Struts and blocks in frame construction. Jambs in a frame house How to properly install braces in a frame house

Ukosina - obliquely installed timber, whose purpose is to support vertical structure or part of it. In construction, they are used to increase the rigidity of the frame. Jambs in a frame house are installed to increase the stability and strength of the frame.

In Russia, frame houses began to be built after many years of their construction in America and Europe. Canadian and Finnish frame technologies have been formed. Accumulated vast experience frame construction. All mistakes, shortcomings and their impact on the operation of houses are summarized in the Rules or the Code. Some of its provisions have been translated and included in the Code of Rules for Design and Construction frame houses operating in Russia. The code allows you to use someone else's experience, build frame houses without errors from available materials. Unfortunately, in practice, the rules are distorted due to the desire to reduce the cost and simplify construction. The alteration takes place at the level of design, choice of materials, and construction itself. As a result, consumers have a misconception about frame technology, operational qualities of such houses.

Racks, logs and floors are at right angles or parallel to each other. Without the use of special stabilizing elements, the house can "fold". Such an element is a jib, a bar installed and fixed at an angle to the uprights. A house with walls containing such reinforcing elements can withstand any gusts of wind, earthquakes.

Lack of jibs

Among Russian builders, the opinion has spread that jibs for frame house are optional. Despite this, such an element of the foundation of the house is extremely necessary. Sheathing with slabs can replace them only when creating small household buildings. The absence of jibs for a residential building threatens with destruction, which begins with deformation of the internal and exterior finish, displacement of the heat-insulating layer.

Expert opinion

Sergey Yurievich

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IN frame houses, being built at the beginning, did not always use jibs. Instead, the house was sheathed with boards set at 45 °, herringbone. Many years of experience have proven the unreliability of this method; it is used for non-residential buildings of a small area.

Ways to increase the rigidity of the foundation of the house

To increase the stability of the frame, apply:

The wooden jib is set at an angle of 45 °. If adjacent walls, door or window openings do not allow maintaining just such an angle, it is increased to 60 °, sometimes more. An increase in angle should be compensated by setting more elements on the wall. For reliable stabilization of the frame, a board of 25 X 100 mm is sufficient, embedded in the boards of the upper and bottom strapping. The use of planks of a larger cross section leads to unreasonable costs for materials. The lower edge of the plank is placed closer to the center of the house, the upper - to the perimeter. Wooden jibs are strong, slightly weight the frame, withstand tensile and compression loads.
Metal jibs are most common in North America, rarely used in Russia due to their significant weight and susceptibility to corrosion. They attract low cost and quick installation. Metal jibs are also cut into the upper and lower skins, but they are installed in a cross. This is due to the fact that metal strips can only withstand tensile loads and cannot withstand compression. The installation of two elements in a cross allows you to compensate for loads in any direction.
External sheathing with plywood or oriented strand boards. Attached to the posts and boards of the lower trim, they form a triangle.

Which method to choose depends on the specific conditions: the area of \u200b\u200bthe building, climate, purpose, number of storeys. A combination of jib material is possible.

Expert opinion

Sergey Yurievich

Construction of houses, outbuildings, terraces and verandas.

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Struts should not be confused with struts. Spacers have a different purpose, they are installed according to completely different rules. The spacer serves to eliminate the spring effect of the boards with a high wall height (from 3 m).

What does the lack of stabilizing elements lead to, their incorrect installation

Illiterate approach to design frame buildings leads to loss of strength, durability of the house. In the absence of jibs in load-bearing walls and partitions, the structure does not withstand even one year. They resist displacement, lateral loads. An engineering calculation is required, taking into account the maximum snow and wind loads.

What to consider when installing a jib

In order for the jib to reliably strengthen the frame of the building, when installing it, you must follow the rules:

The plank thickness is up to one-fourth of the wall thickness.
The jib is cut into the strapping boards and wall racks flush.
At least two elements are installed on one wall in different sides: Tilt one to the left, the other to the right.
If the jib is installed before the wall is raised, in a lying position, then it is not worth fixing it rigidly, so that after installing the wall in a vertical position, the bar can be adjusted.
It is more rational to install jibs on the inside of the wall from the point of view of the formation of cold bridges. FROM outside more convenient to mount. The choice of the side of the wall does not affect the diagonal stiffness.

Temporary elements

Temporary braces support the walls after they have been erected until they are permanently fixed to the floor joists, and the sheathing is installed.

Have you ever encountered the fact that in discussions on the forums the topic of the “right” or “wrong” frame house pops up? Often people are poked with their noses at the fact that the frame is wrong, but it is hard to explain clearly why it is wrong and how it should be. In this article I will try to explain what is usually hidden behind the concept of a “correct” frame, which is the basis of a frame house, just like a human skeleton. In the future, I hope, we will consider other aspects.

Surely you know that the foundation is the foundation of the house. This is true, but the frame house has another basis - no less important than the foundation. This is the frame itself.

Which frame house is “correct”?

I'll start with the main one. Why is it so difficult to talk about the right frame house? because the only correct correct frame house does not exist. What a surprise, isn't it? 🙂

You will ask why? Yes, very simple. A frame house is a large constructor with many solutions. And there are many decisions that can be called correct. There are even more decisions - “semi-correct”, but there are a legion of “wrong” ones.

Nevertheless, among the variety of solutions, one can single out those that are usually meant when speaking of “correctness”. This is a frame of the American and, more rarely, Scandinavian type.

Why are they considered examples of “correctness”? Everything is very simple. The vast majority of private homes for permanent residence in America, and a very significant percentage in Scandinavia, are built using frame technology. This technology has been used there for more than a dozen and perhaps even a hundred years. During this time, all possible cones were filled, all possible options were sorted out and a certain universal scheme was found that says: do this and with a probability of 99.9% you will be fine. Moreover, this scheme is the optimal solution for several characteristics at once:

Structural reliability of solutions.
Optimal labor costs during construction.
Optimal cost of materials.
Good thermal performance.

Why step on your own rake if you can use the experience of people who have already stepped on this rake? Why reinvent the wheel if it has already been invented?

Remember. Whenever we are talking about the “correct” frame or about the “correct” nodes of a frame house, then, as a rule, this means standard solutions and nodes used in America and Scandinavia. And the frame itself satisfies all the above criteria.

What frameworks can be called “semi-regular”? Basically, these are those that differ from the typical Scandinavian-American solutions, but, nevertheless, also satisfy at least two criteria - reliable design and good solutions in terms of heat engineering.

Well, I would classify all the rest as “wrong”. Moreover, their “incorrectness” is often conditional. It is not at all a fact that the “wrong” frame will necessarily fall apart. Such a scenario is actually extremely rare, although it does occur. Basically, the “wrongness” lies in some controversial and not the best decisions. As a result, it becomes difficult where it can be done easier. More material is used where less is possible. A colder or more inconvenient design for subsequent work is made than it could be.

The main drawback of the “wrong” frames is that they do not give absolutely any gains compared to the “correct” or “semi-correct” ones - neither in reliability, nor in cost, nor in labor costs ... nothing at all.

Or these advantages are far-fetched and generally questionable. In extreme cases (and there are some), improper framing can be dangerous and result in a home needing a major overhaul in just a few years.

Now let's look at the issue in more detail.

Key Features of the American Frame

The American frame is practically a standard. It is simple, strong, functional and reliable as an iron saw. It is easy to assemble, it has a large margin of safety.

Americans are tight-fisted guys, and if they manage to save a couple of thousand dollars on a construction site, they will definitely do it. At the same time, they will not be able to stoop to outright hack-work, since there is strict control in the construction industry, insurance companies will refuse to pay out in case of problems, and the customers of would-be builders will quickly sue and rip negligent contractors like sticky.

Therefore, the American frame can be called the standard in terms of the ratio: price, reliability, result.

American frame is simple and reliable

Let's take a closer look at the main points that distinguish the American wireframe scheme:

Typical nodes of a frame house

Beam in racks and harnesses is almost never used, unless it is due to some specific conditions. Therefore, the first thing that distinguishes the “correct” frame house is the use of dry lumber and the absence of timber in the walls. By this criterion alone, you can discard 80% of Russian companies and teams operating in the frame market.

Moments that distinguish the American frame:

Corners - There are several different ways to implement corners, but nowhere do you see a beam as a corner post.
Double or triple racks in the area of window and door openings.
The amplifier above the openings is a board mounted on an edge. The so-called "header" (from the English header).
Double top strapping from the board, no timber.
The overlap of the lower and upper rows of strapping at key points - corners, different fragments of walls, junctions of internal partitions to external walls.

Ukosina I specifically did not note as a distinctive moment. Since in the American style, in the presence of sheathing with OSB3 boards (OSB) on the frame, there is no need for jibs. The plate can be considered as an infinite number of jibs.

Let's talk in more detail about the key features of the correct frame in the American version.

Correct corners of the frame house

In fact, on the Internet, even in the American segment, you can find about a dozen schemes. But most of them are outdated and rarely used, especially in cold regions. I will highlight three main angle patterns. Although realistically, only the first two are the main ones.

Knots of the corners of the frame house

Option 1 - the so-called "California" corner. The most common option. Why "California" - I have no idea :). From the inside, another board or strip of OSB is nailed to the extreme rack of one of the walls. As a result, a shelf is formed on the inside of the corner, which later serves as a support for the interior decoration or any inner layers of the wall.
Option 2 - closed corner. Also one of the most popular. The bottom line is an additional rack in order to make a shelf on the inner corner. Of the advantages: the quality of the insulation of the corner is better than in option 1. Among the disadvantages: such a corner can only be insulated from the outside, that is, this must be done before sheathing the frame with something from the outside (plates, membrane, etc.)
Option 3 - "Scandinavian" warm corner. A very rare variant, not used in America. I saw it in Scandinavian frames, but not often. Why did I bring him then? Because, in my opinion, this is the warmest version of the corner. And I'm thinking about starting to apply it to our facilities. But before using it, you need to think, since it is structurally inferior to the first two and will not work everywhere.

What is the peculiarity of all these three options and why is a beam a bad option for a corner?

Angle from a bar, the most losing option

If you notice - in all three options from the boards, the corner can be insulated. Somewhere more, somewhere less. In the case of a beam in the corner, we immediately have 2 drawbacks: firstly, from the point of view of heat engineering, such a corner will be the coldest. Secondly, if there is a beam in the corner, then there are no “shelves” from the inside to attach the interior trim to it.

Of course, the last question can be solved. But remember what I said about “wrong” wireframes? Why make it difficult when you can make it easier? Why make a beam, creating a bridge of cold and thinking how to attach the finish to it later, if you can make a warm corner from the boards? Despite the fact that this will not affect the amount of material or the complexity of the work.

Openings and top trim are the most significant difference between the American frame scheme and the Scandinavian one, but more on that later. So, when they talk about the correct openings in the frame, they usually talk about the following scheme (window and door openings are made according to the same principle).

Correct openings in a frame house

The first thing (1) that people usually pay attention to when talking about “wrong” openings is the double and even triple posts on the sides of the opening. It is often believed that this is necessary for some kind of strengthening of the opening to install a window or door. Actually this is not true. A window or door will be fine on single racks. Why then do we need cohesive boards?

Everything is elementary. Remember, I said that the American frame is as simple and reliable as an iron saw? Pay attention to figure 2. And you will understand that cohesive racks are needed solely to support the elements lying on them. So that the edges of these elements do not hang on nails. Simple, reliable and versatile.

In Figure 3 - one of the simplified varieties, when the bottom trim of the window crashes into a broken rack. But at the same time, both window trims still have supports at the edges.

Therefore, it is impossible to speak formally about the fact that if the racks are not doubled, then this is “wrong”. They can also be single, as in the Scandinavian frame. Rather, it is a mistake when the posts along the edges of the openings are cohesive, but do not bear the load from the elements based on them. In this case, they are simply meaningless.

In this case, the horizontal elements are hanging on the fasteners, so there is no point in doubling or tripling the racks on the sides.

Now let's talk about an element that is already more critical and the absence of which can be considered as an "irregularity" of the opening. This is the “header” above the opening (header).

Window header

This is the really important element. As a rule, some kind of load will come from above to the window or doorway - the logs of the second floor, the rafter system. And the wall itself is weakened by deflection in the area of the opening. Therefore, local reinforcements are made in the openings. American style is headers. In fact, this is a board mounted on an edge above the opening. Here it is already important that the edges of the header either rest on the posts (if the classic American scheme with cohesive posts of openings is used), or be cut into the extreme posts, if they are single. Moreover, the cross section of the header directly depends on the loads and dimensions of the opening. The larger the opening and the stronger the load on it, the more powerful the header. It can also be double, triple, increased in height, etc. Again, it depends on the load. But, as a rule, for openings up to 1.5 m wide, a header from a 45x195 board is enough.

Is the absence of a header a sign that the framework is “wrong”? Yes and no. If you act according to the American principle of “simple and reliable”, then the header must be present at every opening. Do this and be sure of the result.

But in fact, you need to dance from the load falling on the opening from above. For example, a narrow window in a one-story house and rafters in this section of the wall are located along the edges of the opening - the load from above on the opening is minimal and you can do without a header.

Therefore, the issue of the header should be treated as follows. If it exists, great. If it is not there, then the builders (contractor) must clearly explain why, in their opinion, it is not needed here, and it will depend, first of all, on the load falling on the opening zone from above.

Double top harness

Double plank top piping, also a distinctive feature of the American frame

Double top harness

The double strapping again gives reinforcement along the top of the wall for deflection from the load from above - the load from the floor, rafters, etc. In addition, pay attention to the overlaps of the second row of strapping.

Overlap in the corner - we tie together two perpendicular walls.
Overlap in the center - we tie together 2 sections of one wall.
Overlap on the partition - we tie together the partition with the outer wall.

Thus, the double strapping also performs the second task - ensuring the integrity of the entire wall structure.

In the domestic version, you can often find the upper trim of the timber. And this, again, is not the best solution. Firstly, the beam is thicker than the double strapping. Yes, it may be better for deflection, but it’s not a fact that it is necessary, but the cold bridge at the top of the wall will be more significant. Well, it’s more difficult to implement this overlap to ensure the integrity of the entire structure. Therefore, we return again to the fact that why is it difficult to do, if you can make it easier and more reliable?

Proper jib in a frame house

Another cornerstone. Surely you have come across the phrase “the jibs are made incorrectly”. Let's talk about it. First, what is a slug? This is a diagonal element in the wall, which provides spatial shear rigidity in the lateral plane. Because thanks to the jib, a system of triangular structures appears, and the triangle is the most stable geometric figure.

So, when they talk about the correct jib, then usually we are talking about this option:

Correct jib

Why is such a jib called “correct” and what should I pay attention to?

Such a jib is installed with an angle of 45 to 60 degrees - this is the most stable triangle. Of course, the angle may be different, but it is this range that is best.
The jib cuts into the upper and lower trim, and does not just rest against the rack - this is quite an important point, so we tie the structure together.
The jib crashes into every post in its path.
For each node - adjoining to the harness or rack, there must be at least two fastening points. Since one point will give a “hinge” with a certain degree of freedom.
The jib cuts into the rib - this way it works better in the structure and interferes less with insulation.

And here is an example of the most “wrong” jib. But nevertheless, it occurs all the time.

It's just a board stuck into the first opening of the frame. What is so “wrong” about it, because formally it is also a triangle?

First - a very small angle of inclination.
Secondly, in such a plane, the jib board works the worst.
Thirdly, it is difficult to fix such a jib to the wall.
Fourthly, pay attention to the fact that extremely inconvenient cavities for insulation are formed at the points of junction with the frame. Even if the jib is carefully cut and there is no gap at the end, there is no escape from the sharp corner, and it is not an easy task to insulate such a corner with high quality, so most likely it will be done somehow.

Another example, also common. This is a jib cut into the posts, but not cut into the harness.

The jib is not embedded in the harness

This option is already much better than the previous one, but, nevertheless, such a jib will work worse than embedded in the strapping, and after all, the work is 5 minutes more. And if, moreover, it is fixed to each rack with only one nail, then the effect of it will also be minimized.

We won’t even consider options for all sorts of small inferior “braces and braces” that do not reach from the top trim to the bottom.

Formally, even the most crooked jib makes at least some contribution. But once again: why do it your way when a good solution already exists?

On this we will finish with the American frame and move on to the Scandinavian one.

Correct scandinavian frame

Unlike America, where the frames are practically standardized and there are very few differences, there are more variations in Scandinavia. Here you can find both the classic American frame and hybrid versions. The Scandinavian frame, in fact, is the development and modernization of the American one. However, basically, when they talk about the Scandinavian frame, we are talking about such a design.

Typical Scandinavian house set

scandinavian frame

Corners, jibs - everything is like the Americans. What to pay attention to?

Single strapping on the top of the wall.
Power crossbar embedded in racks throughout the wall.
Single racks on window and door openings.

In fact, the main difference is this very “Scandinavian” crossbar - it replaces both American headers and double strapping, being a powerful power element.

What, in my opinion, is the advantage of the Scandinavian frame over the American one? The fact that it has a much greater emphasis on minimizing all kinds of cold bridges, which are almost all cohesive boards (double strapping, opening racks). Indeed, between each cohesive boards, a gap can potentially form over time, which you may never know about. Well, it's one thing when the cold bridge has the width of one board and another question - when there are already two or three of them.

Of course, you should not get hung up on cold bridges. You can't get away from them anyway, and in fact, their importance is often exaggerated. But, nevertheless, they exist, and if it is possible to minimize them relatively painlessly, why not do it?

The Scandinavians in general, unlike the Americans, are very confused about energy saving. The colder, northern climate and expensive energy carriers also have an effect. But in terms of climate, Scandinavia is much closer to us (I'm talking primarily about the Northwestern region) than most American states.

The disadvantage of the Scandinavian frame is its slightly greater complexity, at least in the fact that in all racks you need to make cuts under the crossbar. And that, unlike the American one, it still requires some kind of mental effort. For example: on large openings, double posts to support horizontal elements, and additional crossbars and headers may be required. And somewhere, for example, on the gable walls of one-story buildings, where there is no load from the log or the roof, the crossbar may not even be required.

In general, the Scandinavian frame has certain advantages, but requires a little more effort and intelligence than the American one. If the American frame can be assembled with completely disabled brains, then in the Scandinavian one it is better to turn them on, at least on the minimum mode.

"Semi-correct" frames

Let me remind you that by “semi-correct” I mean precisely those that have every right to exist, but differ from typical Scandinavian-American solutions. Therefore, calling them “semi-correct” should be cautious.

I will give a few examples.

An example of how you can "override"

The first example is from our own practice. This house was built by us, but according to the project provided by the customer. We even wanted to redo the project completely, but we were limited by the deadlines, since we had to go to the site; in addition, the customer paid a tangible amount for the project and formally there are no structural violations, but he resigned himself to the voiced shortcomings of the current solution.

Why, then, did I classify this frame as “semi-correct”? Pay attention to the fact that here there are Scandinavian crossbars, and American headers, and double strapping not only along the top, but also along the bottom of the walls. In short, here is the American scheme, and the Scandinavian one, and another 30% of the stock in Russian is thrown on top, just in case. Well, the prefabricated rack of 6 (!!!) boards under the glued beam of the ridge speaks for itself. After all, in this place the only insulation is isoplats from the outside, and cross-insulation from the inside. And if there was a purely American scheme, then there would simply be no insulation in this section of the wall, a bare piece of wood from the outside to the inside.

I call this frame “semi-correct” because from the point of view of constructive reliability, there are no complaints about it. There is a multiple margin of safety "in case of an atomic war." But the abundance of cold bridges, and a huge overrun of material for the frame, and high labor costs, which also affects the price.

This house could be made with a smaller but sufficient margin of safety, but at the same time reduce the amount of lumber by 30 percent and significantly reduce the number of cold bridges, making the house warmer.

Another example is a “double-volume” framework promoted by a Moscow company.

The main difference is actually a double outer wall, with posts spaced apart from each other. So the frame fully satisfies the strength criteria and is very good from the point of view of heat engineering, due to the minimization of cold bridges, but loses in manufacturability. The task of eliminating cold bridges, which, first of all, is solved by such a frame, can be solved by simpler, more reliable and correct methods such as “cross-insulation”.

And, curiously, usually “semi-correct” frames somehow have Scandinavian-American solutions in them. And the differences are rather in an attempt to improve the good. But it often happens that it turns out that “the best is the enemy of the good”.

Such frameworks can safely be called “semi-correct” precisely because there are no gross violations here. There are differences from the typical American-Scandinavian decisions in attempts to improve something or come up with some kind of “trick”. To pay for them or not is the choice of the customer.

"Wrong" frame houses

Now let's talk about the "wrong" frames. The most typical, I would even say, collective, case is presented in the photo below.

The quintessence of "correct" frame housing construction

What can be immediately noted in this photo?

Total use of natural moisture material. Moreover, the material is massive, which dries out the most and changes its geometry in the process of shrinkage.
The beam in the corners and on the strapping and even on the racks are cold bridges and inconvenience in further work.
Lack of headers and reinforcements of openings.
Do not understand how the jib is made, poorly fulfilling its role and interfering with insulation.
Assembly on corners with black self-tapping screws, the purpose of which is to fasten the plasterboard during finishing (and not use in load-bearing structures).

The photo above shows almost the quintessence of what is commonly called the “wrong” frame or “RSK”. The abbreviation RSK appeared in 2008 at the FH, at the suggestion of one builder who presented a similar product to the world, called the Russian Power Frame. Over time, as people began to figure out what was what, this abbreviation began to be deciphered as Russian Strashen Karkashen. As an apotheosis of meaninglessness with a claim to a unique solution.

What is most curious, if desired, it can also be classified as “semi-correct”: after all, if the self-tapping screws do not rot (black phosphated self-tapping screws are by no means an example of corrosion resistance) and do not burst during the inevitable shrinkage of the timber, this frame is unlikely to fall apart. That is, such a design has the right to life.

What is the main disadvantage of the “wrong” frames? If people know what they're doing, they pretty quickly come to the Canadian-Scandinavian scheme. Fortunately, information is now in bulk. And if they don’t come, then this speaks of one thing: they, by and large, do not care about the result. The classic answer when trying to ask them why it is so is “we have always built it this way, no one complained”. That is, the entire construction is based solely on intuition and ingenuity. Without trying to ask - how is it customary to do this.

What prevented you from making a board instead of a beam? Make reinforcements of openings? Make normal cuts? Collect for nails? That is, do it right? After all, such a frame does not give exactly any advantages! One large set of not the best solutions with a claim to super strength, etc. Moreover, the labor input is the same as that of the “correct” one, the cost is the same, and the material consumption, perhaps even more.

Summarize

As a result: it is customary to call the American-Scandinavian frame scheme “correct”, due to the fact that it has already been repeatedly tested on thousands of houses, proving its viability and the optimal ratio of “labor-intensive-reliability-quality”.

“Semi-correct” and “incorrect” include all other types of frames. In this case, the frame can be quite reliable, but “non-optimal” from the side of the above.

As a rule, if potential contractors cannot justify the use of certain design solutions that differ from the “correct” American-Scandinavian ones, this indicates that they have no idea about these very “correct” decisions and build a house solely on a whim, replacing knowledge with intuition and ingenuity. And this is a very risky path that may come back to haunt the owner of the house in the future.

That's why. Do you want guaranteed correct, optimal solutions? Pay attention to the classic American or Scandinavian scheme of frame housing construction.

about the author

Hello. My name is Alexey, maybe you met me as Porcupine or Gribnick on the Internet. I am the founder of "Finnish House", a project that has grown from a personal blog into a construction company whose goal is to build a quality and comfortable home for you and your children.

The reliability of a frame house, the degree of its resistance to wind, snow, other adverse weather conditions, the service life of such a structure are determined by the rigidity of its structure. The most popular method of strengthening the frame is the installation of jibs. Let's figure out whether it is worth spending your time and energy on installing the jibs, or is it quite possible to do without them.

What are jibs, and what are they

Struts are additional components of the house frame, which provide an increase in the degree of reliability of the structure of the structure and an increase in the life of the building. These elements are usually mounted at an angle of 45°, this indicator changes to 60° if the jib is installed near door or window openings, as well as with wall junctions.

Most often, the jib is a wooden beam made from a board with a section of 25 by 100 mm. In most cases, this size is optimal and the use of larger frame reinforcement elements is usually not advisable. Jambs with the mentioned section strengthen the structure of the house, but at the same time do not make it heavier and do not create an additional load on the foundation.

The jibs are also made of metal. They are heavier and unpopular in Russia. In the USA, on the contrary, metal jibs are mostly found. The advantage of such jibs is a low price and high installation speed.

The disadvantage of these jibs in comparison with wooden ones is that the latter resist both compression and stretching, while metal ones resist only stretching. Therefore, when installing metal jibs, you have to put them crosswise for adequate resistance to the changing load vector. In addition, additional waterproofing work must be carried out before the installation of metal components.

Stubs can be installed both permanently and temporarily. The need to install temporary braces arises if the tiled wall cladding (OSB boards) has not yet been equipped, however, the frame structure needs to be strengthened for the duration of this work.

Why you can not do without jibs

The frame house itself is a fairly solid structure, however, its design also needs to be strengthened. The fact is that the components of the frame before installing the jibs are only parallel and perpendicular to each other. This arrangement of the frame elements makes it unstable to ground displacements, wind and other "transverse" loads.

If there are no elements in the frame of the building that provide rigidity, then such a house is at risk of losing the geometry of the structure, deformation of both external and internal finishes. It is possible that under the influence of serious lateral loads, the house can “fold”.

The lack of rigidity of the frame leads to a decrease in the durability of the structure of the house as a whole. Not so radical, but rather unpleasant consequences of the lack of reinforcement of the frame are heat losses due to the fact that the thermal insulation layer loses its integrity when the walls are displaced.

The result of incorrect distribution of jibs and their insufficient number

So, the result of the correct installation of the jibs is:

prevention of vibrations and destruction of walls under the influence of weather factors;
no deformation of walls and internal partitions under loads;
increasing the rigidity of load-bearing structures;
more reliable fastening of heat-insulating materials inside the walls;
ensuring uniform distribution of the load between the elements of the frame.

After the installation of the jibs, the frame house building will successfully withstand heavy winds, landslides and even earthquakes. Snow that has accumulated on the roof in winter will also not pose a threat to the integrity of the house.

Is there a possibility of waiver

Recently, plywood sheathing or OSB (oriented strand board) has increasingly become the jib. The use of plywood is more justified, since it has a greater coefficient of spatial rigidity in comparison with chipboard and OSB.

Nevertheless, even those frame houses that are sheathed with high-quality plywood, but without braces, often do not withstand the impacts of the elements, although they are adapted for normal loads under normal conditions.

Jambs can be omitted only during the construction of small frame structures that are not residential buildings, but have, for example, an economic purpose. So, frame garages, sheds or toilets may well do with sheathing without installing jibs, since, due to the small area of \u200b\u200bthe supporting elements, they are less susceptible to wind and other weather loads.

Consequences of a hurricane

You should be aware that the skin in this case must be made of strong material, supplied in the form of relatively large components. Finishing elements must be positioned similarly to jibs - at an angle of 45 °

Common Problems

In order for the jibs to really perform their function with high quality and justify the financial and labor investments in their installation, one should strictly adhere to the basic rules for the installation of these structures.

Here are some setup tips:

the jibs should be cut into the upper, lower horizontal strapping of the frame and into the vertical racks - this is the only way the frame will become as rigid as possible;
installation of jibs from the inside is less convenient, but ensures the guaranteed absence of "cold bridges";
when attaching the jibs to the frame elements, you need to use only nails, but not self-tapping screws;
on one wall it is quite enough to install only two multidirectional jibs. A larger number of reinforcing elements is unlikely to significantly increase the degree of rigidity of the frame;
installation must be carried out from the central part of the lower beam to the corners at the top. This installation order will ensure the formation of a right triangle between the stiffeners and the corner post;
if the jibs are installed exclusively on the external walls of the structure, then most of the static load falls on them, and not on the internal partitions.

Remember: the installation of jibs does not at all guarantee protection of the house from external loads if the material of these elements is chosen incorrectly or the installation process is carried out with errors.

Consequences of errors in material selection and installation:

the use of hollow jibs - the degree of their wear resistance is low;
a similar problem occurs when choosing jibs with a small cross section and generally low-quality lumber;
the choice of metal strips or ribbons as jibs for large houses - such reinforcing elements are more suitable for small buildings;
the use of poorly dried wood - after drying, gaps form in the areas of component connections and the rigidity of the structure decreases;
installation of jibs in the corners is fraught with a decrease in the stability index of the structure as a whole.

Obviously, the use of jibs is a prerequisite for strengthening a frame residential building. Structures in which such a solution was implemented will serve for a sufficiently long period, during which they will successfully withstand the elements and other loads. Thus, the jibs will actually insure the owner against much greater losses than those associated with the manufacture and installation of these elements.

For what purposes do they put jibs in a frame house? When are they needed and when can you do without them? What are the jibs and how to install them correctly?

The basis of the frame house, as the name implies, is the internal frame. It is from him that the strength and durability of the house mainly depends. Therefore, it is very important to purchase high-quality materials for the frame and assemble it correctly.

Most often, coniferous wood is used for the frame, much less often - deciduous species and metal. For racks that accept vertical loads, glued laminated timber is best. Jumpers that distribute the vertical load are made of boards.

Stages of building a frame house:

foundation device;
laying the bars of the lower trim and fastening them to the foundation;
installation of racks;
installation of the upper tier;
strengthening the frame;
installation of ceiling beams and roofing;
warming;
exterior and interior decoration.

The frame is a fairly massive structure made of durable material. Why is additional strengthening of the frame carried out (fifth stage), and is it possible to do without it?

Why are braces needed?

All parts in the frame are parallel and perpendicular to each other, so they are not resistant to lateral loads, such as “walking” the ground, snow or wind.

To give the necessary rigidity, jibs are built into the frame. These are diagonal elements that will not only stabilize the structure, but also keep the outer sides of the house from “walking” in or out.

If there are no stiffening elements in the building, it may lose its geometry, which will lead to deformation of the external and internal finishes. Strong side loads can even "fold" the house. Less noticeable consequences are heat loss due to a violation of the integrity of the insulation layer and a decrease in the durability of the house. Thus, the installation of these elements is fully justified, despite the additional costs of materials, labor and time.

Sometimes, instead of jibs, spacers are placed between the uprights, which is less laborious. However, such struts add only vertical stiffness and do not prevent "folding".

When is bracing not required? For small buildings, such as a hozblok, garage, toilet. If the house uses an oblique outer crate. If the facing material is strong and has a large size, such as OSB-3 boards or durable plywood.

Installation of permanent jibs

Let's figure out how to properly put the jibs that will stand in the house throughout the entire service life.

Stiffeners should be placed not only in external walls, but also in partitions.

Ideally, if the installation angle is 45 °. However, due to window and door openings, it is not always possible to comply with it. In this case, you can increase the angle up to 60°.

Installation is carried out from the center of the lower wall beam to the upper corners. As a result, the stiffeners form a right triangle with the corner post.

In places where door and window frames are installed, it is better to direct the jib from the corners to these openings in order to further secure these elements.

For a snug fit, it is necessary to cut the jibs into the frame elements, cutting grooves of the required depth and width. Properly mounted jibs fit snugly to the frame elements and do not interfere with sheathing.

At least two parts must be placed on each wall and placed along the edges where the outer corners are.

In order for the house to be stabilized in both directions, one jib on the outer wall is made with a slope to the left, the other at the opposite end of the same wall - with a slope to the right.

For ease of installation, it is better to place stiffeners on the outside of the walls. However, if you follow the laws of thermal physics, then it is more efficient to install them from the inside. So they will increase the heat transfer of insulated walls less.

Fastening is done with nails: 2-3 pcs. for connection with a rack and 3 pcs. - with top and bottom strapping. Self-tapping screws for the construction of a frame house can not be used.

Sometimes builders make stiffeners from the remains of boards and attach them only in accessible places. You can't do that. It is necessary to use boards whose length is not less than a third more than the distance from the floor to the ceiling of the house.

The stiffeners must be full-bodied, without voids. The best material for them is a board made of coniferous wood with a thickness of 25 mm. Thicker and therefore more expensive boards are not necessary. Firstly, even such materials perfectly perform their functions. Secondly, the jib cuts into the frame, and the greater its thickness, the greater the likelihood of weakening the frame.

The boards must be well dried. If they are too wet, then with further drying, the gap between them and the frame elements expands and the rigidity of the structure decreases.

The insulation along the edges of the boards used for spreading and stiffening must be cut to their thickness. Otherwise, air bags will form along the edges, which will negatively affect the thermal insulation of the house.

Installation of temporary jibs

Temporary stiffeners are placed at the third stage of construction, if permanent ones are not planned. They fix the corner and intermediate racks so that they do not “walk” until the top trim is attached.

In addition, temporary elements are installed to align the frame walls. This avoids distortions that make interior decoration difficult.

How to make temporary braces? First you need to align the corners with a plumb line or level. Then the boards are mounted, overlaid, in increments of 1.2 to 1.5 m. It is better not to save on their number. They are attached to the upper and lower trim with nails. Before sheathing, temporary embedded elements are removed.

You need to know the main rule - the installation of jibs. The jib is an important, one of the main elements to ensure the rigidity and stability of the structure of your wooden house. Without this detail, the house will be shaky, easily exposed to the forces of nature, and its service life will be reduced tenfold.

Jaws: necessity or myth

There is an opinion among the people, "myths" about the need for jibs:
1. jibs are an extra waste of time and money during construction. So, people far from the construction business can argue. As mentioned earlier, the fundamental role of this structural element lies in its rigidity.
2. They can be replaced with outer skin. You can do without them if you are going to build a barn or other outbuilding. However, the exterior trim must be tiled or trim boards must be at a 45-degree angle.
3. For internal walls (partitions), they can be neglected. In this case, the load taken by the house structure from wind, snow on the roof and static load from the roof itself will be taken only by the outer walls. Partitions without braces will undergo deformation, and the entire interior finish will be broken and cracks will appear.
4. Struts are jibs. Often developers confuse spacers with jibs. In construction, spacers are used when the height of the walls is 3 m or more. This is done to eliminate the "spring" effect on the board. But they do not give the structure of the house the necessary rigidity and stability in three-dimensional space.

Jambs in a frame house are a must!

If you still doubt the installation of jibs when building a house and hope that they can be replaced with sheet sheathing or slabs (chipboard, OSB), then on the Internet you can find a lot of photos of houses without jibs that refute your hopes.

Consider what the use of jibs gives when building a house:
Without the use of these parts, the frame and the whole house will not have sufficient reliability and durability.
Prevents deformation and damage to the exterior and interior of the house.
Eliminates the "walking" of the interwall insulation.
Stabilizes the house and prevents it from folding.
Wind load, "snow" load and static load from the roof itself are distributed evenly over the entire frame structure of the building.

Correct jibs

In the construction, it is important not only to provide for the presence of jibs, but also to make and fix them correctly:
1. The jib installation angle is 45 ° (ideal angle, provides maximum structural rigidity). In places where there are door and window openings, it is not always possible to maintain this angle. Therefore, an angle of 60 ° is allowed, and an increase in the angle is compensated by an increase in the number of jibs.
2. Do not use hollow jibs. An exception may be small one-story buildings with flexible diagonal connections.
3. Correctly install the jibs from the bottom from the center of the wall up to the ceiling of the vertical rack with the top trim. At the top, the jibs should fit snugly (without gaps) against the edges of the uprights and the top floor.
4. When installing jibs under them in vertical racks, in the upper and lower trim, it is necessary to make grooves for the jibs. The depth of the groove is performed depending on the thickness of the jibs. In a steel frame, the jibs must go inside the metal profile of the racks.
5. Cross-sectional dimensions of jibs are calculated depending on the requirements of SNiP for each region separately.
6. Fasten the corner stiffeners to each upright with two nails.

Mistakes that can be made when installing jibs:

Use of wood with unnatural moisture. With further drying, the boards “dry out” and gaps form in tight joints. The rigidity of the structure is significantly reduced.
The cross-sectional dimensions of the frame elements are smaller than necessary to resist the loads.
The use of low-quality lumber.
Placement of jibs in the corners. It leads to a decrease in the rigidity and stability of the structure.

The consequences of building a frame house without jibs
Refusal to use jibs in the construction of a frame house can lead to disastrous consequences:
destruction of the house under the influence of snow and wind loads;
outer sheathing with plywood (it has a high degree of spatial rigidity compared to chipboard, OSB, etc.) does not provide the necessary rigidity;
under the influence of soil movement, the house can "walk" by itself;

Temporary jibs
The installation of temporary braces is a necessary step at the stage of erection of the building frame. They are used:
During the installation of corner posts. Temporary braces prevent the connection of the corner post with the lower trim from loosening until the upper trim is installed.
For leveling stud walls and resolving the following issues when installing doors, windows, interior and exterior trim. When the doors are not hung, and the finishing plates do not converge in the corner.
For installing and leveling roof rafters.

The procedure for installing temporary jibs:
1. First, align the corners. For this operation, you can use a bubble or laser level. You can also use the "American" method. Fix the level on a board as long as the height of the wall.
2. Temporary braces are fastened with blocks fixed below to the floor or platform, above to the upper lags.
3. The installation step of the jibs is from 1.2 m to 1.5 m. They are made from a board with a section of 25x150 mm.
With the help of temporary jibs, significant defects can be corrected by creating the necessary leverage.

Do-it-yourself jibs

The jibs, although a crucial element of the frame house, but making them yourself will not be particularly difficult:
1. As a rule, a board with a section of 25x100 mm is used (for areas with increased wind load, a section of 50x100 mm is recommended). The length of the board should be 30% longer than the height of the wall.
2. We apply to vertical posts at an angle of 45 - 60 ° (depending on the design of the wall, where it works). We mark the grooves in the racks, from the upper to the lower lags. The jib should come from the center of the wall, the top is directed towards the upper corner of the rack, the bottom, if possible, is taken to the maximum distance.
3. With an ordinary hacksaw or hand-held circular saw, we make grooves and remove the tree with a chisel. The corners of the jib itself are also cut along the outsole.
4. The jib should fit snugly into the grooves made to ensure maximum rigidity.
5. In the places of window and door openings, it is recommended to place the jibs from the corner to the hole. Thus, additional fastening of racks of apertures is carried out.
6. The jibs are fastened with nails, 2 pcs. for each vertical rack and 3 pcs. on the top and bottom trim.
By following these jib building steps, you'll get the stiffness you need for your jib construction to handle wind and snow loads.