Distance requirement between sill and grade

[mathew stouffer]

What is the distance requirement between the sill and grade? Thought it was six inches. Lookes like this one leaked a little.

[Mike Lamb]

The foundation should be 4" above grade. The grade should drop 6" over 10'. But...

The trump card is water should not accumulate inside the wall cavity.

[Jerry Peck]

If the wood framing is not pressure treated then it should be a minimum of 8" above the ground.

If the sheathing/siding is not pressure treated then it should be a minimum of 6" above the ground.

[John Kogel]

Does snow slide off the roof into that pocket? That's a lot of water, more than you'd expect from looking at the outside.
The siding should overlap the sill by at least a couple of inches, as indicated by Jerry's minimums. Water splashing on the wall shouldn't be able to pour in under the sill. Something is very wrong there.

[mathew stouffer]

Thanks.

[Jerry Peck]

The sill must be 8" if not pressure-treated. The "framing" is another thing altogether. The "framing that rests on concrete or masonry foundation walls", yes. The "framing", no.


Go look it up. :)

[Jerry Peck]

- R319.1 Location required. Protection from decay shall be provided in the following locations by the use of naturally durable wood or wood that is preservative treated in accordance with AWPA U1 for the species, product, preservative and end use. Preservatives shall be listed in Section 4 of AWPA U1.
- - 5. Wood siding, sheathing and wall framing on the exterior of a building having a clearance of less than 6 inches (152 mm) from the ground.

Otherwise it needs to be protected either by being a naturally durable wood species or preservative treated.

[Jerry Peck]

" . . .and wall framing on the exterior of a building . . ."? Is wall framing on the interior or exterior? What I mean to ask is, is the interior (framing) of a wall, whether an interior or exterior wall, the interior or exterior of the house for the purposes of the quote you provided?:eek:


The wall framing being referenced is the exterior wall framing, not interior wall framing, and the exterior wall framing is the same wall which will have the wood siding and sheathing on it.

Now, if the top of the bottom plate (sill plate) is at 6" above grade, then the "wall framing" will not be required to be pressure treated as it will be above 6" above grade, however ...

... if the top of the bottom plate is at 6" above grade, the wood siding and sheathing *will not be* 6" above grade and will need to be pressure treated.

*IF* the top of the foundation wall is 8" above grade, only the bottom plate would need to be pressure treated.

Amazing how those dimensions work out, isn't it? :)

[Jerry Peck]

JP: It's not the dimensions that concern me, but the definitions.;)

While we are in agreement, the code seems to be a bit fuzzy should one bother to juxtapose your copy of 319.1 with my copy of 319.1 (2):


2. All wood framing members that rest on concrete or
masonry exterior foundation walls and are less than 8
inches (203 mm) from the exposed ground.


When you read 1 through 7 you will see that 2 *only* addresses wood framing on concrete or masonry and it addresses *all* such wood framing, while 5 addresses *only* "wall siding, sheathing, and wall framing" and does so whether or not it is on concrete or masonry.

Note that 2 provides for an extra 2 inches of clearance above grade over what 5 allows for. This is possibly because 5 only address wood on or in the wall, while 2 also addresses the wood which supports that wall and the entire structure above that wood.