Question on getting the first board correct

[bigtiller]

This old saying comes to mind

Cut to fit and patch to match.

 

[/pine]

I was told once that the purpose of finish carpentry is not to be perfect but rather to make it appear to be perfect. I doubt that anything is truly square, plumb or level in a house, so you fudge things a little here a little there so it looks like it is. I had a 4' x 4' shower that was 1" longer at one end than the other. I used, 1" square tiles and each 2 or 3 rows, I added a 1/16" to the grout line. I have a porch that is 2" wider at one end than the other, every couple of rows I add a little to one end. Chalk lines are very helpful. Measure many times during the construction so you can adjust as you go.

Your first statement holds more true to the sheetrock trade...a true craftsman can turn imperfect material into something that is as close to perfect as can be measured...

IMO what you've described is shoddy (careless) work...covering it up just multiplies the error...

If you think making something square, plumb and level is a task at home...try doing some finish woodwork on boats...!

 

[sodamo]

Had a super smart electrical engineer friend do owner built home just as I was completing mine. His comment, “ building is a constant process of covering up (hiding) smaller and smaller mistakes” of course he was talking appearance, not structural.

 

[3Ts]

Your first statement holds more true to the sheetrock trade...a true craftsman can turn imperfect material into something that is as close to perfect as can be measured...

IMO what you've described is shoddy (careless) work...covering it up just multiplies the error...

If you think making something square, plumb and level is a task at home...try doing some finish woodwork on boats...!

Some parts of the country do not have True Craftsmen in any trade. And I've seen many examples of "That should be good enough" or "Why should I care, it's not my house". But I agree, starting out with something sub-standard makes it harder for the trades that come later, but a "true craftsman" can make it look good.

 

[EddieWalker]

Lets not forget that the older the house, the more time it's had to move and adjust itself. Dealing with what you have to work with is just part of working on houses.

 

[rickyb01]

Thanks for the replies guys. It is t&g on the ceiling. I measured yesterday and I am 1/4" off square so just keeping up with staying square will be my only concern. The reason I had this two story porch built is the balcony that was on the home just rotted down. I have never seen the poor workmanship that went into that build. They used 2x6 nailed together for support post and covered them with 1x8 cedar boards. This was only the start of what was wrong.

 

[quicksandfarmer]

Lots of good advice. The only other thing I would think about is how big the last board at the end of the run is going to be, you don't want it to be a little half inch piece if you can avoid it. If there is any irregularity small pieces show it much more than larger pieces. A trick I've used with flooring is to lay out ten pieces as tight as you think you're going to use it, and measure the size. Divide by ten to get the average installed size, and divide the overall length by that to get the number of pieces. If the number is close to a whole number you should start with a half piece so that you end with a half piece instead of a small fraction.

Keep the average size in mind as you install it, measuring periodically and adjusting. How well this works depends on how uniform and how flexible the material is. If the material has a lot of leeway you can just start measuring when you're about ten pieces out and adjusting to make sure you don't end on a little nub.