Wood Post - Holdown Shim Fastening
Wood Post - Holdown Shim Fastening
(OP)
Let's say we have a shearwall endpost holdown which utilizes SDS screws, but it's installed misaligned by one stud's width, so a short piece of 2x6 shim is needed to fill the gap. Do you think it would be acceptable to simply lengthen the SDS screws by 1.5" and assume that the shim is now acting as an integral part of the endpost? Or do I really need to add extra fasteners (in addition to those used in the holdown) between the shim 2x6 and the continuous endpost studs? And to take the theoretical question one step further, what about for a through-bolted holdown? The latter would seem to allow shim slippage, while the bolts are subjected to undesirable bending, but for some reason having the SDS screws through all the plies "feels" better, even though I think the theory should be the same. It seems pretty conservative to have 20 SDS screws in a holdown and then require 20 more, located above the holdown, just to make the shim integral...but maybe that's what it takes? Thanks for your input.






RE: Wood Post - Holdown Shim Fastening
RE: Wood Post - Holdown Shim Fastening
Garth Dreger PE - AZ Phoenix area
As EOR's we should take the responsibility to design our structures to support the components we allow in our design per that industry standards.
RE: Wood Post - Holdown Shim Fastening
RE: Wood Post - Holdown Shim Fastening
You will need to check with Simpson to see what they say, but the catalog states “Simpson Strong-Tie Company Inc. does not guarantee the performance or safety of products that are modified, improperly installed or not used in accordance with the design and load limits set forth in this catalog.”
Garth Dreger PE - AZ Phoenix area
As EOR's we should take the responsibility to design our structures to support the components we allow in our design per that industry standards.