Wanted to get some input on the different ways of managing a detail library. The firm I am at has built up a library full of typical details you can pick out and customize for each project. They are all printed out on paper and appear as a book, if you will, of details separated into different...
Anyone know what "puddling" is in concrete construction. It was a term used in a webinar today in the context of high strength concrete columns. It seems to be a way of continuing the strength of the concrete column through a slab. Thanks in advance.
I wanted to check my thought process on adding solar panels. The code allows a 5% change in gravity loads to avoid retrofitting the structural elements. The solar panels are fairly light and if you really think about it, wherever you place the solar panels, you're removing the area for roof live...
I am doing a remodel for a two-story commercial building, shortening 2 shearwalls. On the second floor, there are two obvious wood shear walls, but they are on opposite ends of the building about 106' apart. There are 6" dia. HSS columns about 24'± on center in between the shear walls. Right...
Just read a recent thread about shear failure in a wall and it was claimed that it was backstay effect. I couldn't find a good description on google so I thought I'd start a new thread.
I have a 5" post tension slab. At the edges, where the anchorages are, it thickens up to 7" which is typical. The contractor is asking to keep it at 5" at one of the cold joints where we have a pour strip to account for shrinkage. There is no soil around the area. I have never seen 5" at the...
I have a 5" thick post tension slab in a parking garage. It's a one way slab spanning 18' from beam to beam. The contractor is putting about a 17 kip (D+L) point load (shoring load for floor above) about 3' from the beam on each side. He says he's done it without cribbing before (the footprint...
I'm looking at plans from a bridge built in the 40's and the way they called out their wide flanges is: 1- 14" x 8" WF @ 48#. I'm assuming the tick marks are correct as it is hand drafted and scanned making it not entirely readable. How would I compare that to today's nomenclature?
What is the difference between the special cantilevered steel column and ordinary cantilevered steel column? It's in the ASCE 7-10 Table 12.2-1.G. I cannot use ordinary in SDC D, E, and F, so I always use special which gives me a better R-value, also. But what distinguishes special? If it's in...
ASCE 7-10 12.13.4 allows a reduction of seismic loads (demand) at soil interactions (i.e. foundation) by 25%. Our california building code allows an increase in soil capacity by 1/3 for seismic loads. And lastly, we are allowed a 1.1 safety factor instead of 1.5 in retaining walls when we use...
I did a seismic evaluation, because the owner wanted to retrofit the building to upgrade it to current codes. We did it and gave him a plan on what to do to bring the building up to code (Industrial building, wood roof, reinf. brick walls). Plans were submitted, then he decided it was too...
I'm doing a steel stair case with the main building engineered by another consultant. Gravity load is fairly straight forward, but the lateral load... What chapter of the ASCE would I be using? How do I get my lateral load for my shear connection to the building? I assumed I would just get an...
I have an open patio design, just a basic trellis. Problem is I'm in Seismic Design Category 'E' where knee braces are not allowed. Anyone have ideas how to get around this?
I am putting a 10'x10' opening in an existing 8" CMU wall, fully grouted, #4 @ 24"O.C. each way. I usually use tube jams to one face of the wall around the opening, similar to wood jams. (1) horizontal spanning across the opening and (2) vertical (1) on each side spanning near full height of the...
The NDS SDPWS Section 4.3.5.2 says that "Collectors for shear transfer shall be provided through the full length of force transfer." My understanding is that the collector would be the top plates. However, it was mentioned that the collector are the straps around the opening in the wall. So my...
ACI 318-11 9.3.4(a) states that phi for shear "shall be .6 if the nominal shear strength of the member is less than the shear corresponding to the development of the nominal flexural strength of the member." Does this mean that if flexure governs then I have to use .6 for shear instead of .75...
