What is a shear wall chord?
The vertical members at either end of a shear wall are called chords. In the Perforated Shear Wall (PSW) shear wall design method, chords are only provided at each end of the entire shear wall and are designed to resist the entire moment acting in the shear wall.
How do I calculate shear wall requirements?
Where shear wall segments are the same length, simply dividing the total force by the number of segments will provide the force for each one. Unit shear is also easily determined by dividing the total shear force by the sum of resisting segment lengths.
Can shear walls have openings?
Shear walls are generally located at the sides of buildings or arranged in the form of core that houses stairs and lifts. Due to functional requirements such as doors, windows, and other openings, a shear wall in a building contains many openings.
What is a shear wall diaphragm?
A diaphragm is a flat structural unit acting like a deep, thin beam. The term “diaphragm” is usually applied to roofs and floors. A shear wall, however, is a vertical, cantilevered diaphragm. These construction systems can be used when designing a building for wind or seismic lateral loads.
What is the minimum width of a shear wall?
1.1 Shear Wall Thickness. Minimum nominal thickness of masonry shear walls shall be 8 inches (203 mm). Exception: Shear walls of one-story buildings are permitted to be a minimum nominal thickness of 6 inches (152 mm).
What is the difference between shear wall and bearing wall?
While columns and load-bearing walls keep buildings standing up, carrying the compression load of the structure down to its foundation, the shear wall is what keeps structures from blowing over, resisting the lateral forces of wind and seismic activity.
How do you determine if a wall is a shear wall?
Shear walls are typically identified on blueprints by a solid line with a thinner line indicating the sheathing that will cover it (and which is usually then specified in a separate sheathing schedule). Shear walls are one of many building components that are shown on architectural plans.