Does anyone know how to post a ledger on a brick wall in order to hang joists from there?

Question

I'm rehabing a row home in Philadelphia and I would really hate to makes in the walls to pocket the joist so I thought I could hang them but I dont know how to post the ledger on the brick wall. I figure I should use bolts - but what kind of bolts. Also the bolts should have some sort of glue to them. But what kind of glue? Any Engineers out there want to try to answer this one. There has to be a way of doing it.

Answer 1

The bolt used is a galvanized lag bolt or hex bolt and a washer to increase the bearing surface and keep the bolt from pulling though. After you've snapped a level chalk line along the masonry wall to represent the top of the ledger, position the ledger with the help of an assistant and drill evenly spaced holes in the ledger deep enough to mark the masonry but not enter it. Set the ledger board aside and chuck a 8" or greater masonry bit in the drill and drill through the masonry clear into and through the bond plate(Rim joist) of the home. Make sure that the holes you want to put into the masonry won't interfere with anything on the interior of the home on or near the bond plate like wires, pipes, etc. insert the bolt through the rim joist so that the threaded portion is on the exterior. On the exterior of the home, position the ledger onto the protruding bolts and before you place a washer and nut on the bolt shoot a spurt of silicone caulk in the hole to prevent water intrusion around the bolt's shaft. Don't forget to place a few spacers between the backside of the ledger and the masonry to insure water/snow sheds and won't prematurely rot the ledger. The spacers should be water resistant and be able to withstand the compression force of a tightened bolt.
Now secure the ledger to the bolts using hot dip galvanized washers and nuts. Voila'

Answer 2

The usual dodge is to drill holes in the masonry with a star drill or masonry bit and to secure the bolts with expandable anchors. Glue is not ordinarily used. But I am not comfortable with doing it this way; last time I did this, I supported the ledger from dedicated joists using steel joist hangars. If the ledger is to be interior to support a floor, attaching a ledger to masonry may not meet building code. I suggest a trip to the city building inspector to discuss this.

Answer 3

handy has a great answer... the only thing I would add is instead of silicone caulk... they sell 2 part epoxies for holding the bolts in place better.. this stuff will hold like CRAZY, youll never have to worry about it failing like caulking might.
(kinda like the bigdig fiasco going on right now... but hopefully that wont happen to you)

Pete in boston.