Issue with popping sounds from interior wall - sill plate related?

[imported_joeyg]

Hey everyone, I’ve got an issue with popping/cracking sounds coming from a area of an interior wall where the floor meets the wall in my son’s bedroom on our second floor. It’s been very annoying for him and us over the years and it was high time I got around to fixing it.

I did my research and identified a possible cause as the sill plate of that wall not firmly attached to the subfloor and joist. With no access to fix this from below, I learned that a possible solution was toe-nailing long screws into the sill plate and subfloor from both sides of the wall, so they tighten the wall to the floor even if the screws don’t catch a joist.

Our subfloor is ¾” plywood. I removed the baseboards today with the intention of getting this taken care of and discovered that this stretch of wall (about 5 feet in length) has shims under the sill plate. I’ve attached a photo.

Is there something I should be doing in addition to toe nailing the sill plate now that I’ve discovered these shims under the sill plate? Should I be fitting additional shims along that stretch of wall prior to the toe nailing?

I’ve googled “shims under interior wall sill plates” and could find nothing. Is this a common practice for builders to do?

Thanks all.

 

[imported_joeyg]

I should have mentioned that the popping sounds happen when you walk around the room within 6 feet or so of the wall in question.

 

[Sparky617]

The only reason I'm coming up with for the shims is the wall was built on the floor and stood up. They needed it to be slightly shorter than ceiling height to allow it to be tipped into place.

The popping could be the wall or the floor sliding on the nails from the sill to the floor, especially if the wall is in-between the floor joists as per your drawing. Though that noise tends to be described as a squeak and not a pop.

I should have mentioned that the popping sounds happen when you walk around the room within 6 feet or so of the wall in question.

 

[imported_joeyg]

Hey Sparky617, thanks for the information but I don't think it's that the builder constructed the wall shorter to fit it under the ceiling height. We watched our house being constructed back in 2005 and the walls on the second floor get fully constructed first then the trusses were installed.

Thinking about the winter our home was built in though I'm starting to think this was related to the weather. It was one of those extreme winters with extreme freezing then a few days later super mild and rainy then dumping back into the freezing weather. I distinctly remember going by the construction site after an ice storm and the framers were on the floor of the second story (no second story walls up yet). They were shovelling snow and chipping ice of of the subfloor of the second story. It's quite possible that they installed the sill plates for the second story walls partially on iced over subfloor. Once the weather got mild again the walls and trusses were up and the gaps in some areas of the sill plates became evident.

 

[bud16415]

I would run some long screws (4”) down thru the bottom plate and thru the drywall at an angle that will be covered with the baseboard. If you can get at it from both sides even better.



Nails will pull out and pop and then reset sometimes. Screws will stiffen it all up.



Should fix the problem.

 

[imported_joeyg]

Thanks bud, I actually did that but first added additional shims next the the three existing ones. That alone seemed to quieten down the wall. I added the screws next and intended to remove them if the sound returned but it hasn't so I think I'm good now.

 

[bud16415]

Thanks bud, I actually did that but first added additional shims next the the three existing ones. That alone seemed to quieten down the wall. I added the screws next and intended to remove them if the sound returned but it hasn't so I think I'm good now.

If you hit the joists you should be good. Depending on how thick the sub floor is the screws could at some point pop. Good chance you got it.

 

[Eddie_T]

I've never seen shimmed sole plates. Could it be that a truss roof was used and the sub floor wasn't precisely level? With load wall construction as I built everything worked out.

 

[imported_joeyg]

If you hit the joists you should be good. Depending on how thick the sub floor is the screws could at some point pop. Good chance you got it.

Ya that section of wall crosses the joists so I was able to hit two of the joists.

 

[imported_joeyg]

I've never seen shimmed sole plates. Could it be that a truss roof was used and the sub floor wasn't precisely level? With load wall construction as I built everything worked out.

No I agree that sill plates are not usually shimmed although I am no expert, my opinion is based on the fact that I could find no reference of shimming interior wall sill plates online. I think it was just a case of poor workmanship on the part of my builder's framing crew,