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ohchuck

strengthen my wood-frame house

10 years ago

I am seeking general advice on how to strengthen my wood-frame house. More and more drywall seams and cracks are starting to show. More and more noises at night from the walls. Pretty much every square foot of floor, upstairs and down, creaks or pops when stepped on.

Follow-up to this post: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/repair/msg0621064627972.html

I will start by removing siding and putting up OCB board (or should I use plywood?) where there is currently only rigid insulation. If I find it easier to put up plywood from inside, and cover it with drywall, is that okay? I don't imagine that I can just get away with sandwiching on top of the existing drywall, can I?

I would love to put up diagonal bracing, because I imagine that would give me the most support for the effort, but I have no clue how to do that without "building out" the wall to accommodate the new wood.

Any ideas how I can make my crapilly built house more sturdy?

This post was edited by ohchuck on Sun, Dec 8, 13 at 17:13

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