Skip to main content
Stesso

Platform Framing Explained and Demonstrated

1:28
2:12
13.8M views

At 1:28 in

Was old framing better than New? 🤔 #framing #history #balloonframe #timberframe

Watch on YouTube

What happens here

The video transitions to platform framing, the modern method (1920-Now). The presenter shows how platform framing addresses the issues of balloon framing by allowing construction one floor at a time, eliminating the need for excessively long studs. He demonstrates how joists now rest on a double top plate, which provides continuous strength, unlike the old ledger system. This is shown by placing a heavy timber on the top plate, and the structure easily supports it. The use of OSB sheathing, nailed with a nail gun, is then demonstrated, highlighting its role in preventing racking and adding structural integrity. Finally, he addresses modern framing problems: improper flashing and water intrusion. He demonstrates how water from a water hose can penetrate poorly flashed areas (represented by a pipe boot on house wrap), leading to hidden mold and rot over years, concluding that the primary concern is not lumber size, but rather unfixed leaks. The video ends with a summary collapse of all three structures.

Goal: Illustrate the characteristics, advantages, and modern challenges of platform framing.

Tools and materials

  • 2x4 Lumber pieces — Constructing the platform-framed structure, representing studs, top plates, and joists
  • Heavy Timber Piece — Simulating structural load on the double top plate
  • House Wrap K-DRY Wrap — Representing a water-resistive barrier on the exterior of the framed wall
  • Nail Gun Milwaukee — Rapidly securing OSB sheathing to the frame
  • OSB — Representing sheathing on the framed structure
  • Pipe Boot — Demonstrating an improperly flashed penetration point
  • Water Hose — Simulating rain and water intrusion in poorly flashed areas

What they say

Hide

more expensive to supply and platform framing gave us something to work on and build one floor at a time. Now instead of our subfloor counting on a one by ledger, our subfloor and our joists count on the continuous strength of a double top plate. So instead of counting on one massive timber, we count on hundreds of studs to handle downward forces. And even this cheap looking OSB keeps the structure from racking. But even with modern nails, connectors, and tools, now we run into of that can be much harder to find. If your house doesn't get properly flashed, mold and rot can hide in your walls for years. So, I wouldn't be worried about what size your lumber is. I would worry about a leak that was never fixed. Thanks for watching.

Auto-generated from the video audio.