APA - The Engineered Wood Association

WallBracing.org

Phase 1 Whole House Wall Bracing Tests Completed

04/01/2008

APA has released a report that summarizes Phase I test results for a variety of wall bracing configurations using APA’s 3-dimensional full-scale house and a state-of-the-art loading apparatus. The report, Full-Scale 3D Wall Bracing Tests, APA Report T2007-73, is available as a downloadable PDF from the Publications Library.

This extensive study evaluates how various structural components work as a whole and provides the industry with a better understanding of a house’s true three-dimensional system performance, as well as specific measurements and data for wall bracing methods.

While the focus of these tests were mainly on the 2006 International Residential Code (IRC) wood structural panel wall bracing, a number of variables were studied, including:

  • Hold down devices in building corners
  • Return corners, both 2 feet and 4 feet
  • Panel placement at corners or away from corners
  • Single diagonal 1x4 bracing
  • Isolated wood structural panel bracing
  • Continuous wood structural panel bracing
  • Continuous wood structural panel bracing cut around openings
  • Wall braced only by 6:1 aspect ratio portal frames
  • Wall braced with 50 percent 6:1 aspect ratio portal frames mixed with other continuous wood structural panel bracing.