Running Plumbing Through Floor Instead Of Outside Wall

Running drainpipe through joists calls for meticulous work.

Running plumbing through floor instead of outside wall.

Use a carpenter s level to mark the studs for drilling holes. Inside pipes can be run vertically to accommodate new plumbing. If joists are 16 inches on center and pipes run across them at a right angle holes should differ in height by about 3 8 inch. Or just a little breeze of cold air such as a crack in a crawlspace or top of a basement wall is just enough to freeze a couple of inches of pipe.

When running pipes from a slab to an attic use an inside wall. Step 7 vent the waste lines. While homeowners may fret over running plumbing lines through the ceiling it is a common practice used to minimize damage during the re plumb and to keep labor costs lower. Drill holes cut pipes and connect them in a dry run using drain fittings.

When remodeling bathrooms we always plan to install all plumbing lines inside interior walls and avoid running plumbing in exterior walls due to the reality of the pipes freezing. If your pipes are going in a lateral direction make notches in the studs instead of drilling holes in them. When you need plumbing in exterior walls. Instead of running from floor to ceiling a soffit runs across the top of a wall.

I live and work in the cold boston area. Placing water pipes in outside walls greatly increases the risk of frozen and burst pipes in cold climates. If you are plumbing a vanity consider coming up through the floor rather than in the wall. Run the horizontal vent lines sloped downward toward the fixtures at a rate of 1 8 to 1 4 inch per running foot.

Similar to the chase is the soffit. Sometimes the wall is insulated but not the rim joist between floors and you get freezing there. This allows plumbing to run from the basement to the attic. In some cases the lines will have to be run across the wall studs.

Vent the waste and drain lines when you are installing the piping in a vertical direction. In most cases the lines will come through the floor. The chase is most commonly used for running new vent stacks. The holes must follow a straight line across the floor and must ascend or descend so the pipe will be sloped 1 4 inch per foot.

When running the pipes through the studs first be sure to drill the holes in the center so that when it s time to hang the wall board the screws or nails don t reach the pipes and damage the pipes. We re all taught not to run plumbing in exterior walls. Often the most economical way to replace the original plumbing is running pvc cpvc or pex tubing through existing walls ceilings and crawl spaces. This needs to extend through to the roof.