John Dirks Jr

Good info thanks. I have a more questions. The framed pillars between the door assemblies I envision as 4x4 posts. Although, should I nail together two 2x4’s instead of using single 4x4’s? My thought is the double 2x4’s would be less likely to bow or twist over time. Also, is there a flange on the door frame that overlaps the framed opening or do the doors sit flush inside the opening? I ask because I’m wondering if 3 1/2” is enough material between the separate door assemblies. If there is a flange, will there be enough room, or will the flanges need trimming or framed post made wider than 3 1/2”?

Flat sills...check! The doors across the back are mainly for viewing and natural light so having a 3/4" sill shouldn't make a problem for us. The sill plate material can also help provide a flat surface for the door sill to rest on. I could cut each sill plate piece so they are individual under each door. That way as the slab gradually slopes towards the one end, each sill plate can be independently flat directly under each door. Does this make sense as an approach? Shim each plate as needed to make them flat?

I'm not planning a floor covering, just painted concrete. The doors across the back are not generally intended for entry and exit so a 3/4" plate wont make an issue there I dont think. There will be a standard hinged door into the carport area and a slider into the mudroom area for entry / exit. I will discuss the threshold height condition with the boss and get the reaction. Sometimes that alone concludes the decision. But at least I'll keep the thresholds of the doors intended for entry / exit as low as possible. There is another condition with the line of doors across the back. The space between the slab and header is 82 1/4 at one end and fluctuates gradually 1/4" to 3/8" more across the 24 foot length, which alone I'm not too concerned with. The other irregularity is the slab line and header gradually slopes downward together towards the end of the structure. Exactly how much I do not know yet. I'm going to pull a tight string line and use a line level to see how much the droop is. My choice is how to deal with the droop. 1) just run the doors and allow each of them to follow the droop? 2) slightly stagger each door in attempt to keep them closer to a common plane? Obviously, this decision and affect the decision to use 1x as a plate, I mean the 1x would reduce the amount of space I have to fiddle with across the 24 foot span. In the pic below, the porch structure droops off towards the right of the structure. I think the slab was in this position when the structure was framed onto it. I think the framers just followed the slab.

Scroll down and expand the specs. You'll see it there. Lowes sliding door

Hmmm. The sliding door assemblies I'm looking at call for an 80" rough opening height. If I have 82 1/4, shouldnt a 3/4" plate fit underneath? Something like this https://www.lowes.com/pd/severe-weather-common-1-in-x-6-in-x-10-ft-actual-0-75-in-x-5-5-in-x-10-ft-appearance-treated-lumber/4745765?cm_mmc=shp-_-c-_-prd-_-lbm-_-google-_-lia-_-162-_-treatedlumberanddecking-_-4745765-_-0&kpid&store_code=2594&k_clickID=go_625667893_34613736790_111132543550_aud-299487635210:pla-380703942124_c_9007872&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIwoi90brn4AIVAkOGCh3LwwbdEAQYASABEgJJXPD_BwE Or this https://www.homedepot.com/p/WeatherShield-1-in-x-6-in-x-8-ft-Ground-Contact-Pressure-Treated-Board-253935/206974075

Thanks for all the suggestions on the finishing. We still have time to make decisions so nothing is settled yet. On to some structural choices. There will be multiple sliding glass doors across the back wall. The header is a double 2x8 and the distance between the header and slab is roughly 82 1/4”. What should I use as a bottom plate under the door thresholds? I was thinking treated 1x6.

If it's an older water heater and you turn it off, you may cause problems. Contraction and expansion of an older unit may be enough to spring a leak and put an end to its service live. Sure, you would need a new one eventually, but you don't want to find a flood when you come home from vacation.

Thanks for pointing that out Bill. I went through the manual. I see what the manual calls an ECO Limit Switch. I think that is a high limit switch. Is this what you are talking about? I can understand that poor draft can make the draft hood heat up too much and thus a high limit switch could shut the thing down. https://www.manualslib.com/manual/47436/Empire-Comfort-Systems-Pmn.html?page=22#manual https://www.manualslib.com/manual/47436/Empire-Comfort-Systems-Pmn.html?page=23#manual In the venting instructions it says all chimneys must terminate 2' above the roof line, etc. But that is more of a standard chimney rule rather than a feature required to make the thing vent good enough, I'm guessing. The venting instructions also say there must be at least 2' of vertical vent pipe coming off the hood before any elbows are used. Maybe that is the needed amount of vertical rise needed to ensure adequate draft. https://www.manualslib.com/manual/47436/Empire-Comfort-Systems-Pmn.html?page=15#manual When I get around to tinkering some more, I'll go 2' up, then install two 45's to go through the wall, then another 1' straight horizontal. I'll fire the thing up and see if it maintains without shutting down. In any event, I can always add vertical pipe on the exterior if needed. In other news, there will be no CSST in my house. I have a new found respect for the complications of running black iron pipe in existing structures. It will be done though. The kitchen is adjacent which has gas supply so I'm lucky that complications are not worse.

I should be able to vent this thing through side wall means, right? Just like we see with the gas fireplace inserts.

I got started on the interior demo today. I'm feeling my 54 year old body now. No pain at all when I'm working because adrenaline is abundant in me. When I begin to relax after working is when I feel it. The space had been divided by a wall in 1980 and was used as a small apartment for several years. There was also a brick garden bed across the back of the house as far back as the 60's. I removed the partition wall (non bearing) and knocked out the brick garden bed. Where the garden bed was, the slab will have to be filled in. I'm wondering if I'll try my hand at concrete finishing or farm that part out. The finished exposed concrete needs to look good and match the existing surface as close as possible. The plan is to paint the concrete floor and use a throw rug here or there. Here's some pics of the process thus far.

Everything will be insulated including the ceiling. All interior panels are being stripped and all the electric stuff fixed.

Thanks for the replies everyone. The ceiling material (whatever the choice) will get affixed to framing that is constructed under the rafters. The rafters are 2"x6" and I think the framing beneath them is also 2"x6". The underside framing is pretty straight and currently has 1/4 inch plywood on it running length wise with the structure. The 4'x8' sheets always held good and never looked warped. The only thing it suffered from was the roof leaks and that is no longer an issue. The 16" on center framing could surely serve well for affixing 4'x8' beaded hardboard. I like this idea since it not only looks nice but might even cost a tad less then vinyl. Maybe not when you include efforts for paint and trim. I'm going to try and convince the Mrs to the beaded hardboard panels idea. If we decide to go with vinyl, we have already agreed to change the direction which will require strapping like Tom pointed out. The benefit in this choice is, the direction change would eliminate butt end overlaps. Tongue and groove cpvc would also be nice but the cost of that material would severely dent our budget for this project. If vinyl winds up being the material of choice, the nailing tabs are slotted and I'd be sure to keep fasteners slightly proud to allow movement. I'd keep slack at the ends in the trim channels too. I'd keep it all a floating assembly just like vinyl siding is done. Here's a beaded panel ceiling example. Heres the porch we’re working on. Here’s the current ceiling.

What better place to turn for suggestions and guidance than here? We're fixing up the back porch into a patio enclosure. While in the process of planning I'm thinking about the ceiling. I want to do this relatively inexpensive and I'm thinking about vinyl soffit panels for the ceiling. The ceiling is a 2:12 pitch over a floor space of 12 by 24 feet. We want to run the linear feature long ways so obviously there would be seams. If I trim the mounting tab properly, will the panels overlap fairly good? Here's the material. > https://www.lowes.com/pd/12-in-x-143-75-in-white-vinyl-solid-soffit/1095077?cm_mmc=shp-_-c-_-prd-_-lbm-_-google-_-lia-_-103-_-vinylsiding-_-1095077-_-0&kpid&store_code=2594&k_clickID=go_625667893_34613737510_111132545110_aud-299487635210:pla-259301822122_c_9007872&gclid=Cj0KCQiAtbnjBRDBARIsAO3zDl8FCfrDwEjD01hfqOelkr4x81qnTGBfdZiXod3dGprfwQsTfgZF7RsaAvNLEALw_wcB

Kerosene heater is what I’ve used so far. 72,000 btu. If it’s 25 degrees outside I can get the overall temp of this 24x36 uninsulated building up to 50 degrees. Most of the heat is lost through the ridge vent. If I had even a plastic barrier in the ceiling I could probably get it up to 70 degrees. The 4 gallon tank will go for 8hrs. I haven’t had a carbon monoxide problem since the building leaks so much. If my hands get chilly I just stand in front of the heater. 30 seconds is enough.

I have the LG 26’. I’ve never seen any slop in the center joint. The mechanism on mine looks different than Denny’s. I believe mine is a newer improved design.