Sill plate

Last updated
Unusual sill framing in a granary of half-timber construction. Long tenons project through the sill plate. Timber sills can span gaps in a foundation. Chalot tenons mortaises.jpg
Unusual sill framing in a granary of half-timber construction. Long tenons project through the sill plate. Timber sills can span gaps in a foundation.

A sill plate or sole plate in construction and architecture is the bottom horizontal member of a wall or building to which vertical members are attached. The word "plate" is typically omitted in America and carpenters speak simply of the "sill". Other names are rat sill, ground plate, ground sill, groundsel, night plate, and midnight sill. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Sill plates are usually composed of lumber but can be any material. The timber at the top of a wall is often called a top plate, pole plate, mudsill, wall plate or simply "the plate".

Timber sills

An unusual barn in Schoonebeek, Netherlands with interrupted sills, the posts land directly on the padstone foundation Zicht op doorgang van de schuur - Schoonebeek - 20411613 - RCE.jpg
An unusual barn in Schoonebeek, Netherlands with interrupted sills, the posts land directly on the padstone foundation
Norwegian style framing, Kravik Mellom, Norway Kravik Mellom, detalj av fundamentet.jpg
Norwegian style framing, Kravik Mellom, Norway

In historic buildings the sills were almost always large, solid timbers framed together at the corners, carry the bents, and are set on the stone or brick foundation walls, piers, or piles (wood posts driven or set into the ground). The sill typically carries the wall framing (posts and studs) and floor joists.

There are rare examples of historic buildings in the U.S. where the floor joists land on the foundation and a plank sill or timber sill sit on top of the joists. [4] Another rare, historic building technique is for the posts of a timber-frame building to land directly on a foundation or in the ground and the sills fit between the posts and are called interrupted sills.

Stick framing

In modern wood construction, sills usually come in sizes of 2×4, 2×6, 2×8, and 2×10. In stick framing, the sill is made of treated lumber, and is anchored to the foundation wall, often with J-bolts, to keep the building from coming off the foundation during a severe storm or earthquake. Building codes require that the bottom of the sill plate be kept 6 to 8 inches above the finished grade, to hinder termites, and to prevent the sill plate from rotting.

Automobiles

In automobiles, the sill plate is located underneath the door and sometimes displays the make or model of the vehicle.

In naval architecture, sill also refers to the lower horizontal plate (frame) height, above which doors and access opening are fixed.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lumber</span> Wood that has been processed into beams and planks

Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes, including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing. Lumber has many uses beyond home building. Lumber is referred to as timber in the United Kingdom, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, while in other parts of the world the term timber refers specifically to unprocessed wood fiber, such as cut logs or standing trees that have yet to be cut.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barn</span> Agricultural building used for storage and as a covered workplace

A barn is an agricultural building usually on farms and used for various purposes. In North America, a barn refers to structures that house livestock, including cattle and horses, as well as equipment and fodder, and often grain. As a result, the term barn is often qualified e.g. tobacco barn, dairy barn, cow house, sheep barn, potato barn. In the British Isles, the term barn is restricted mainly to storage structures for unthreshed cereals and fodder, the terms byre or shippon being applied to cow shelters, whereas horses are kept in buildings known as stables. In mainland Europe, however, barns were often part of integrated structures known as byre-dwellings. In addition, barns may be used for equipment storage, as a covered workplace, and for activities such as threshing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timber framing</span> Traditional building technique

Timber framing and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs. If the structural frame of load-bearing timber is left exposed on the exterior of the building it may be referred to as half-timbered, and in many cases the infill between timbers will be used for decorative effect. The country most known for this kind of architecture is Germany, where timber-framed houses are spread all over the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seismic retrofit</span> Modification of existing structures to make them more resistant to seismic activity

Seismic retrofitting is the modification of existing structures to make them more resistant to seismic activity, ground motion, or soil failure due to earthquakes. With better understanding of seismic demand on structures and with recent experiences with large earthquakes near urban centers, the need of seismic retrofitting is well acknowledged. Prior to the introduction of modern seismic codes in the late 1960s for developed countries and late 1970s for many other parts of the world, many structures were designed without adequate detailing and reinforcement for seismic protection. In view of the imminent problem, various research work has been carried out. State-of-the-art technical guidelines for seismic assessment, retrofit and rehabilitation have been published around the world – such as the ASCE-SEI 41 and the New Zealand Society for Earthquake Engineering (NZSEE)'s guidelines. These codes must be regularly updated; the 1994 Northridge earthquake brought to light the brittleness of welded steel frames, for example.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joist</span> Horizontal framing structure

A joist is a horizontal structural member used in framing to span an open space, often between beams that subsequently transfer loads to vertical members. When incorporated into a floor framing system, joists serve to provide stiffness to the subfloor sheathing, allowing it to function as a horizontal diaphragm. Joists are often doubled or tripled, placed side by side, where conditions warrant, such as where wall partitions require support.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jettying</span> Medieval building technique

Jettying is a building technique used in medieval timber-frame buildings in which an upper floor projects beyond the dimensions of the floor below. This has the advantage of increasing the available space in the building without obstructing the street. Jettied floors are also termed jetties. In the U.S., the most common surviving colonial version of this is the garrison house. Most jetties are external, but some early medieval houses were built with internal jetties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lath and plaster</span> Finish mainly for interior dividing walls and ceilings

Lath and plaster is a building process used to finish mainly interior dividing walls and ceilings. It consists of narrow strips of wood (laths) which are nailed horizontally across the wall studs or ceiling joists and then coated in plaster. The technique derives from an earlier, more primitive process called wattle and daub.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rafter</span> Supporting structural member in roof construction

A rafter is one of a series of sloped structural members such as steel beams that extend from the ridge or hip to the wall plate, downslope perimeter or eave, and that are designed to support the roof shingles, roof deck, roof covering and its associated loads. A pair of rafters is called a couple. In home construction, rafters are normally made of wood. Exposed rafters are a feature of some traditional roof styles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Framing (construction)</span> Construction technique

Framing, in construction, is the fitting together of pieces to give a structure support and shape. Framing materials are usually wood, engineered wood, or structural steel. The alternative to framed construction is generally called mass wall construction, where horizontal layers of stacked materials such as log building, masonry, rammed earth, adobe, etc. are used without framing.

A tie, strap, tie rod, eyebar, guy-wire, suspension cables, or wire ropes, are examples of linear structural components designed to resist tension. It is the opposite of a strut or column, which is designed to resist compression. Ties may be made of any tension resisting material.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wall plate</span> A horizontal, structural, load-bearing member in wooden building framing

A plate or wall plate is a horizontal, structural, load-bearing member in wooden building framing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Purlin</span> Structural member in a roof

A purlin is a longitudinal, horizontal, structural member in a roof. In traditional timber framing there are three basic types of purlin: purlin plate, principal purlin, and common purlin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bressummer</span> Load-bearing beam in a timber-framed building

A bressummer, breastsummer, summer beam is a load-bearing beam in a timber-framed building. The word summer derived from sumpter or French sommier, "a pack horse", meaning "bearing great burden or weight". "To support a superincumbent wall", "any beast of burden", and in this way is similar to a wall plate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wall stud</span> Component of a buildings wall

A wall stud is a vertical repetitive framing member in a building's wall of smaller cross section than a post. It is a fundamental element in frame building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pole building framing</span> Construction method

Pole framing or post-frame construction is a simplified building technique that is an alternative to the labor-intensive traditional timber framing technique. It uses large poles or posts buried in the ground or on a foundation to provide the vertical structural support, along with girts to provide horizontal support. The method was developed and matured during the 1930s as agricultural practices changed, including the shift toward engine-powered farm equipment and the demand for cheaper, larger barns and storage areas.

In the framing of a deck or floor system, a rim joist is attached perpendicular to the joists, and provides lateral support for the ends of the joists while capping off the end of the floor or deck system. Rim joists are not to be confused with end joists, which are the first and last joists at the ends of a row of joists that make up a floor or deck frame.

The Mitchell – Foster – Young House is a historic house located just outside Oxford, Mississippi off the highway to New Albany. The house, thought to be one of the oldest standing farmhouses in the county, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timber roof truss</span> Structural framework of timbers

A timber roof truss is a structural framework of timbers designed to bridge the space above a room and to provide support for a roof. Trusses usually occur at regular intervals, linked by longitudinal timbers such as purlins. The space between each truss is known as a bay.

A post is a main vertical or leaning support in a structure similar to a column or pillar, the term post generally refers to a timber but may be metal or stone. A stud in wooden or metal building construction is similar but lighter duty than a post and a strut may be similar to a stud or act as a brace. In the U.K. a strut may be very similar to a post but not carry a beam. In wood construction posts normally land on a sill, but in rare types of buildings the post may continue through to the foundation called an interrupted sill or into the ground called earthfast, post in ground, or posthole construction. A post is also a fundamental element in a fence. The terms "jack" and "cripple" are used with shortened studs and rafters but not posts, except in the specialized vocabulary of shoring.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American historic carpentry</span>

American historic carpentry is the historic methods with which wooden buildings were built in what is now the United States since European settlement. A number of methods were used to form the wooden walls and the types of structural carpentry are often defined by the wall, floor, and roof construction such as log, timber framed, balloon framed, or stacked plank. Some types of historic houses are called plank houses but plank house has several meanings which are discussed below. Roofs were almost always framed with wood, sometimes with timber roof trusses. Stone and brick buildings also have some wood framing for floors, interior walls and roofs.

References

  1. Peters, Rick (2000). Framing Basics. Sterling Publishing. p. 13. ISBN   1402711204. Sole Plate: A horizontal 2-by-framing member that is attached directly to the masonry foundation or flooring; also referred to as a sill plate or mudsill
  2. Tolson, Simon (2014). Dictionary of Construction Terms. CRC Press. p. 147. ISBN   9781317912347. Ground plate: a beam forming the lowest level of a timber frame, onto which the uprights are attached. Also known as a ground sill or sole plate ... Ground sill: see Ground plate.
  3. Soule, Richard; Howison, George H. (1891). A Dictionary of English Synonymes and Synonymous or Parallel Expressions. Frederick Warne & Co. p. 196. OCLC   697718720. Groundsill, groundsel: a. sill, ground-plate
  4. Sobon, Jack A.. Historic American timber joinery: a graphic guide. Fourth printing. ed. Becket: Timber Framers Guild, 2010. pp 21, 22.