REINFORCING EXISTING CMU WALL

[sonnyson]

I have an existing unreinforced exterior wall composed of 8" cmu and 4" brick. The wall is cracked on the interior face, most likely due to flexural overstress due to wind loads. The owner would like to reinforce the wall. Anyone have any experience with the use of polymer fabric reinforcement?

 

[oldrunner]

Check out Fyfe and Quakewrap. We're in the process of strengthening a 120 foot x 8 foot retaining wall that was "under-reinforced".

 

[Ingenuity]

We have desined and installed several FRP composites to CMU walls, most common is the use of glass, via wet lay-up applications.

Pultruded strips are also available too - mainly in carbon.

For blast resistance aramid (Kevlar) is used.

HTH

 

[SperlingPE]

I have spec'd composite reinforcing for a concrete floor. For your case, why not reinforce with steel?
Calculate the required reinforcing.
Removing face shells at 24" to 48" o.c. and placing a bar and grouting may be more cost effective. Depends on the specific application.

 

[scottiesei]

I'm with Sperling, I have added steel verts to hollow walls before. A little messy but with some high slump grout and epoxy is pretty easy. It also would depend on what kind of loads the structure will see, high winds, seismic? The tie steel can be a little cumbersome too. I have seen bracing used to support the roof and the top course is then removed. Then the tie beam becomes one course lower than the wall and is filled with steel added. PT plates w/embeded j-bolts are used to build the wall back up. All depends on how far you want to take it I guess.

 

[bjb]

I just was discussing reinforcing an existing cmu wall with the contractor on a renovation job we are doing. I suggested what SperlingPE suggested, and the contractor didn't think it would be a problem. We were going to saw cut face shells as required, place rebar, and then form and pour. That was the original plan. We then decided that since the architect wants to turn the wall into swiss cheese that we would remove all the masonry, rebuild with metal studs, and add diagonal bracing to the walls as required. This wall is not supporting any roof loads, it was just an infill wall.

It depends on the project what you do. I thought that applying composites to the face of the wall was work that needed to be done by a specialty contractor.

 

[henri2]

Have you considered using reinforced gunite/dry shotcrete? I know it has been used a lot for earthquake rehabilitation work on unreinforced brick masonry bldgs.