Hey everyone, I just bought a house last month and I've discovered something a bit concerning in the back corner of my garage. I'm not super knowledgeable about construction, so I'm hoping for some advice here. It looks like the sill plate may be rotting, and from what I can tell, this area of the garage had some water issues in the past (the house is from the 1950s). However, it seems like the water problem has been fixed because after a major downpour yesterday, the garage stayed completely dry. I'm attaching some photos for reference: the first one is an exterior shot of my house, the second shows the open garage door (with the damage at the bottom right corner), and the last pic focuses on the damaged area itself. I also added a fourth picture showing that the wood appears to be resting on cinder blocks. Do you think I could just wedge some 2x4s to fix what's rotted? Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!
2 Answers
I'd recommend taking a closer photo of the rotted area, especially to measure how thick and wide the sill is—like, is it 2x6 or something else? If the damage isn't too widespread, you shouldn’t need any extra support while you’re replacing that section. Just ensure you’re using treated lumber for the new bits to avoid this in the future!
From what I see, it looks like something might have chewed that wood out. But if that's the case, it probably got damp and rotted first. You should definitely look into replacing the rotted sill. The wood frame is crucial to the structure, so it’s best to cut out the damaged area completely and replace it with a new treated board to resist future moisture.
Yeah, and if the studs are affected, don't forget to cut those damaged parts back too. It might seem daunting, but just look up some videos on YouTube for a visual guide; it's usually a straightforward fix!