When installing drywall or framing a partition wall perpendicular to an outside wall, say while refinishing a basement, it is often the case there is no stud to nail to.
There are a number of solutions to this problem, but the one I like best in most cases is what I learned as a “chicken ladder.” In advanced framing lingo, this is called ladder blocking.
Whatever you call it, instead of framing up 3-stud channels, packing out existing framing, or adding a triple stud in the middle of a stud bay, simple nail five 2-by blocks horizontally from stud to stud (put one at 4 feet to catch a drywall sheet.)
It provides a great nailing surface for perpendicular walls, for drywall and other cladding—and you can still run wire and/or insulate behind it. Fast, efficient, solid.
