Nailing wood to concrete...

[Phil Winn]

This old man must:

1. Remove two "2 by 4's" attached to a concrete foundation by nails.

2. With concrete nails, attach two "2 by 4's" to a concrete foundation.

3. Caulking...what caulk to use for caulking this concrete/wood seam against water? We had 8 days of rain
with more possible this weekend. Someone suggested Polyurethane caulk...but I can not find it anywhere.
Thoughts?

What tools, and any other tips?
Thanks,
Phil

[Frank Hagan]

I've only been successful using a nail gun ... the kind that shoots 22 cal. blanks to drive in a nail.

Other than that method, I prefer to use anchor bolts (lag shields) after drilling in the concrete with a carbide bit. There are also some epoxy anchor kits sold in the big box stores. That might be the easier way to go.

[Keith Weber]

Phil,

I just used one of those Remington .22cal nailers to attach the 2x4 plates to the concrete when finishing my basement (the one that you whack with a hammer). Off the top of my head, I used 2 1/2 inch nailes and a No.4 shot to attach 2x4s. The nailers are only about $20 at Menards. It's simple, easy and effective. Just remember to wear earplugs if you're in a confined area. Heck, save the hearing, wear them whenever you use the gun.

Keith

[Bob Reda]

You can also use Tapcons. Those are the blue screws you see in the borgs.

[Peter Stahl]

This old man must:

1. Remove two "2 by 4's" attached to a concrete foundation by nails.

2. With concrete nails, attach two "2 by 4's" to a concrete foundation.

What tools, and any other tips?
Thanks,
Phil

I've used the Tapcons like Bob said a few times. With a good hammer drill they work well. As for concrete nails, you don't need a whole lot going into the concrete (not sure exactly how much is enough) and you want to hit them as few times as possible. The more you hit them the least likely that they'll hold. If it were me I'd borrow or rent a hammer drill or nail gun like Frank or Keith mentioned.

[Chris Mann]

In addition to a few nails, use polyurethene construction adhesive. that will seal the plate to the concrete to prevent water from seeping through (although it will still wick through the wood).

[Frank Pellow]

I long ago gave up on concrete nails.

Rather, I drill a hole into the concrete, force a slightly larger dowel into the hole, then screw the wood to the dowel. That technique has never failed me in at least 300 anchors over at least 30 years.

[Jeff Sudmeier]

I will probably never drill another hole in concrete to anchor a 2x4, maybe for other anchoring, but not a 2x4.

I own one of the remington guns and they work great! If you have ever tried to remove what you anchored, you know they hold well :)

[Michael Gabbay]

When I finished my basement I used the Remington 22cal nail gun. Works great. You can go chaep and get the one that fires with a hammer for about $30 or get a better one with a trigger for around $50. My cheap version works great but you need a helper to hold things in place if you are doing verticles.

Mike

[Donnie Raines]

Another Remington gun owner here! Works great. I would take the advice of useing some of the poly glue to help in sealing off mositure...but I would even go ahead and caulk around for additonal insurance. For items that will bare more load(not in the realm of a deack of coarse) I have even fired the nailes in then used some of the tapcon screws that have a higher weight limit.

[Wes Bischel]

Phil,

I've used the Remington as well as tapcons - both work well. Also, there is an underlayment that comes in a roll (blue foam) used for placing between the wood and concrete to prevent moisture transfer. Also it is good practice to use pressure treated lumber where there is contact with concrete or concrete block.

Good luck,

Wes

[Eddie Watkins]

I usually use tapcon screws but a guy I know that works in construction uses horseshoeing nails, says they work better than the concrete nails. They seem to work.

Eddie

[Steve Clardy]

I usually use tapcon screws but a guy I know that works in construction uses horseshoeing nails, says they work better than the concrete nails. They seem to work.

Eddie

Those are Cut nails. And they do work much better than the standard handdrive concrete nails. Much better. Hard to bend them.
I also use the 22 remington. Foam seal underneath. Can be bought in a roll.

[Scott Loven]

I use PT lumber for the 2*4s that are in contact with the cement floor. I used a concret drill bit to drill through the wood and into the cement and drove in a short section of rebar to anchor the wood. I have used the gun also.
Scott

[Roy Wall]

Phil,

What you need to do is the old 'ARKANSAS ROLL' :) :)

Drill an 1/4" dia hole and SIMULTANEOUSLY drive THREE 16d nails into the 2x4 and into the hole......


It won't ever come out:D :D :D

[Randy Meijer]

I have never used them, personally; but there was another thread here not too long ago and quite a few people reported poor results when using the tapcon screws. Since you have to drill the concrete for them, why not just drill a slightly larger hole and use some other sort of concrete anchors?? The guns work well; but you probably already have a drill so why buy a gun?? If you were doing a big job, a gun would be the way to go because it would be a lot faster; but for only the few holes you need, the drilled holes should be a reasonable solution.

[Kelly C. Hanna]

I use nothing but Redheads (concrete anchors)....my Remington gun has been dormant for the last four years now. With the sorry concrete they pour in our area, the nails just pop out easily upon impact.

[Phil Winn]

The concrete was now dry, so went to the local hardware store, and purchased the necessary tools and supplies...2 x 4's, PT 2 x 6's, Tapcons, concrete bits & inserts, polyurethane caulking, (rented a hammerdrill-mine is in CA.), a 22 gun et al, hydraulic cement, and a can of expanding foam. Then I went to work redoing/reframing/rehanging the basement door. Took less time than I thought, and it came-out better than I hoped--we all were happy with the visible results...but now we must wait until the first solid week of rain, flooding rain, to see how this turns out!
Sorry, no pictures-my camera is 3000 miles away...thanks for all of the help!
Phil