Find Studs Behind Siding

Shine a flashlight.

Find studs behind siding.

The edges must be nailed into a stud. The standard space between studs is 16 or 24 inches although in some homes the distance between studs is less regular. In theory the siding should be nailed at the studs. To the best of my knowledge we won t see a stud by lifting siding unless the house was built about 1925.

If that s true and i wanted to hit a stud close to dead center i d probably make myself about a 6 long 3 32 diameter drill bit locate a stud from inside and bore a hole from inside out next to the stud. An electronic device called a stud finder can help you locate the studs but if you don t have one there are several low tech ways to find the beams using only household items. Walk very slowly along the exterior siding while holding the stud finder. The better way is to locate the edges of the osb sheathing.

Place the stud finder at the edge of the exterior siding. Remove the section of siding at the elevation you plan on mounting the awning at. A little light will go off or the finder will make a beeping noise when it finds a. This is not always the case depending on the installer.

For solid cladding such as stucco or brick your best bet is to locate the studs inside the house and then transfer the measurements to the exterior wall. Once you find one stud it s easy to find the rest of them. The best way to find a stud while working on on the outside whether brick siding or stone is to use an electronic stud finder. Measure 16 and mark additional stud locations.

Use a metal detector to find the nails in the studs if you get dew on the house in the morning a lot of the time you can see exactly where the studs are when there is dew on the siding and it is just starting to evaporate it usually evaporates off the studs first since they are a bit warmer.