wall plate construction between first and ground floor ?

[onabudget]

Hi helping out a pal fix some radiators to the wall which had a fair few cracks and seemed to be loose/moving.

The house is a 1950 semi brick outer skin and breeze block inner skin with a 50mm cavity.

On further inspection there seems to be a wooden wall plate between ground and first floor to which the first floor floor joists are nailed to.

Maybe this on only above the lintel for the window below but it seems to span the entire circumference.

Is this normal? the house has been up for a few years! so apart from some cracks where the wood has shrunk and the block work dropped a bit seems to be fine but I just thought it was strange? I've normally seen the joists inserted into the brick work with the inner skin being bonded using bricks between between the joists so in effect a continual bonded wall up to the roof but in this house it gets to the ground floor ceiling then there is a wood wall plate running on top of the block work, then joists with some bricks between just sat on the wall plate then breeze block inner skin continuing on upwards.

I'm used to seeing wall plates on the house ceiling where the roof is attached to them but not on the ground floor ceiling ? any thoughts?

thanks

 

[tony1851]

No, its not normal construction and not good practice, but probably done to speed the job up.
It can also save on lintels for the inner skin due to the continuity of the wall plate (as long as the openings are not too wide).

 

[onabudget]

thanks

 

[onabudget]

thanks