Shear Walls Secret: The Hidden Force That Holds Buildings Together

Description: In this introductory lesson, we'll talk about the importance of shear walls in building construction and why they are essential in resisting lateral forces such as wind and earthquakes. We'll demonstrate the three forces that wind or seismic exerts on the building, and we'll show you how shear walls on either side, the roof, and even the floor system help to distribute those forces. We'll also explain what racking, base shear, and overturning are and why preventing them is crucial in preventing building collapse. We'll show you how to transfer the inherent rigidity of wood structural panels to the wall to make it more resistant to lateral forces, and we'll discuss the different types of wood sheathing you can use to achieve this. Join us to learn more about shear walls and how they can help protect your building from natural disasters.

Article in the Journal of Light Construction on shear walls

Please remember that I'm not showing the best way to do anything, but just the method that works well for us. Thanks for watching!

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#building #construction #framing #huberpartner

[engineerjosh]

I'm a structural engineer! This video was great, and thank you for also sharing the different screenshots from the NDS publications as well! I love it!

[timkrouse]

I work in demolition and you are making my job REALLY difficult. Thanks.

[rayjackson]

I am a carpenter and home inspector for about 40 years. You did a nice simple job of explaining the system

[FutureFaz]

I’m a licensed structural engineer in California. This video is fantastic. Great work!

[jtthpsmbdiy]

You're a true teacher and not just a talker. Very informative and helpful. Thank You!

[RyanPhelps-pj]

Excellent vid! I'm a retired architect (with 3 years structural engineering at university and 9 years hands-on construction experience). You explained the basic concepts in accessible, layman terms. This is important as many builders and framers are more likely to watch vids from a framer, understand the concepts and incorporate this knowledge in their work. Thank you!

[tubewatcher]

Thank you for the education. Met with a structural engineer last week to verify load bearing wall and received a significant education that I wish I had received decades ago. Wish I'd have taken my education more seriously and followed engineering.

[randallrogers]

Thanks for staying on site after work hours to educate us. That was incredibly helpful.

[robthewaywardwoodworker]

Great stuff. I've been designing homes for over 30 years and have built several in that time, and I was always taught/told that the sheathing should go perpendicular to the studs. This was very enlightening. Thanks for the mini tutorial! Never too old to learn new things.

[seanlarson]

This would be a great practical video to show in an intro to statics engineering course. Very nice example with the simple starting wall. Then get into the individual and total nail shear forces, so nerdy! Love it.

[jasonwrex]

I saw a couple houses collapse in my time as a builder by other builders. It was always from new crews who didn’t understand that you can’t rely on braces to hold an entire house with roof set. Sheathing and decking are your friend, sooner rather than later! Good video.

[stipcrane]

Great presentation. Just learning the terms (Overturning, Racking, and Base Shear) is helpful in understanding better and being able to describe what most of us intuitively know. Construction is full of urban legends regarding the code and engineering. It is wonderful to get the straight scoop from PEs on how various forces act upon structures rather than the BS at lunchtime when framers pontificate about science.

[evan-edstrom]

Very true about the field nails holding the panel to the framing! I had a project framed with Zip System sheathing where the sheathing got a little wet during construction, and buckled in or out between each stud up to 1/2" in deflection. But the sheet itself stayed firmly attached to the studs.

[microponics]

My parents built their house out of Cinder blocks all the other neighbors thought they were crazy. A decade of hurricanes and their house is still standing strong. The neighbors have had whole walls blown in Their roof sagged because it was made out of particle wood.. My parents demanded no particle board. Yet the neighbors house is worth more on the market because it's slightly bigger and has a pool. I'd roll with the cinderblock house all day.

[medicbabeID]

0215 and I just sat through an excellent video on shear walls, and learned a lot of new information & terminology. My day is going well already.

[markturner]

I live 30min off the coast in Texas. My framer installed 2 shear walls in my home. 3/4” plywood and bolted in the slab. It is relatively cheap to do this and adds so much safety and security.

[Happy-zebm]

One of the best videos and most knowledgeable I have seen. Thank you for your great work. you are a awesome framer. God Bless

[MangoOverthere]

This is pure gold. Thank you for taking the time to make these they're very informative!

[jeffeldredge]

I survived Hurricane Andrew and then drove back down to my house, in South Miami Heights from NW 41st Street. Most homes built using cinder blocks construction survived. One housing development of 3000 homes, Lennar I think, gone. wiped of the map. I saw entire homes of cinder block gone. Roofs missing on some. Others, not a frickin’ scratch on them. O lived in a Quad townhome set up, Mine unit was on the west side, I had an 4’x5’ Plate glass above my front door. It had a 6” crack in it. My unit had zero damage. no leaks, nothing. The people behind my unit that were facing east? They got wiped out, so did their neighbor facing east. My neighbor facing west, got damaged because of his east facing neighbor. The guy across the street from me, A soccer coach at FIU, je had just spent $30, 000 on nee Scandinavian furniture, custom furniture. It was beautiful wood working! GONE! It belonged to Andrew and his mansion in the sky. What a mind blowing nightmare Andrew was. The closest any non combatant will ever come to what a combat zone looks like. Any seriously damaging hurricane. Sorry. Reliving those moments.

[droptopchevy]

Great video and information. As a licensed contractor I am currently working on a insuarance claim where the sheeting was installed improperly and a wind storm racked the entire home. Definitely a very important part of the building process and easily overlooked.