How To Find Ceiling Joists In Old House

Often a ceiling stripped of lath and plaster has joists of different widths or is out of level because of walls that have settled and since been reinforced but not raised.

How to find ceiling joists in old house. Out of level is not uncommon in older houses. Most smaller items can be hung pretty securely anywhere on the wall by screwing into the wood lath but for heavy things that weig. How to replace ceiling joists.

One of the things that i am ecstatic about completing now that we are settled in is turning the run down garage that came with it into a fully functional shop. 4 tricks to find studs in a plaster wall. We recently purchased a house.

Ceiling joists are usually installed either 16 or 24 inches on center which means roughly 16 or 24 inches apart. Nailing two 2x4s together will work to span about three joists unless the sag is under a weight bearing wall. Here s how to locate ceiling joists without a stud finder.

Stud finders measure density to find beams so they don t work on popcorn ceilings. A day until they re level. Uniform building standards require precise joist spacing to accommodate sheet type materials like drywall and plywood so finding one joist makes it simpler to find the rest.

Ceilings in old houses are almost never flat or level. Locating them is often straightforward and the methods for finding them are the same whether the ceiling is in the house the garage or even on a covered porch. Using a telescoping magnet to find the nail screw heads was much easier than using a stud finder.

Once you ve located the first one the others are easier to find. Tack a beam under the sagging joists. If you own an old house with plaster and lath walls you may have discovered how utterly useless a stud finder can be.