The death of the 8’ sheet… One of the biggest items when sheathing a wall vertically is that the sheathing has to be continuous (602.10.4 &.5) which meant that an 8’ sheet wouldn’t cut it in many places so longer ones were required. Why, well you remember that 1/8” expansion gap that is required for expansion & contraction – well it now falls on a joist eliminating that path. The dreaded wavy panel seam ceases to be an issue & low & behold the amount of air leakage took a major nose dive. With changes to the codes (caused mainly by a better understanding of seismic shear forces & what was required to help prevent a wall from racking in the wind…) it became a requirement in certain areas to start sheathing the corners & a few select other areas vertically.Īs you can imagine this started leading many to start asking, if sheathing these areas vertically is good, how about the rest of the house, should we go back to horizontal in those areas or simply stick with doing it vertically? Well with the exception of maybe a few large windows, going with 100% vertical easily wins out especially when you consider a few more of the unexpected benefits. ¾ plywood is a favorite for some as it has been tested to stop a 2×4 being shot at it 120 mph.įor years, many of us simply installed sheathing horizontally & used a 16 penny nail slid between the sheets to help ensure there was room for expansion & to help reduce the swelling caused by an moisture that got between the two sheets. At minimum I prefer a ½ sheet for 16” OC framing, while others I know will go no less than 5/8 or ¾.
#METAL STUD CONSTRUCTION NOTCHED UP OR DOWN CODE#
This is also one reason why you may wish to consider bumping your sheathing up past code minimums & going with a thicker panel. (For example the assembly needs to be able to resist anywhere from a-29 PSF force at the corners, while the center area should be able to resist a -24 PSF.The bulk of damage from wind hitting a building straight on is actually caused by debris penetrating the structure which is why many coastal communities require “hurricane” glass or some other form of protection. While one would assume the most damage from the winds comes from the wind hitting the building, most damage sustained comes from the wind hitting the building at an angle where it can get behind the siding and essentially peel it off.The next biggest area of damage actually is on the backside of the building where the suction forces created can easily rip off most sidings & even foam board. For most residential structures the most typical materials used now are OSB or plywood while in some commercial wall assemblies a specialized gypsum type product is used. If I had to sum up sheathing I would refer to it as A material used to enclose & protect the structure (along with its contents) which also helps provides the needed structural stiffness & backing required by that assembly. For most builders & crews the biggest question when it comes to sheathing a wall is “should we do it while the wall is being framed on the ground, or after we have stood it up?” For others that have to add foam on the exterior, some start to wonder, “if I need to add this insulated foam board, do I really need to use wood sheathing everywhere or can the foam replace some of it?” With all the changing codes many are starting to also wonder, is what we did in the past still the best method, or are there easier & better means to do it now? Unlike OVE where the premise is primarily on reducing the amount of studs or wood used in a wall, the basic premise behind Optimized Framing Techniques is taking the best framing techniques that fit the house you are building & utilizing them to not only save resources but to also have a strong, durable structure that uses a minimal amount of connectors required by other techniques.
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