replacing joists and wall plate

[jonnyb]

was just about to replace a ropey old floor with new chipboard flooring but have discovered some of the old joists are rotten (spongy) at the ends and the wall plates are the same. The wall plate is not fixed in any way either and is levelled on slate.

This is a ground floor by the way.

I want to replace the lot, and re-level on bricks.

Should I bed the new joists ion cement and use a dpc? If so, where - between brick and wall plate?

How do I fix wall plate at it's ends? Can I just use L brackets to stop any lateral movement as there's no room for hangers and the load will be taken by the bricks.

 

[Symptoms]

jonny - a picture would have been helpful. Are your joist end positioned in pockets (holes) in the wall with a timber levelling plate buried in the wall and forming the base of the pocket? Or is your wall plate sitting on a ledges along the wall with the joists bearing on these? If you have to build dwarf walls to support the joists one option is to use engineering bricks if introducing a dpc would be difficult. Use treated timber for you structural work and tie-in with galvanised brackets.