Wood Frame Building Earthquake

Unlike steel or concrete structures earthquake damage to wood frame buildings cannot be readily observed by naked eyes since wooden structures are commonly covered.

Wood frame building earthquake. Now 27 of los angeles 11 400 dangerous wood frame apartments are retrofitted to better resist earthquakes up from 5 just 14 months ago. The questions on the performance of wood frame buildings add another dimension to earthquake preparedness in b c. The traditional wood frame ikra construction of assam and houses of nicobars founded on wooden piles separated from ground have performed very well during earthquakes. Inherent flexibility wood s ability to withstand high loads for short periods of time and retain its elasticity and ultimate strength can be an asset in seismic and high wind zones.

To design an earthquake proof building engineers need to reinforce the structure and counteract an earthquake s forces. According to building codes earthquake resistant. This type of construction consists of shear walls and frames of concrete. Below you will find tips essential to painting a wooden house.

As can be appreciated from the previous discussion of factors that affect the seismic performance of buildings the process is a complex one and difficult to analyze especially for wood frame construction since a large number of diverse components are involved. Wood differs from other materials and you must account for this in your preparations. Wood frame buildings can be designed to stand up to high winds and earthquakes given these characteristics. Earthquake resistant or aseismic structures are designed to protect buildings to some or greater extent from earthquakes while no structure can be entirely immune to damage from earthquakes the goal of earthquake resistant construction is to erect structures that fare better during seismic activity than their conventional counterparts.

The difference in movement between the bottom and top of buildings exerts extreme stress causing the supporting frame to rupture and the entire structure to collapse. Wood is the most widely used construction material in the united states particularly for residential buildings. Recently wood frame construction is not only used for single and multi family dwellings but also for low rise commercial and industrial buildings 16. While you can treat wooden buildings like conventional homes you get better results when you focus on the material in use.

Retrofit progress has been steady across the city a. Advertisement story continues below. How to make a building earthquake proof. Given the prevalence of wood frame construction throughout the united states the northridge earthquake underscores the importance of accurately modeling this construction type.

Wood preparation here is the thing. Behaviour of wood frame construction in previous earthquakes general approach.