How to Anchor Nonbearing Walls to a Foundation Slab

Mark the location of the nonbearing wall by using the blueprints or a layout of the wall's footprint as a guide. Use a tape measure to measure the distance specified on the blueprint from the nearest load bearing wall to the outside and inside tracks of the nonbearing wall. Use a pencil to make a mark at the point where the inside track of the nonbearing wall will be located at one end of the nonbearing wall. Make a similar mark at the point where the outside track will be located on the same end. Repeat the process for the other end of the load bearing wall.

Stretch the string from a chalk line between the outside marks. Hold the string tight against the slab and lift it 2 inches off of the slab 2 feet from the end of the chalk line and release it quickly to leave a chalk mark along the path of the edge of the wall. Repeat this process on the inside marks.

Raise the wall framing and set it along the path inside the two chalk lines. Make certain that it is in the correct position. Load the specially hardened nail into the tip of the nail gun. This type of nail is made for use in a powder-actuated nail gun when anchoring a wooden wall frame to concrete. Put the wadding prescribed by the manufacturer over the nail. Insert a .22 caliber blank into the firing chamber.

Hold the nail gun upright with the end containing the nail tightly against the top of the bottom plate of the wall. The bottom plate is the board that runs along the bottom of the wall that all of the studs are attached to. Pull the trigger on the nail gun while continuing to exert downward pressure on the gun. When the blank fires, the compression created by the explosion in the chamber will drive the nail down into the stud and into the concrete below to anchor the board to the slab. Perform this procedure every 2 feet along the bottom wall plate to complete the anchoring process.