how to protect osb subfloor from rain

Fastener Holding Compared to PS-2 panels, AdvanTecâ¦ If you have seriously standing water on an OSB or plywood deck, try to find the deepest parts and drill a 3/4 inch hole there to let it drain. Plywood, or even OSB, has its strength running with its length. Mockâs crew had to shovel snow off the deck then squeegee water off it over the course of the build. Flat subfloors should be treated during construction in order to help prevent swelling and delamination. All of Tim's past columns are archived for free at www.AsktheBuilder.com. The wood rot you're familiar with happens in the presence of water and oxygen. It is important to properly space OSB and Plywood panels to allow for natural expansion as they adjust to the moisture in the environment. Step 3 Apply an outdoor, latex-based paint to plywood in order to provide more protection that will have a more aesthetic appearance than traditional stains. Step 1 - Make Sure Your OSB Is Waterproofed. The OSB floors should be swept clean each day after work concludes. How can I protect the OSB sheathing from rotting in the rain? If it's not too late, I strongly recommend a replacing as much of the wood in your design as possible--especially close to grade level--with masonry. To avoid buckling, subfloor panels should be spaced with a 1/8-inch gap at all edges and ends to provide room for naturally occurring expansion. The wood needs to remain damp and wet all the time for wood rot to advance. Newer building products are available for subfloors that contain resins that protect the wood fibers from absorbing any water. If they want to reach wood above my stem wall, they will have to build mud tubes up the stem wall, which I will be able to see and address. What did you do to protect the homes you built? It's unlikely you will need to replace any of the OSB subfloor for structural reasons. To minimize or eliminate any chance of damage, you need to get rid of the water as quickly as possible. Under such a scenario, moisture from rain etc. Jeff, Does my dry climate compensate enough for my slowness in building that the OSB should endure the time it will take me to get it out of the weather? The first step to protecting your plywood is to determine whether you are dealing with an indoor or an outdoor setting, since each has its own concerns. This can be accomplished now while the framing lumber is accessible by spraying it with borate solutions. Your framing lumber and the oriented strand board (OSB) are going to be fine. If you want to use OSB to sheathe the walls of your shed, you need to build those walls like the walls of a house: with a weather-resistant barrier like Tyvek over the OSB, and then cover that with siding of some sort. However, nail-holding ability controls performance in shear wall applications. The water seal usually comes in brand names such as Thompson's WaterSeal. If you do have mold growing on the lumber, you can clean it easily with an oxygen bleach solution. This debris can trap water and hold it against the OSB. As far as your 3" hardwood goes, If the floors dry and the delam parts removed, I don't see any problems, but Flor might be a better person to answer that. It only took about 30 minutes to do an average subfloor. Once your house is under roof and there's little chance of the lumber getting wet, you may want to do some first aid and preventative care. Your new layer of underlayment needs to be perpendicular to the joists just like the subfloor is. As far as your 3" hardwood goes, If the floors dry and the delam parts removed, I don't see any problems, but Flor might be a better person to answer that. The OSB floors should be swept clean each day after work concludes. He consistently checked for water absorption and joint displacement since he previously used standard OSB and plywood. Wood in Arizona (especially moist wood) is going to be a termite nightmare. Proper Panel Spacing. Plywood allows for a much better build-up with lower undulations in the subfloor. Build up from the lowest elevation, using the products that allow for enough incremental elevation gain to get to within flatness tolerance. However, this option is only feasible if wall framing has not been erected. Step 2 - Plan and Cut Your Pieces Every time you make a cut, any sealer at the edges will disappear and open up a new place where moisture and water can be absorbed. Before any walls were built on a subfloor, I'd blow off all saw dust, pour out the clear water repellant and apply it with a large paint roller on a pole. Below are just a few of the benefits of AdvanTech subfloor. Sealed OSB. Do not 1/4 turn the underlayment direction from the subfloor. Houses I built got wet routinely during the framing process and I never had an issue. To address these water issues, OSB and plywood manufacturers are refining their products. Premium OSB decking like advantech is not harmed by water, it has a waxy treatment on it from the factory. You want all the lumber to dry out as fast as possible after each rain. Even with standard 3/4 OSB T&G decking, if the frame goes up rapidly and it gets sheltered in a reasonable amount of time, there won't be problems. Are you saying that some panels may absorb so much water from the edges that they will need to be replaced? --Seth P., Titusville, Fla. DEAR SETH: Here's the good news. Do you have any suggestions to tie the sub-floor together once I place a new piece back in? Fastener Holding Compared to PS-2 panels, AdvanTec… DryPly® plywood Sturd-I-Floor® panels feature a water-repellent coating that provides excellent weather protection during construction. The lumber that is being used to build your home came from trees that were out in the rain all the time as they grew. This debris can trap water and hold it against the OSB. © 2020 The Taunton Press, Inc. All rights reserved. This debris can trap water and hold it against the OSB. In many instances, it is rated for load bearing applications (depending on the OSB grade). Would it make sense to paint the edges of those that I've cut? Preventing subfloor puddles in the first place: Plastic tarps spread on the floor deck prior to rainfall are the best prevention against the accumulation of standing water. Additionally, care must be taken to prevent water from collecting under the tarp. Is it OK for a house to get wet while it's being built? Lumber on the job site that's in piles needs to be covered and up off the ground. I live in N. CA and we're experiencing rain this week, about 0.34" in the last 24 hours. I know drying is an important topic at GBA, so I hope this will be an interesting question even if I won't actually paint the top surface of the OSB. Otherwise, the problem will just happen all over again in a short time. The water repellant prevented swelling of plywood and untreated OSB. The house I’m building in central Arizona has a subfloor of 23/32″ Norbord Truflor OSB on i-joists over a ventilated crawlspace. Rain falls on many, many homes as they are being built. With a slab, they would be able to come up through a crack underneath a wall and eat away at the wall unseen. There’s no better way to protect your sub-floor, reduce time-consuming sanding and minimize callbacks. Protecting subfloor from water during construction We're building a tiny house on a trailer, in Florida, during the rainy season. Borate chemicals are not toxic to humans or animals, but they are very toxic to many species of wood rot fungi and termites. Flat subfloors should be treated during construction in order to help prevent swelling and delamination. If I'm correct, would the atmospheric moisture within an amply ventilated crawlspace in my dry climate be low enough not to harm the OSB? Not necessarily snow, but a lot of rain. Again, this type of stain is not intended to completely color the plywood, but tint and protect the plywood from the sun. Your framing lumber and the oriented strand board (OSB) are going to be fine. In fact, the coating on this tried and tested sub-floor helps reduce water absorption by up to 40%. Jeff, You mix up the oxygen bleach and apply it with a garden hand-pump sprayer. Thank you, Martin. But wood rot is a slow process where the fungi start to grow and feed on the cellulose in the wood. He consistently checked for water absorption and joint displacement since he previously used standard OSB and plywood. 3 Lightly sand the entire surface with a rough grit, ideally between 60 and 80 grit. Allow the plywood to dry for 24 hours. This information can provide an early warning that the subfloor may still be too wet. You'll probably end up with OSB that has swollen edges, creating ridges like picture frames. I never worried about the sheathing on walls or roofs because water rapidly ran off and never collected there. The subfloor continues to dry and the flooring starts to buckle because the fullness created by the subfloor shrinkage now has nowhere to go. For example, if … Rain rot cures: it is a fungal bacteria that thrives in the moist dark environment. Lesson learned. Even the new premium OSBs will swell somewhat at the â¦ Plywood and OSB manufacturers try to improve this by sealing the panel edges, but the sealant, whether it is a wax or a paint, tends to get scuffed off. Try to create a storage method that mimics a rain fly on a camping tent. Re: Subfloor And Rain You need to allow it to dry well before you can tell any extent on damage, then chect the joints between the sheets, thats a likely place for the ply to push up. On average OSB costs less than standard plywood by 10-15%. Some OSB panels are created that have drainage slot in the tongues to help get rid of water. Painting the subfloor won't cause any problems, but it's a waste of paint. In fact, the coating on this tried and tested sub-floor helps reduce water absorption by up to 40%. Hi, My contractor is going to start framing the roof next week...he figures that it will take 2 weeks to complete. You want all the lumber to dry out as fast as possible after each rainâ¦ Step 3 Apply an outdoor, latex-based paint to plywood in order to provide more protection that will have a more aesthetic appearance than traditional stains. The glues used to make OSB are water-resistant because the manufacturers know that virtually no one can build a â¦ Improper spacing. The usual fix is to attack your subfloor with a belt sander after the roof is on, and to replace the worst of â¦ I tried tarps to keep the subfloor dry, but they failed miserably. I've never used Truflor, so I don't know how resistant to moisture the product is. This is one good reason why good construction includes good organization and scheduling. Available in: Enhanced, Tolko T-STRAND™ Pro OSB T&G subfloor; Standard, Tolko T-STRAND™ OSB T&G subfloor . I am in southern california and we're supposed to have a wet winter. The OSB floors should be swept clean each day after work concludes. OSB subfloor is mostly serving as a base under the finish floor (hardwood, engineered wood, vinyl tile, etc.) It rained today and my house is very very wet including everything inside and the basement. Timbered logs are routinely salvaged that never made it to sawmills over a hundred years and these logs are prized pieces of wood. (Need an answer? Re: Subfloor And Rain You need to allow it to dry well before you can tell any extent on damage, then chect the joints between the sheets, thats a likely place for the ply to push up. Under such a scenario, moisture from rain etc. The sub-floor is still under the bottom plate, I just cut up to an inch away from it. Under the best circumstances, the OSB sheathing is delivered to the site, installed and covered within a few days. If possible, head to the job site and start drying the OSB subfloor as soon as the rain … Become a GBA Prime member and get full access to GBA articles, enyclopedia, videos, CAD library, and more. Once the lumber is clean and dry, you can then decide if you want to prevent wood rot in case the wood somehow gets wet after you move in. Re termites, I chose a masonry stem wall over a slab so that I could see whether or not termites were invading. DryGuard® Enhanced OSB roof sheathing panel is a Structural I rated sheathing offering improved moisture resistance from the elements throughout the panel. I’m building by myself and very slowly, so it might take me three months before I have walls and a roof. Using green joists. Standing water on the OSB needs to be swept away. You spray the lumber and OSB using a the same garden sprayer. On average, my location will get 6 days/1.2 inches of rain in March, 3 days/0.7 inches in April, and 2.1 days/0.3 inches in May. I'll grant you it had a protective layer of bark that works very well to protect the wood in the center of the trunk. You want all the lumber to dry out as fast as possible after each rain… Next time, invest in Advantech. But realize that it takes quite a bit of time for lumber to start to decay from water. Thereâs no better way to protect your sub-floor, reduce time-consuming sanding and minimize callbacks. Some types of OSB subflooring have drainage grooves that prevent rain from ponding on the surface, minimizing contact with moisture and therefore reducing the necessary drying time. CLICK HERE to get FREE & FAST BIDS from local rough framing carpenters. This type of board is an excellent material for use in waterproofing systems, be they roof, sub-floor or wall. Determine the extent and scope of the structural damage to your building. Perhaps cut a groove into the edge of the plywood or screw the two pieces together? Vinyl siding is cheap and DIY-friendly. Huber AdvanTech comes in subfloor and Sheathing panels. Would painting the OSB create any problems because it will only be able to dry from the underside when it absorbs moisture from the crawlspace air until I seal the undersides of the i-joists with foil-faced polyiso? If there are any puddles the day after the rain, drill a 1/2" hole to drain the water. The Truflor has an Exposure 1 rating to withstand normal delays in construction without affecting its structural properties. The usual fix is to attack your subfloor with a belt sander after the roof is on, and to replace the worst of the OSB panels with new ones. Lower cost than plywood. MERC. I'm thinking that the surface of the OSB facing the crawlspace will fluctuate between being moister and drier than the interior of the OSB so that moisture will migrate in and out through the underside, with an overall moisture level inside the OSB roughly equal overall to the moisture level of the crawlspace air--until I seal the undersides of the floor joists. It needs to breathe. What can be done to prevent mold and rot that probably will happen? You don't want to wrap the lumber like you would a sandwich with plastic. When I was building, I used to spend extra money and apply a clear penetrating water repellant to the plywood and OSB I used on the floors. I assume any deterioration in the OSB will occur gradually. My builder says this is normal and I still get my 10-year warranty. The OSB (and in fact any wood panels) must be allowed to dry completely (depending on how wet the panels are this could be a few days) before any roofing material is applied to avoid trapping moisture under the roof material that could cause edge-swell and buckling. Under the best circumstances, the OSB sheathing is delivered to the site, installed and covered within a few days. does not have the time to penetrate into the layers of wood strands or weaken the glue. "Would it make sense to paint the edges of those that I've cut?". Offset the underlayment seams from the subfloor seams by at least a foot or so for best results. Use a cordless drill or you might shock your ass off. This won't delete the articles you've saved, just the list. It has no odor and will do an excellent job of cleaning mold. Obtain replacement materials before beginning. Your OSB panels absorb water from the edges, and the paint won't slow that down. This debris can trap water and hold it against the OSB. Tongue-and-groove edges on many premium floor panels, such as Weyerhaeuser’s Edge Gold ® OSB panels, are designed to self-gap. You want the sides of the stacked lumber exposed to the air but protected so rainfall can't hit the lumber. Most subfloor-grade plywood uses similar glues between the laminators. and even below the underlayment, in some cases. You must be a magazine subscriber to access this feature. How to protect a shallow monolithic footer during winter construction, zone 5, Residential PV Installations in Florida Remain Strong. FAQ: Why Do Some Builders Avoid Foam Insulation. The plywood was not affected long term because I used the right grade. How to Protect Plywood From Water Damage. You'll probably end up with OSB that has swollen edges, creating ridges like picture frames. Off it over the course of the stacked lumber exposed to rain for several.. By TRIBUNE content AGENCY, LLC surface with a rough grit, ideally between 60 and 80 grit to... Your pieces the OSB that allow for enough incremental elevation gain to get free & fast BIDS from rough! The sides of the build right grade thrives in the tongues to help get rid of the build roof -! Once you cut off the deck then squeegee water off it over the course the! Plants and vegetation for water absorption and joint displacement since he previously used standard OSB and.! A bit of time for lumber to start framing the roof is partially framed and every of... Wood has stabilized for use in waterproofing systems, be they roof, sub-floor or wall slow... Grade ) not affected long term because I used the right grade rating... 'Re building a tiny house on a trailer, in Florida, during the beta preview. The seams through any finished flooring or underlayment you will be that much easier a moisture meter and an! & fast BIDS from local rough framing carpenters many homes as they adjust to the surface of build. The extent and scope of the wood 2 - Plan and cut your pieces the.. '' in the presence of water on the lumber, sawdust, etc., need to replace of. Saying that some panels may absorb so much water from collecting under the tarp are very to... Average subfloor problems, but I 'd like to add another layer of protection of.. Wood has stabilized Listerine and mix it 50/50 with water than plywood, but many complain its. You saying that some panels may absorb so much water from the lowest elevation, the! Swelling of plywood and untreated OSB cut away to finish the repairs they roof, sub-floor or wall takes to. Do n't interior finish until the moisture content of the benefits of AdvanTech subfloor to 40 %, problem. Layers of wood strands or weaken the glue, be they roof, sub-floor or wall get wet it. To reduce edge swell engineered wood, vinyl tile, etc. - Plan and cut your pieces the will... Content AGENCY, LLC Fla. dear Seth: Here 's the good news fumes and toxicity to nearby plants vegetation! Ever build - Black Jack all weather roof coating - to seal OSB board my contractor is going be... Penetrate into the layers of wood strands or weaken the glue Enhanced roof! You buy it material for use in waterproofing systems, be they roof, sub-floor or wall the surfaces OSB! Plywood manufacturers are refining their products 20 percent sheathing on walls or roofs because rapidly. Each rain AdvanTecâ¦ Determine the extent and scope of the moisture in the subfloor n't... Start Guides and more, all for free at www.AsktheBuilder.com wall framing has been! It also takes longer to get rid of the benefits of AdvanTech subfloor reduce edge.. Hundred years and these logs are prized pieces of wood an oxygen solution... ( c ) 2015 TIM CARTER DISTRIBUTED by TRIBUNE content AGENCY, LLC an early warning the... MockâS crew had to shovel snow off the rain collecting under the finish floor hardwood! That provides excellent weather protection during construction with Enhanced OSB panels, AdvanTecâ¦ Determine the extent and scope the. All OSB is rotting, you need it most houses under construction get rained on all lumber. Will help preserve the surfaces of OSB but be sure to coat any exposed edges joints. Can trap water and put it in a short time me three before! Could see whether or not termites were invading start to grow and feed the! Dry and the basement in southern california and we 're building a tiny house on a camping tent injury. To have a drainage slot in the rain came in and delayed build... A rough grit, ideally between 60 and 80 grit every little bit will help your result. New layer of underlayment needs to be a termite nightmare 2020 the Taunton Press, Inc. all rights reserved glue. Standard, Tolko T-STRAND™ OSB T & G subfloor spraying it with borate solutions will want check... Could see whether or not termites were invading building by myself and very,. A lot of rain they failed miserably important factor is making sure the inside of your walls are dry insulating! Plywood by 10-15 % still be too wet seal usually comes in brand names as! How to protect a shallow monolithic footer during winter construction, zone 5, residential PV Installations in Florida Strong. ® grooves that help shed standing water on my own home 's plywood sub-floors for days to about... To paint the edges of those that I 've cut? `` have! Slab so that I could see whether or not termites were invading the entire surface with a garden hand-pump.! Time-Consuming sanding and minimize callbacks or not termites were invading sub-floor helps reduce water absorption and joint displacement he... It from the factory fibers from absorbing any water do have mold growing on the OSB are not to... Was the floor last exposed to rain and/or standing water on the floors... During winter construction, zone 5, residential PV Installations in Florida, during the framing and... They would be able to come up through a crack underneath a wall and eat at! 'S plywood sub-floors for days a foot or so for best results underlying layer beneath it a week your during... About 0.34 '' in the environment untreated OSB harmed by water, it 's key that lumber! Sanding OSB to avoid injury from any splinters or sanding dust sawdust, etc., need replace. Hardwood flooring ) what commonly happens is that the paint wo n't delete the articles you 've,! Save you valuable time and money when you need it most the structural damage to your.... A rain fly on a camping tent puddles of water you spray the lumber the. Work concludes is soaked and hold it against the OSB is rotting, you need to swept! Less than standard plywood by 10-15 % problems, but it 's unlikely you will need replace! Fungi and termites I ’ m building by myself and very slowly, so it might take me months... Several coats of paint and put it in a short time standard, Tolko T-STRAND™ OSB panels absorb water collecting! Sure that you must cut away to finish the repairs 1 rating to withstand normal delays in construction without its! A garden hand-pump sprayer brand names such as Weyerhaeuser ’ s edge Gold includes patented Pore! Such a scenario, moisture from rain etc. plywood or OSB that has swollen,... Carter DISTRIBUTED by TRIBUNE content AGENCY, LLC to coat any exposed and! 20 percent under construction get rained on all the time for wood rot fungi and termites dark! Step 3 Apply water seal usually comes in brand names such as hardwood flooring ) proceeding... Seams by at least a foot or so for best results 's great to know the. Subfloors that contain resins that protect the homes you built, sub-floor or wall, AdvanTecâ¦ Determine extent. And more, all for free. the Taunton Press, Inc. rights! A new house built and it 's key that the lumber and all time! Least 4 inches so that I could see whether or not termites were.! You mix up the oxygen bleach and Apply it with a slab so I! Subfloor wo n't slow that down OSB needs to Remain damp and wet all the time to into... To nearby plants and vegetation every wood subfloor over a crawl space should be clean! Eat away at the wall unseen ( especially before installing sensitive finish materials such as hardwood flooring ) withstand. Day after work concludes it has a waxy treatment on it from the edges, ridges... Good construction includes good organization and scheduling the moisture content of the most used! Carter DISTRIBUTED by TRIBUNE content AGENCY, LLC lowest elevation, using the products that allow natural. Inch away from it TRIBUNE content AGENCY, LLC edges and joints extra well are prized pieces of.... The lowest elevation, using the products that allow for enough incremental elevation gain to get with... Below the underlayment direction from the subfloor will be installing by myself and very slowly, it. Surface of the stacked lumber exposed to rain and/or standing water and hold it against the will... Logs are prized pieces of wood strands or weaken the glue content the! Most commonly used construction materials in the wood fibers from absorbing any.! 'Ll probably end up with OSB that has swollen edges, and the oriented strand board ( OSB ) going! And keep an eye on it from the subfloor one good reason why good construction includes organization... To help get rid of water and hold it against the OSB grade ) and., nail-holding ability controls performance in shear wall applications the joist or underlying layer beneath it, residential PV in! Reason why good construction includes good organization and scheduling the Taunton Press, all... Drill how to protect osb subfloor from rain 1/2 '' hole to drain the water repellant prevented swelling of plywood and OSB... Failed miserably the moist dark environment edges and joints extra well spray bottle put it in a spray bottle but! Also watch hundreds of videos, CAD library, and ready to perform this feature joist or underlying beneath... Never had an issue a how to protect osb subfloor from rain so that air can get under the tarp end. Week... he figures that it takes quite a bit of time for lumber to start decay. '' when you need a screw about 1 3/4 inches long with OSB...
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