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Reducing Holdowns Using OSB Exterior Sheathing

Jim Houlette — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:20:56 +0000

Tired of all the holdown straps?

You can eliminate many of the metal holdown straps from the upper floor wall to the main floor wall by modifying your OSB wall sheathing layout. When the OSB wall sheathing is continuous over the floor framing section or lapped with the rim board uplift loads can be transferred.

If you are utilizing prefabricated wall panels you can still have the OSB extend to the middle of the rim board. Just have the OSB extend below/above the plates as build in the shop. The only caution is, extra care is needed to prevent the overhanging OSB sheathing from being damaged during shipping.

This concept can also be utilized at the foundation sill plate to help reduce uplift loads that would otherwise require embedded straps such as STHD10RJs. In that situation, cross grain bending is not desired on the sill plate as the load transfers to the anchor bolts. The cross grain bending can be removed from the equation using mud sill anchors (MAS) attached to the exterior face of the OSB sheathing in lieu of anchor bolts. A great solution when utilizing prefabricated walls.

Typically, when building with wood you want many smaller fasteners that distribute the load out evenly rather than a few large fasteners concentrating the load.

EVstudio | Architecture and Engineering | Denver and Evergreen

Originally posted 2009-07-31 00:01:56.

Minimum Room Sizes and Minimum Ceiling Heights

Sean O'Hara — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:20:53 +0000

Occasionally when designing small residential units the question comes up about what the minimum size is for a room and what the minimum ceiling height needs to be.

For single family homes and duplexes we go to the 2006 International Residential Code. It states that each dwelling unit shall have at least one room with a minimum of 120 square feet. Other habitable rooms need to have at least 70 sf excepting kitchens. (Bathrooms, closets, halls and utility spaces are not considered habitable rooms so they're also exempt). In order to count the square footage towards the minimum it must have a flat ceiling over 7'-0" or you can count the area under a sloped ceiling from the point it hits 5'-0" and over.

There are also minimum ceiling height requirements under the 2006 IRC. Generally you need 7'-0" clear minimum. Beams spaced 4'-0" or more can be at 6'-6" above the floor. Where you have basements with no habitable spaces (bedrooms, kitchen, living, etc) the ceiling can be at 6'-8" and beams and ductwork can be at 6'-4". Where you have the sloped ceilings at least half the room needs to have a ceiling height over 7'-0". In bathrooms you need 6'-8" over the fixtures and a minimum of 30"x30" at that height where you have a showerhead.

The 2006 International Building Code kicks in for commercial buildings and buildings with more than 2 dwelling units. The room sizes are very similar to the IRC with a minimum of one habitable room over 120 sf and other habitable rooms needing to be 70 sf. Habitable rooms excepting the kitchen also have to be a minimum of 7'-0" wide and there needs to be 36" of clear space in front of counters and appliances.

On the minimum ceiling heights the IRC requires habitable spaces and corridors to be a minimum of 7'-6" and bathrooms, kitchens, storage areas and laundry areas can have ceilings at 7'-0" minimum. Where the ceiling slopes at least half the room needs to be over the minimum and you can't count any area under 5'-0" toward minimum room size. You can also furr down a ceiling to 7'-0" for up to 2/3 of the room.

I haven't utilized the rules for efficiency dwelling units but they exist in the 2006 IBC. For efficiency units you need a living room of not less than 220 sf and an additional 100 sf for occupants beyond 2. The unit has to have a closet. It also must have a kitchen sink, cooking appliance, refrigeration and a minimum of 30" in front of each appliance. It also must have its own bathroom with a water closet, lavatory and a bathtub or a shower.

Originally posted 2008-10-20 23:18:57.

Repairs to Concrete Foundations Made Simple Using Carbon-Fiber Kevlar Grid Straps

Jim Houlette — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:20:52 +0000

From Fortress Stabilization Systems

EVstudio recently met with Pinnacle Construction where they introduced us to Carbon-Fiber and Kevlar Grids used to repair foundation walls. Carbon-fiber has recently been introduced into the construction industry due to its very high tensile strength, lightweight and workability. Sections of the grid can be adhered to the concrete surface using a high strength epoxy bonding agent.

Fortress Stabilization Systems appears to be the leader in introducing this new technology to the construction industry, applying it to many different situations from bridges to basements. The most useful application for residential would be the Carbon Staples, Kevlar Neckties, and various shapes of Carbon-Fiber/Kevlar grids used to control cracks and provide additional strength to an otherwise failing foundation wall.

EVstudio's structural department is very excited to research more about Carbon-fiber and other applications it can be used in. Carbon-fiber is a great alternative to commonly used steel repairs.

From Fortress Stabilization Systems

Originally posted 2010-03-02 00:01:01.

Very Narrow Unit Plans for Apartments, Townhomes and Condos

Sean O'Hara — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:20:48 +0000

Typically residential units are 20' wide or wider but on occasion we design units that are much narrower. The example above is only 13' wide (4 meters) with a total living area of 1,200 square feet or about 120 square meters. This is a townhome unit and would be bordered by other units on both sides. With a comfortable size room being at least 10 feet (3 meters) wide this configuration leads to four rooms that can have windows. Typically that means the living room, kitchen/dining and two bedrooms. This unit is set up with a shared upstairs bathroom that would work better if the second bedroom was primarily used as an office.

This unit is about the same size but slightly wider and less deep. It has two bathrooms upstairs and is slightly more efficent.

The difficulty with these small units is that the stair is not terribly efficient, it takes up a lot of space per unit. This client wanted townhome type condo units but if we had been able to use two common area stairs and 1,200 square foot flat units we would have had more options in the unit plans. A townhome unit also tends to necessitate an additional powder room per unit to avoid having guests using the upstairs bathrooms.

The narrowest that you can make a room in the International Building Code is 7' which provides a minimum unit width but a unit that narrow would be very hard to make inviting.

Originally posted 2009-12-26 00:50:16.

Foundation Wall Height Design Considerations for Residential Garages

Kacy Landsittel — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:20:46 +0000

There are many ways that openings like doors and windows come into consideration with respect to how we, at EVstudio, design foundation walls. More specifically, there are special criteria that go into a foundation wall design for residential garages because the threshold of door openings are at grade elevation. It is firstly critical that the wall maintain a minimum height of 6 inches above grade to prohibit moisture penetration to the typical wood framed structure it supports and of course the interior too. The foundation wall has to also maintain proper frost depth, which is a specific distance below grade, determined by local building codes and varies by location and state. Typically in our plans, the heights of a foundation wall are all relative to the finished floor elevation. However, when it comes to incorporating a swing door or an overhead door, the distance that a portion of the foundation wall we specify to be dropped is relative to the wall at that particular location.

There are some general rules we go by and different circumstances can result in a variety of solutions. For a typical above grade garage accommodating one car length in depth, we normally set the top of foundation wall height a minimum of 6-12 inches above the lowest point of the top of the garage floor slab. There are a variety of reasons the top of foundation wall is set to where it is and some architects and builders take that into consideration on a case by case basis, others just conform to standard practices. Also, we specify to slope the garage floor, and is usually 4-6 inches of fall from back to front depending on the depth of the garage and the presense of any floor drains. The result then at the rear of the garage is that the foundation wall ends up at 2-8 inches above the rear of the garage floor. For the allowance of a swing door or an overhead garage door, whether it is at the rear of the garage or the front, not only does the foundation wall need to be lowered for the purpose of the door threshold, but it also needs to be dropped further to allow for the floor slab to be thickened for structural support of the slab itself, stabilization of the adjoining foundation walls, and also the load of vehicles above. This thickened slab is formed and poured after the foundation walls have cured, which is why specifying the distance of the drop itself is important for the workers in the field who set up the form work for the concrete that is to be poured. We set the vertical depth of the thickened slab at a minimum of 8 inches below the 4 inches of actual floor slab, or 12 inches below the lowest top of slab height .

Once we have determined what height the foundation wall needs to be above the lowest top of slab height and take into account the 12 inches of thickened slab, the drop in the wall for an overhead garage door is pretty easy to calculate. For the graphic example above, I have set the foundation wall height at 8 inches above the lowest point of my top of slab height, so the net distance for dropping the foundation wall is 8 inches plus 12 inches, or 20 inches. While an above grade garage will usually have a continuous foundation wall height, we specify the necessary drops in it so doors can be incorporated. All in all, each project requires its own analysis to determine foundation wall heights and these design considerations are critical for every project.

Originally posted 2009-11-01 02:00:36.

Architecture School on Sundance

Sean O'Hara — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:20:44 +0000

The Sundance Channel has a show called Architecture School. It follows the work of a studio at Tulane focused on designing and building a house in some of the more difficult neighborhoods in New Orleans.

Chris and Elicia and I have been watching it and I think it is well done. The project involves real clients and real construction so it is a more interesting show that it might be if it focused more on the traditional studio project. Of course my perspective favors the architecture school experience.

Originally posted 2008-09-12 20:35:47.

Caribbean School of Architecture

Planning for Housing and Community Development

evstudio — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:20:40 +0000

This post comes from Stephanie O'Hara, Planner Analyst for EVstudio. Immediately prior to joining EVstudio she worked for Jefferson County, Colorado for 6 years in various planning roles. EVstudio looks for planning opportunities in both the public and private sector:

While working at Jefferson County I developed the 2005-2010 Consolidated Plan which is a strategy for housing and community and economic development. The plan outlines goals, objectives and policies based on the housing and community needs for low to moderate income, homeless and special needs populations.

The plan was developed over 2 years with extensive community and stakeholder involvement. A technical steering committee was formed consisting of non-profit organizations that serve the target populations, representatives from participating jurisdictions and governmental/quasi-governmental entities involved in housing, and community and economic development.

The public was involved throughout the process. Numerous community meetings and events were conducted as well as a 30 day comment period when the final draft was completed.

Originally posted 2009-02-25 00:01:48.

Feng Shui Elements in Home Design

Dean Dalvit — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:20:35 +0000

With a lot of the design that we do here at EVstudio, we are often asked about Feng Shui and how it may apply to the design of a residential home. For the uninitiated, Feng Shui is an ancient Chinese strategy to align the energies that flow between the heavens and earth. Feng Shui strategies are commonly applied in the fields of architecture and interior design by developing spaces and the objects within the space specifically to channel these energies in order to improve the quality of one's life. While you can imagine the depth of the superstition that has evolved around these strategies over the millennia, one thing is for certain: Good Feng Shui is good design.

In the same way that North American ancient tribes would build their homes facing south, believing that the sun gods would nurture their lives (when in fact, it's good solar orientation and the basis of good passive solar design because of the solar angles of the Sun's path through the sky throughout the year), Feng Shui is a culmination of thousands of years of refined design techniques that truly do result in a better quality of life within the building , regardless the belief systems that got it there.

As a result, we try to learn from the ancients wherever we can and implement these good design strategies into our modern day design. Recently, we were charged with the task of determining the Feng Shui qualities of an existing plan that was found in a plan library on the internet for a client who is very interested in having a home steeped in Feng Shui. Like many other program requirements, this is almost always going to result in the need for changes to an existing plan, or an alltogether new custom design solution that is unique to the client.

In any case, with the help of Elicia here in our Evergreen office we put together a Feng Shui analysis for the plan and below, you can get a sense of the elements that are affected by the energy flow:

Feng Shui Study for a Small Home

The basic idea here is to encourage a positive flow of energy through the home. When people discuss "good flow" in any existing home as they traverse the spaces, one has to wonder how the two terms may be connected linguistically. The reason is because when you experience a space with good Feng Shui, it just feels good. The space does "flow" and the reasons for this are built into the design of the space - whether or not the architect ever intended for it to be good Feng Shui.

Obviously, when good Feng Shui is intended, the results are far less coincidental and to many of us, far more obvious. Volumes have been written about the history, magic and science of Feng Shui and it has even created a career path for consultants to specialize in Feng Shui design. Our approach here at EVstudio is to capture the fundamental understanding of the techniques and strategies, and apply them in the context of the everyday architecture that we create. For those who seek deeper levels of Feng Shui design, we can oblige them as well by applying deeper studies and applying more of the philosophical tenets of the methodology into the architecture.

This is a topic that will warrant much further discussion in future posts, but for now you at least have a taste of how Feng Shui can be applied to Architecture.

Originally posted 2009-01-09 13:34:58.

Wind or Fallen Tree Damage Report by a Structural Engineer

Jim Houlette — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 21:20:34 +0000

From 9News

Unfortunately, we are experiencing some high winds as the year ends. Although structures built in the last 20 years should have been designed to withstand a 90mph wind gust or higher in some areas along the front range it doesn't protect the structures from falling trees or other forms of wind damage. There are of course many structures built prior to the building codes that may not be able to withstand the high winds.

If your structure is damaged from these high winds or anything else (fire, snow, water, soil movement) you may need a structural engineer to inspect the structure to determine if it's safe and what repairs are needed.

EVstudio can help you get through this. Our structural engineers are based in Denver and Evergreen and live throughout the Denver area.

In an emergency please call or email Jim Houlette, PE at 720-975-5368 or jim@evstudio.com for help. Anytime.

Do I remodel or start from scratch?

Sean O'Hara — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 23:46:35 +0000

We have done quite a number of residential remodels in the last of couple years, and one of the first questions that people ask their architect is often "do you think I should remodel it or should I tear it down and start over". This is not an easy question to answer and it is very project specific, but there are a few starting points that I use.

Is the building structurally sound? Some structural fixes are easy but some aren't worth the effort. If the building is going to require a lot of work to make it safe to remodel then that tends to push the needle towards tearing it down.

Does the structure have historic value, is it on a historic register, in a historic district? If you answered yes, then you most likely have to look at a remodel or a serious amount of paperwork and meetings. There have been a few purchases that have fallen through for this reason.

Do you like the style of the existing house? Again, if you like the aesthetic of the house then remodeling may make sense. It might also make sense if the house has an expensive exterior that might be hard to rebuild within your budget. We did a remodel in Bonnie Brae where the exterior was all stone, brick and expensive tile roof so the exterior stayed.

Does the existing house preclude you from doing what you want to do? This is a multipart question, does the house sit on the site in a way that makes expansion difficult, does the room layout really not work, do the levels in the house not work or are the ceilings too low. Those aren't always remodel fixes and may mean starting fresh.

Do you have enough room to go out, or do you need to go up (or down) also? Adding levels to an existing house definitely adds complexity and may point towards starting fresh.

On the other hand, does the existing house allow you to get away with something that you couldn't do if you scrapped? We're currently doing a feasibility on a multi-unit building in Denver that is built to the property lines, if it were torn down it would have to be rebuilt 5-10 feet from the property lines and the site would yield less units. On a smaller scale, your existing staircase or window design may be built in a way that we couldn't build from scratch.

What are your plans for the house? Consider what your goal is, are you just doing a fix and flip or are you planning to stay for the long haul? This will have an effect on just how far you will need to go with your changes; how far do you chase that old pipe, how much do you insulate existing walls and do you really need to replace the furnace or the windows.

There is also an obvious need to look at the costs of your options and you can look at involving an experienced contractor or builder to aid in this analysis. You need to figure out just how many of the systems will need to be remodeled or replaced in order to bring the house up to current standards and codes. As architects we can give you a lot of advice but you should consider bringing on someone who works with material and labor costs daily.

There is another option to consider, if the house just doesn't meet your needs but you can't make the numbers work on tearing it down, you might look at selling and buying a lot that makes more sense.

Finally, if you are facing this dilemma or are looking at property to purchase and need some advice, please give us a call. EVstudio has experience and advice for your remodel.

Originally posted 2008-06-29 23:44:39.

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