Service Cavity Battens - nail or screw?

[Longjock]

Hi All,

 

Just planning on the fixings for the service cavity battens and was wondering what is best for minimising the leakage in the vcl?

 

Ours is a SIPS with 1200 wide panels. Do I still place the battens at 600 centres or just where the panels meet (where the timber joints are)?

 

Also I am putting a 85mm high perimeter strip of pir around the sole plate and was wondering  what fixing to use again worrying about penetrating the vcl.

 

All suggestions welcome!

[nod]

Nail with a ring nail 

[Oz07]

Never done it but ringshanks sound best to me. Quicker and will close the gap. Sometimes screws don't pull both pieces tight if wrong screw or technique 

[SuperJohnG]

Do them at 600 centres and use screws so it holds in the OSB . What size battens are you using out if interest? 

 

Have you added the PIR outside? Don't really need it inside unless you are doing a screed? 

 

 

Edit - I could be wrong on screws on the inside but thats what I am using outside for the battens which will hold the renderboard.

 

Edited August 21, 2021 by SuperJohnG

[ProDave]

TOP TIP:

 

Leave a small gap in your service battens at 450mm and 1200mm above floor level.  Your electrician will thank you as it allows him to run socket and light cables horizontally in a safe zone without drilling the battens (and risking damaging the VCL)  In a kitchen for kitchen sockets 1100mm is about right.

 

Your electrician will thank you.

[Longjock]

Pir will be on the inside. Already has rendered insulation on the outside block plinth covering the outside face of the sole plate. Drawings show another 25mm on the inside face. 

 

Floor is already screeded up to the bottom edge of the sole plate.

 

The strip I’m planning to instal will sit on top of this but below a horizontal batten. 

Edited August 21, 2021 by Longjock

[LA3222]

^^what @SuperJohnG said. Screws for SIP.

[Longjock]

Already prepped for that ? ProDave having read your advice on other posts.

 

I’m using a mixture of 25 and 50mm battens where appropriate 

[Longjock]

This is the detail showing the internal 25mm pir upstand. As it’s separate from the one in the screed (and internal of the vcl) I was thinking of screwing it to the sole plate but using insulation washers to help with getting the contact face tighter. 

 

As in the mock-up in the other pic 

 

 

Edited August 21, 2021 by Longjock
Extra pic

[Nickfromwales]

+1 to using screws. Most 120-130mm screws will have a part blind / unthreaded shank so that stops 'jacking' where the screw tightens before the wood is fully in contact / under compression. Just need someone who won't overtighten them with the impact. No.10 ( 5.0 ) screws will suffice, and when you see the heads disappearing just under the surface of the battens get your finger off the trigger! 

Nails can be hit and miss as you need to be holding the batten VERY tight to the wall to get the whole thing to fasten back robustly. Also a complete bastard to get a batten off / tweaked with nails vs screws with guaranteed damage to the membrane to boot associated with such a removal.