Wood-Framed Shear Wall Construction: An Illustrated Guide, 2nd Edition
by Thor Matteson, Structural Engineer

This guide will help carpenters, builders, designers and inspectors understand the construction of wood-framed shear walls. Written by a former carpenter in terms that carpenters will understand, this 8-1/2 x 11, 100-plus page guide contains over 140 photos and diagrams. Carpenters and builders will find this book indispensable. Students, engineers, designers and inspectors will discover valuable information and tips throughout the guide.

The International Code Council, or ICC--the same organization that publishes the International Building Code--released Wood-Framed Shear Wall Construction--an Illustrated Guide in March, 2004.

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This guide will give carpenters and others interested in residential construction an understanding of one of the most important building components in today's typical homes: the wood-framed shear wall. As a Structural Engineer and former carpenter, I have many years of experience in residential construction, both designing and building. I began to wonder why I kept seeing the same shear wall problems repeated throughout the West, and offered to give a talk to the local contractors association on shear wall basics. While preparing for this presentation I looked for any references I could suggest for those seeking more information on shear walls. I reviewed dozens of books on carpentry and construction, but did not turn up anything I felt addressed many of the conditions carpenters must often deal with in the field. Engineers have many resources on shear wall design. I present much of this knowledge in terms that will make sense to builders. This guide fills the void between what current publications present about shear wall construction and what engineers always thought carpenters knew.

The first sections of this guide cover the basic principles of shear walls. This will not make you an engineer, but will show you the essential five ingredients in any shear wall. The Construction Requirements section covers many basic situations carpenters encounter while building shear walls, and the correct ways to approach them. The "Quick Start" figure on the inside cover illustrates many of these requirements. The last sections present several advanced topics related to shear walls, such as collectors (drag-ties or drag-struts), shear walls with sloping tops, openings in shear walls, building shear walls on stepped footings, etc.

Interested parties may download a non-printable PDF version of APPENDIX B of the Guide, "Engineering Principles of Shear Walls with Sloping Top Plates." (This is provided as a public service to the engineering community in the hope of promoting better design of sloping shear walls.)

Table of Contents

Background Information

• Purpose of Shear Walls
• Why Shear Walls Matter
• Some Misconceptions About Shear Walls
• Damage Control Versus Life-Safety
• Why so Much Fuss About Shear Walls Recently?
• Shear Walls and the Building Codes

How Shear Walls Work

• Basic Shear Wall Concepts
• Five Essential Shear Wall Principles
• Generic Wood-framed Shear Walls (Beyond the Schematic Diagrams)
• What Happens to Shear Walls in Laboratory Tests
• Example: Shear Wall on a Slab Foundation, with Real Numbers

Construction Requirements

• Basic Shear Wall Requirements and Solutions to Common Problems
• Action--Getting the Loads into the Shear Wall
• Reaction--Transferring the Load From the Shear Wall to the Structure Below
• Shear Strength--Making the Wall Strong Enough to Resist the Load
• Tie-downs--Keeping Your Shear Walls from Rocking Up and Down
• Bearing Capacity at End Posts--Keeping Your Shear Walls from Punching into the Structure Below
• Myths That Cost You Time and Money

Related Topics

• Foundation Considerations
• Prefabricated Shear Walls and Bracing Panels
• Collectors (Also Known as Drag-Struts or Drag-Ties)
• Wood Shrinkage

Advanced Shear Walls

• Openings Through Shear Walls
• Shear Walls with Sloping Tops
• Stepped Footings--Hillside Anchors

Hardware Manufacturers

• Miscellaneous Hardware
• Prefabricated Shear Walls or Bracing Panels

Appendix A--Australian Approach to Shear Wall Tie-downs
Appendix B--Engineering Principles of Shear Walls with Sloping Top Plates

Glossary
References

The following errata appear only in the first printing of the book. Corrections were made for the second printing. Page "ii" of the book shows the printing number at the bottom of the page.

Page 16: This change is key to understanding how shear walls work!
In Figure 10, two notes are interchanged. The tie-down and anchor rod on the right transfer uplift force from the shear wall into the footing. The tie-down on the left will not resist any force until the "action" force at the top of the wall reverses direction. Figure 10 (PDF)

Page 26:
Part of this page did not print. Page 26 (PDF)

Page 54:
Figure 60 does not print well enough to show the nails in question. Figure 60 (PDF)

Page 57:
The text refers to Figures 67 and 68; The references should be for Figures 68 and 69, respectively. Text in the caption for Figure 68 should refer to Figure 69.

Note: You may view the Adobe PDF file for any of the updated pages or figures by clicking on their respective links. You may also save the files to your own computer. While you are viewing the file in Adobe Acrobat Reader, click on the diskette icon in the upper left corner of the Acrobat window and fill in an appropriate file name and location on your own computer to save the file.

We strive to keep this site up to date. Please e-mail any corrections or comments to: faq "at" shearwalls.com

Last updated: June 26, 2005 (Note: No new errata have been found since late 2004)