making your house strap

[WA1GFZ]

When all the lumber was delivered to my new place it banded with this spring metal strap that was quite hard and strong. There was a hundred feet or so. At first I was going to pitch it but decided to roll it up and put it in the basement. I found a cool use for it. I cut it in 1 foot lengths and bent it in a shallow L. The short side was drilled for a 1/4 inch lag bolt. The other side for 3 deck screws. In the walls I drilled and ran a 5 inch lag bolt up through the double wall sill plate and into the bottom of each rafter then shot 3 deck screws into each stud. The framer used wind clips between the rafter and top sill. This makes things a lot stronger. Next I will put an X across the main wall studs with two hunks of strap so the wind can't rack the house.
Yup this may be crazy but we are due for a big one and I don't want to collect on insurance and prefer to strap the WX OM.  My bilder brother in law builder thinks the plywood walls will handle the wind but the house wouldn't be stronger if the strap went in the trash.  I'm on the side of a hill open to North, West and South...

[Bill, KD0HG]

I hate to see anything go to waste...Good thinkin'.

This house is post and beam construction, the designer (my bro-in-law, too) thought it was plenty heavy, but the county inspector insisted that we use steel straps to tie the frame to the foundation. So doing sorta the same thing, 3/16" steel Simpson strap, several screws on the topside into the frame posts, the bottoms screwed into the concrete foundation with 3/8" lag bolts.

Tell you what, doing what you did will help keep the place from creaking during serious wind storms, if it doesn't keep you from visiting Kansas.

[WA1GFZ]

you guys get those "no place like homers " so good idea. I have a J bolt every 4 to 6 feet and they are bolted to the sill. The framer overlapped the floors with plywood so everything is well attached to the sill. The weak point was the top sill since it was the end of the plywood. These guys the next street up put up a place with osb board and the town made them run straps across the floor joints outside.
I may put some strapping from the sill across the wall studs in the basement on the knee walls if I have enough. The strap is very strong and tuff on drill bits.
The guy who knocks the house down someday is going to be swearing at the nut who installed all the lag bolts.

[The Slab Bacon]

that sounds like a lot of work! Just glue it together with a little pickled eggplant!

[WA1GFZ]

It is a lot of work and I considered urathane glue but would never waste egg plant
like that.

[The Slab Bacon]

It is a lot of work and I considered urathane glue but would never waste egg plant
like that.

You know your right, one should never waste pickled eggplant. I'll tell you what, I'll send you up some of my wife's gravy!! that'll glue anything together!

[W1RKW]

Frank,
I did the same thing when I built my deck.

[Ed/KB1HYS]

Here's a nightmare construction for you, how about a 3BR ranch in NH built with 2x3 exterior walls!!!  The central wall is also 2x3s. the other interior walls are built of 1.25x1.25 in sticks and 3/8th inch sheet rock, lag bolted to the exterior and or the one central wall.   

I guess building codes were a lot less stringent back in the 60's...

[k4kyv]

The only problem I see with the strapping material is that, if I recall correctly, the stuff rusts easily.

[W1RKW]

The only problem I see with the strapping material is that, if I recall correctly, the stuff rusts easily.

I thought about that too especially since it's fastened to ACQ lumber.  I know aluminum flashing and ACQ don't mix.  I'm not sure about steel but it's possible.

[WA1GFZ]

My straps are inside the wall and who cares if it rusts a bit. It is coated with paint.
it should be dry as a bone with tyvek on the outside. I put the last ones in this past weekend. 5 inch lag up into each rafter in 60 places should hold it.
The new pressure treated chemicals need special hardware so be careful.
Stainless maybe.

[W1RKW]

The new pressure treated chemicals need special hardware so be careful.
Stainless maybe.

Unfortunately, I learned after the fact.  When I built the deck and put up the ledgerboard I put it right over aluminum flashing. I later learned I should have used copper flashing instead.  All other HW is stainless.  There shouldn't be a problem with that as far as I know.  Maybe I won't be hear long enough to find out.

[WA1GFZ]

Bob,
Copper is the way to go and anything else will break down quickly. You might consider replacing it a section at a time.

[W1RKW]

Unfortunately, that's easier said than done. There's a layer of aluminum sandwiched between the ledger board and sill.  I'd have to rip the deck apart to replace it and I have no intention of doing that.

The dumb-ass builder put the aluminum flashing in place when the place was built.  I should have been more diligent about knowing what should have been put in place. Yet I would have thought a builder would know as well that copper should be used instead of aluminum. It didn't occur to me until I started construction.  Live and learn.

Hopefully I'll be long gone before reconstruction is necessary and hopefully there won't be any water issues in the meantime.

[WA1GFZ]

you should be fine if it stays dry but a little tar may help.