Friday, May 3, 2019

Preferences For Earthquake Bracing For Manufactured Homes

By Patrick Evans


Manufactured homes usually have the most significant risk of damage during an earthquake. Most manufacturers produce them with a structure that can withstand seismic movement, but it does not offer the best reinforcement that you need. Therefore, homeowners should adopt other measures to make their houses strong enough. Here are preferences for earthquake bracing for manufactured homes to ponder on.

Consider using a shear wall. Shear walls are vertical elements made to resist seismic loads. A homeowner can use a plane or flagged section when installing this kind of structure. The best position to place the walls is at the center of each half of your home. This is a rare and practical method that one can utilize since it saves a lot of space. They work better when placed at the side of a building where there is no opening such as the window.

Consider the sill plates. In most places, people usually consider the sill plates as sills. They are horizontal structures attached to their vertical members to create resistance on lateral earth movement. Lumber has been the most common material used for this process, but modern structures have adopted other materials. Homeowners can have the sill plates made from the factory if they intend to purchase a custom house.

Use the braced framing. Braced frames are not far too different from the trusses or shear walls. They all protect a building from lateral movements just like the other types. Most constructors prefer installing the braces in a diagonal form to create additional strength to the existing framing. You can decide to have them installed straight from the factory or have them retrofitted from your home.

Rely on the base isolation method. The base isolation method prevents building structures from decoupling by separating the superstructure from the substructure. This procedure consists of isolation units and isolation components. The isolation units are the essential elements which provide a decoupling effect to a building. The isolation component is the connections between the units which have no decoupling impact on their own.

Use the pier structure. Most mobile homes rely on the pier structure. It offers protection from an earthquake by creating a separation of the house with the earth surface. The pier structure has components that hold the house to avoid free movement during an earthquake. The piers have a footing attached to the ground which offers extra support to the docks.

Consider using the rigid framing method. The rigid framing process works similarly with the braced structures, but their connection differs in a way. For the rigid frames, the connecting frames are usually stiff compared with the main house structures to make them strong enough. Their installation assumes that the beam moves freely and there is no change of weight when one includes the frames onto the main structure.

Besides having all these types of bracing to consider, you need to find a couple of things to make it successful. First, acquaint with the weak points of your house and determine which structure is ideal for its reinforcement. Besides that, acknowledge the seismic level within your area and your budget. Finally, identify a professional contractor who has experience in these structure to advice and install the bracing method that you choose.




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