Framing Methods

• Two framing methods are used to build basement walls. The first is building them in place from the floor up. The second is building the walls on the ground as a single framed structure and then raising them into place along the walls. Each method has advantages and disadvantages in terms of how the walls are erected. The same end result, which is a finished basement wall, is achieved either way.
  
  

Building Walls on the Ground

• When you build a wall on the ground and raise it into place, the wall cannot be built to the exact height of the ceiling, because you can not tilt the wall up and into place if it is the same height. That's because when the wall tilts up, the closest edge to the wall is taller than the ceiling, because it is at an angle. (Imagine trying to wedge a thick board into a box; the board only slides in perfectly when it is perfectly perpendicular to the box sides.) Therefore the wall has to be built slightly shorter than the ceiling and, after it is raised into place, shimmed with wood shims. You still have a perfectly finished wall, because the drywall can still be cut to fit right up to the ceiling.
  
  

Framing Walls in Place

• The other method of building the wall in place involves setting a 2-by-4 on the floor, and installing the vertical framing studs on top of it, then capping these studs with another 2-by-4. This method requires no shims. Each board is nailed in place like a normal framed wall, and the entire wall is still braced to the cement with mortar nails or screws. This is usually a more secure way to build walls, because the frames are not shimmed to the ceiling; the top frame board can be nailed right to the ceiling joist.
  
  

Mounting the Framed Walls to Cement

• Mounting wall frames to cement requires the use of a hammer gun, which fires a nail through your bracket with a gunpowder charge. These special tools and the nails they use are available at a hardware store, and they require special care when using. The frames can be mounted with a steel bracket or another 2-by-4 board that acts as a brace beside the framing boards. This brace is mounted to the cement board with the hammer gun or masonry screws, and the wall frame is then screwed to the brace.
  
  

Drywall

• Drywall is simply cut to the height of the wall and mounted in place with drywall screws. Then it is taped, finished with joint compound and sanded. The walls are painted however the owner chooses, usually with primer and an interior wall paint. If your basement is humid, try using a mold resistant drywall. This drywall prevents mold growth even in wet environments.