any time.

If the bathroom has been renovated, I wouldn't assume the sill has been replaced. You could cut inspection holes from a neighboring room, and if the sill has been replaced in the bathroom, it should be visible.