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Why Would You Need a Soft-Story Retrofit?

Throughout the years in California, we’ve heard about many large magnitude earthquakes, such as the Northridge quake in 1994. California, of course, isn’t the only state vulnerable to earthquakes. Earthquakes happen in Oregon, Washington, and neighboring states all along the western coast. Although earthquake damage can be devastating, smaller quakes do serve a useful purpose: they shine a light on fundamental structural flaws that plague older buildings in our cities.

Soft story retrofits are essential to reducing earthquake damage and preparing our cities for larger quakes that could happen in the future.

What Is a Soft-Story Building?

A soft-story building is very simple; it’s a building where the first stories are much less rigid than the stories above them. These soft-story buildings are particularly dangerous in earthquakes and even aftershocks.

Soft-story buildings tend to be much larger and usually have unreinforced openings on the ground floors. Examples may include a parking garage, an office building, or even a high-rise apartment building with a lobby on the first floor.

Soft-Story Retrofits

Thankfully, there are ways to stabilize a soft-story building with a retrofit. In order to make a building safer, you need to include 2 key components: lateral stiffness and strength. In a soft-story building, these components are missing! When you have a soft-story building and you get it retrofitted, the building would get the structural components needed to make it safer.

Options for a Retrofit

If you think you must start new just because you have a soft-story building, think again. Structural engineers and contractors can add certain aspects to a building that is already standing.

  • Adding Shear Walls
  • Adding a steel frame
  • Removing drywall and adding shear walls.

Mind you when you retrofit a soft-story you aren’t making it earthquake-proof, rather you are making it earthquake-safe. It should also be noted that while you can retrofit a soft story building, retrofitting one simply won’t have the same structural standards that new modern construction does.

Strengthen Your Building with Saunders Seismic

Soft-story buildings are at higher risk during earthquakes, but a retrofit can add the lateral strength and stiffness your building needs to become safer. Saunders Seismic specializes in partnering with engineers and contractors to deliver high-quality retrofits that protect your property and occupants.

Contact us today to discuss your soft-story retrofit needs and take the first step toward greater safety.

Posted Under: Seismic Retrofits