Roof strap down idea

[n74tg]

I've been thinking about an idea to help hold down a roof to a house.  It involves wire cables (1/4"-3/8")that would run from angle brackets bolted to the sill bolts; said cable running up to and around a piece of steel pipe (or rod) that would lay inside the roof trusses.  I have about 16 sill bolts, so would use about 8 pipes/rods scattered around the perimeter.   A picture is worth a thousand words, two views shown.

Any thoughts?

[glenn kangiser]

It would be similar in function to Simpson tie down systems used out here for earthquake bracing.  They use all thread and various connectors.

A difference would be that they have paid the $100,000 or so for testing for each part, which gets it the approval of various government agencies.  For your own satisfaction the above may do its job fine, but for the corporate, government good ol' boy building system you have to jump through all the proper hoops , pay off all the proper agencies and corporations to get your product approved - then after that you are approved to extract all the money you can from John Q Publc via the mandated building codes and enforcement racket.

[glenn kangiser]

I'm not knocking the codes as far as safety goes- they do that job.

I'm just knocking the way things are set up so that corporations and government make massive profits at the expense of poor middle class people simply needing a home.  No provision is made to allow people with less means to be able to economically build their own shelter at a reasonable cost.

Hello cardboard box. :-/

Where'd that come from? :-?

[n74tg]

I wasn't thinking so much of marketing this thing, just using it on my own house.  I live out "in the county", so there are no building inspectors, codes, etc to worry about.  About all I have to worry about is getting homeowners insurance when it's finished.

Granted nobody will see what is inside the walls, but if something about this design contributed to any damage done by a tornado an insurance adjuster might try to use it to deny a damage claim.

I guess ya pays ya money and takes ya chances.

Still, I'm interested in all of your opinions.

[glenn kangiser]

I think it could lessen damage but as with the Simpson system, the entire system would have to be taken into consideration.

It would have to be tied into the foundation steel somehow sufficiently so that it would pull against the entire foundation - not just pull out one block or the concrete around the anchor bolt.  I would say grabbing around or under  the bond beam steel with sufficient fasteners.  Any thing you do will increase the holding capacity -- I don't know what the forces pulling against it could be in a big tornado.

Just throwing out ideas - no functionality guarantees.

[John_C]

There are a many very strong ways of doing thinks that are not "code approved".  I lived in the FL keys for many years, an area that had been ravaged by hurricanes in 1910-11, 1925, 1926 and in 1935 arguably the strongest hurricane to ever hit mainland U.S.

There were houses in Tavernier that had been built 1912-1920  in which the ceiling joists/collar ties passed below the top plate of the walls.  They were boltes to the wall studs and to the rafter tails.  This kept the roof on as well as any modern metal bracket.

There was a house in Islamorada right on the beach that had sustained several direct hits without major structural damage.  A friend of mine helped repair it after hurricane Donna (1962 I believe).  Most of the repairs involved removing soffits and such to get at seaweed that had been left imbedded in the walls & roof.  The structure was post & beam with massive timbers.  It had ~3/4" threaded rod from deep in the footings through the 10x10 top plates with large steel washers.  The CBS house next door had been swept away...  all that was left was the slab.

There are many sound alternatives availbe in areas where you don't have Imperial entanglements.