Second Story Seismic Corner Bracing Above A Garage Door

The large opening of a garage door and the weight of a second story room built over the garage can result in the walls being too weak to withstand earthquake shaking.

Second story seismic corner bracing above a garage door.

Method pfg portal frame at garage door openings in seismic design categories a b and c. 24 28 2 story gambrel garage with shed dormers pent roof carriage style doors larger windows cupola weatherwave gable vents and exterior light 2 story gambrel enjoy the spaciousness of the 2 story gambrel. Methods of bracing shall be as described in sections r602 10 2 and r602 10 4 1. 2 first story of three story.

The alternate braced wall panels described in section r602 10 3 2 shall also be permitted d. 0 one story or top of two or three story. Areas include the high pressure eave and corner zones porch and roof overhangs gable ends and where. A client wants to have a 20 garage door and an 11 garage door on a 32 wall.

Tim healey in a house design where some main walls may have many openings portal frames can be the key to providing code compliant wall bracing. Roof framing joins bearing walls or beams. Stories above braced wall line. When the narrow sections of the wall on each side of the opening are not reinforced or braced the weakness is worse.

I have used the simpson strong tie wood strong wall portals before but the max opening is 16 4. 1 first story of two story or second story of three story. For example in some cases the code will call for a 4 foot sheathed section on both sides of a garage door opening or at the house corner or flanking an entry door interfering with the. 1 inch 25 4 mm 1 foot 304 8 mm.

The connection of the sheathing to the supporting members in these areas is most critical and often may be detailed with a higher density of connectors than other roof areas. This leaves 1 8 on each side of the garage and 1 8 in the middle. Complicating this design style is the interior spaces that are frequently open both horizontally and vertically over one and two story spaces resulting in reduced building stiffness of the lateral system minor 2002. However like all remodeling projects adding a second story addition has a broad range of complexity and challenges.

Anyone recommend any other options for providing the proper bracing for this scenario. A second story room addition above an existing garage can make a substantial change to your current home s curb appeal and of course create an increase to your living space.