On the bright side; so long as you're creative, there's a way!
The first thing I discovered with the inside framing is that the metal studs on the inside are built into an inch deep trough, and comes up above the wood flooring about a half inch. That's a problem for traditional 2x4 framing as I needed a level surface to place the wood studs on, and I didn't want to cut or bend the metal lip since it seems to be the base plate for the metal studs and is necessary to the structural integrity. Plus I doubted I could get it flat enough had I bent it.
Originally I planned to cut some wood pieces [1inch x 1inch] and place them into the inside trough, and nail some 1/2inch on the outside to level them out. Unfortunately, I couldn't find wood the size I needed and I didn't have a way to rip the wood to the width I needed. So I got creative.
I thought about using leveling compound and pouring it into the trough, but when I looked more into that I found out an inch thick pour is a bit much for leveling compound. [And boy is it expensive.]
Spray in foam might work, but depending on the type of foam it's prone to shrinking over time.
So how about concrete?
I know a lot of people worry about weight for their build, but the GVWR for my truck is about 11,000lbs and I figured it's worth the added weight. [I used about 1 1/2 bags, so about 70lbs worth.]
- I started off just filling the troughs to the top of the lip so I could get the concrete into all the small crevices:
- Originally I mixed it in a bucket thinking I could pour it in more quickly, but I ended up pouring it in dry and then soaking it. Worked way better! There were a lot of rocks in the mix, but the top ones can be brushed off when it's dry - leaving a level surface. Once all that set, I started to saw some of those 2x4s I had left over after I took down the shelving that was inside the truck when I bought it:
Who needs a chop saw when you've got stubbornness and arms of steel amiright? |
- I screwed those to the wood floor and made sure it's level.
Now we're ready!
Then I used a water bottle to pour in the water, leveling it immediately. It sets quickly!
The corner of the walls in the back are curved, making it a bit more difficult to frame had I used wood instead. Luckily the concrete filled up the space perfectly.
I was thinking of adding wood shims on top of the concrete to give me something to screw the back of the 2 x 4s for the walls into, but after it dried a bit I double checked to see if it was level and found a 2 x 4 stud fits in there perfectly and level. I think i'll be toe-nailing the studs to the floor 2x4s in the front of the stud, and that should work great.
[But not before I add my waterproof barrier to the walls! I'd rather not worry about condensation from the metal rotting my insulation and studs later on, which seems to be a big (reasonable) concern.]
All in all, it's been a lot of work just to get it prepped for the wall and floor framing.
But as the saying goes: They never said life was easy. They just said it would be worth it.
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