4n

BUILDING CODES GHOUP

mC1f:f^^/H:o

APR 2 2 1958

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

BUILDING

MATERIALS

AND

STRUCTURES

REPORT BMS30

Structural Properties of a Wood-Frame Wall Construction

Sponsored by the

Douglas Fir Plywood Association

by

HERBERT L. WHITTEMORE

and AMBROSE H. STANG

with the collaboration oj

Thomas R. C. Wilson

Forest Products Laboratory
The program of research on building materials and structures, carried on by the

National Bureau of Standards, was undertaken with the assistance of the Central Housing Cormnittee, an informal organization of Government agencies concerned with

housing construction and finance, which is cooperating in the investigations through a subcommittee of principal technical assistants.

CENTRAL HOUSING COMMITTEE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON TECHNICAL EESEARCH

Walter Junge, Chairman, Arthur C. Shire, Vice Chairman,

Federal Housing Administration. United States Housing Authority.

Sterling R. March, Secretary

Albert G. Bear, George E. Knox,

Veterans' Administration. Yards and Docks (Navy).

Pierre Blouke, Vincent B. Phelan,

Federal Home Loan Bank Board. National Bureau of Standards (ComCarroll W. Chamberlain, merce).

Procurement Division (Treasury). Edward A. Poynton,

Joseph M. DallaValle, OflBce of Indian Affairs (Interior).

Public Health Service (Federal Security George W. Trayer,

Agency). Forest Service (Agriculture).

John Donovan, Elsmere J. Walters,

Farm Security Administration (Agri- Construction Division (War),

culture).

CHAIRMEN OF SECTIONS

Specifications Materials Maintenance

Carroll W. Chamberlain Elsmere J. Walters John H. Schaefer

Mechanical Equipment Methods and Practices

Robert K. Thulman

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS

STAFF COMMITTEE ON ADMINISTRATION AND COORDINATION

Hugh L. Dryden, Chairman.

Mechanics and Sound

Phaon H. Bates, Gustav E. F. Lundell,

Clay and Silicate Products. Chemistry.

HoBART C. Dickinson, Addams S. McAllister,

Heat and Power, Codes and Specifications.

Warren E. Emley, Henry S. Rawdon,

Organic and Fibrous Materials. Metallurgy,

The Forest Products Laboratory of the United States Department of Agriculture is cooperating with both committees on investigations of wood constructions.

[For list of BMS publications and how to purchase, see cover page III.]
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE • Harry L. Hopkins, Secretary

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS • Lyman J. Briggs, Director

BUILDING MATERIALS

and STRUCTURES

REPORT BMS30

Structural Properties of a Wood-Frame Wall Construction

Sponsored by the

Douglas Fir Plywood Association

by HERBERT L. WHITTEMORE and AMBROSE H. STANG

with the collaboration of

Thomas R. C. Wilson

Forest Products Laboratory,

Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture

ISSUED SEPTEMBER 13, 1939

The National Bureau of Standards is a fact-finding organization;

it does not "approve" any particular material or method of construction. The technical findings in this series of reports are to

be construed accordingly.

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE • WASHINGTON • I939

FOR SALE BY THE SUPERINTENDENT OF DOCUMENTS, WASHINGTON, D. C. • PRICE 10 CENTS
Foreword

This report is one of a series issued by the National Bureau of Standa^rds on the

structural properties of constructions intended for low-cost houses and apartments.

These constructions were sponsored by industrial organizations within the building

industry advocating and promoting their use. The sponsor buUt and submitted the

specimens described in this report for the program outlined in report BMS2, Methods of

Determining the Structural Properties of Low-Cost House Constructions. The sponsor,

therefore, is responsible for the description of the specimens and the method of fabrication. The Bureau is responsible for the method of testing and the test results.

This report covers only the load-deformation relations and strength of the walls of a house when subjected to compressive, transverse, concentrated, impact, and racking

loads by standardized methods simulating the loads to which the walls would be subjected in actual service. Later it may be feasible to determine the heat transmission at

ordinary temperatures and the fire resistance of this same construction and perhaps other

properties.

The Forest Products Laboratory, Forest Service, United States Department of

Agriculture, collaborated in the tests of this construction.

The National Bureau of Standards does not "approve" a construction, nor does it express an opinion as to the merits of a construction, for the reasons given in reports

BMSl and BMS2. The technical facts on this and other constructions provide the

basic data from which architects and engineers can determine whether a construction

meets desired performance requirements.

Lyman J. Briggs, Director.

InJ
Structural Properties of a Wood-Frame Wall Construction

Sponsored by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association

by HERBERT L. WHITTEMORE and AMBROSE H. STANG

with the collaboration of

Thomas R. C. Wilson, Forest Products Laboratory, Forest Service,

United States Department of Agriculture

CONTENTS

Page

Foreword ii

I. Introduction 1

II. Sponsor and product 2

III. Specimens and tests 2 IV. Wall BU 3

1. Sources of information 3

2. Materials 3

(a) Wood 3

(fe) Nails.-. 5

ABSTRACT

For the program on the determination of the structural properties of low-cost house constructions, the

Douglas Fir Plywood Association submitted 18 speci- mens representing a wood-frame wall construction.

The sheathing on the outside face and the wallboard on the inside face were both Douglas fir plywood.

The specimens were subjected to compressive, transverse, concentrated, impact, and racking loads. The

transverse, concentrated, and impact loads were applied to both faces of the specimens. For each of these

loads three like specimens were tested, the concentrated-load tests being made on undamaged portions

of the impact specimens. The deformation under load

and the set after the load was removed were measured

for uniform increments of load, except for concentrated

loads, for which the set only was determined. The

results are presented in graphs and in a table.

I. INTRODUCTION

In order to provide technical facts on the

performance of constructions which might be

used in low-cost houses, to discover promising

IV. Wall Bt/—Continued. Page

3. Description, sponsor's statement 5

(a) Four-foot wall specimens 5

(6) Eight-foot wall specimens 6

(c) Comments 6

4. Compressive load 6

5. Transverse load 10

6. Concentrated load 10

7. Impact load 11

8. Racking load 13

V. Selected references 14

constructions, and ultimately to determine the

properties necessary for acceptable performance,

the National Bureau of Standards has invited

the building industry to cooperate in a program

of research on budding materials and structures

for use in low-cost houses and apartments.

The objectives of this program are described in

report BMSl, Research on Building Materials

and Structures for Use in Low-Cost Housing,

and that part of the program relating to structural properties in report BMS2, Methods of

Determining the Structural Properties of LowCost House Constructions.

Masonry constructions and wood constructions which have been extensively used in this

country for houses were included in the program

for the determination of the structural properties by the standardized laboratory methods

described in BMS2 because their behavior under

widely different service conditions is known to

both builders and the public. The reports on

162795"— 39 [1]
these constructions are BMS5, Structural Properties of Six Masonry Wall Constructions, and

BMS25, Structural Properties of Conventional

Wood-Frame Constructions for Walls, Partitions, Floors, and Roofs. These wood-frame

constructions were built and tested by the

Forest Products Laboratory at Madison, Wis.

This report describes the structural properties of a wall construction sponsored by one of

the groups in the building industry. The

specimens were subjected to compressive, transverse, concentrated, impact, and racldng loads,

simiilating loads to wliich the walls of a house

are subjected. In actual service, compressive

loads on a wall are produced by the weight of

the roof, second floor and second-story walls,

if any, furniture and occupants, and snow and

wind loads on the roof. Transverse loads on a

wall are produced by the wind, concentrated

and impact loads by furniture or accidental

contact with heavy objects, and racking loads

by the action of the wind on adjoining walls.

The deformation and set under each increment of load were measured because, considered

as a structure, the suitability of a wall construction depends not only on its resistance to deformation when loads are applied, but also on

whether it returns to its original size and shape

when the loads are removed.

II. SPONSOR AND PRODUCT

The specimens were submitted by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association, Tacoma, Wash.,

and represented a wood-frame wall construction. The sheathing on the outside face was

Douglas fir plywood covered by wood shingles.

The wallboard on the inside face was Douglas

fir plywood.

The wood framing was Douglas fir. No. 2

common. The wall constructions had nominal

2- by 4-in. studs, spaced 1 ft 4 in. on centers,

fastened to a floor plate and a double top

plate.

III. SPECIMENS AND TESTS

The wall construction was assigned the

symbol BU and the specimens were assigned

the designations given in table 1.

Table 1.

Specimen designations

Specimen designation

CI, Ct, CS.._ Tl, T2, T3 . Ti, To, T6.._ PI, PS, PS

P4, P5, P6

n, 12, IS U. 15. 16 Pi, R2, RS. ^

Load

Compressive..

Transverse do

Concentrated. do Impact

do Racking.

Load applied

Upper end.

Inside face. Outside face. Inside face. Outside face. Inside face. Outside face. Upper end.

» These specimens were undamaged portions of the impact specimens.

The specimens were tested in accordance

wdth BMS2, Methods of Determining the

Structural Properties of Low-Cost House Constructions, which also gives the requirements

for the specimens and describes the presentation of the results of the tests, particularly the

load-deformation graphs. Thomas R. C. Wil- son of the Forest Products Laboratory, Madison,

Wis., cooperated with the Bureaii staff in this

work by giving advice and suggestions on the

technique of testing wood structures.

For the compressive test the thickness of the

wah was taken as the thickness of the structural

portion, that is, the distance from the inside

surface of the studs to the outside surface of the

studs. The compressive load was applied onethird this thickness from the inside surface of

the studs. The shortenings and sets were

measured by means of compressometers attached to the steel loading plates through which

the load was applied to the specimen, not to the

specimen as described in BMS2. For woodframe constructions under compressive load

there is considerable local shortening caused by

crushing of the floor plate and the top plate

at the ends of the studs. Therefore, the shortening of the entire specimen is not proportional

to the value obtained from compressometers

attached near each end of the specimen.

Before applying the loads, the speed of the

movable head of the testing machine was

measured under no load. For compressive

loading the speed was 0.3 in./min. For trans- verse loading the speed was 0.44 in./min.

The tests were begun October 24, 1938, and

completed October 28, 1938.

The sponsor was notified when the tests would be started, but found it impossible to have a representative present.

[2]
IV. WALL7?t/

1. Sources of Information

Sponsor's Statement.—Unless otherwise stated, the information on materials was obtained

from the sponsor and from inspection of the

specimens.

Forest Products Laboratory.—The species of

all the wood and also the o;rade of the wood

Studs, floor plates, top plates, and girts 1%

by 3% in. (nominal 2 by 4 in). Half studs

by 3% in. (nominal 1 by 4 in).

To record the appearance of the framing and

of the failures, two photographs were taken of

each tested specimen after the surfacing material had been stripped from one face. Two

typical frames are shown in figs. 1 and 2. Although the knots in the framing were neither

Figure 1.

Frame of wall specimen BU-T4.

Severe cross-grain in studs.

framing were determined by the Forest Products

Laboratory. The Laboratory also supervised

the determination of the moisture content of

the wood.

2. Materials

(a) Wood

Framing.—Douglas fir {Pseudotsuga taxifolia)

No. 2 common, S4S (surfaced four sides).

large nor numerous, there was severe cross-grain, as shown by the ruptures of the studs and half

studs in figs. 1 and 2. The moisture content of the wood is given

in table 2. The moisture content of the plywood sheathing was not determined. The moisture content of the framing of each specimen was

determined by means of an electrical moisture

[3]
Table 2.

Moisture content of the wood

[Determined on the day the wall specimen was tested|

Moisture content » Wood

Minimum Maximum Average

Percent Percent Percent Framing 8 17 12 Shingles _ _ 9 12 10 Plywood wallboard _ 7 11 9

' Based on the weight when dry.

therefore, the moisture content of the Douglas

fir framing, as given in table 2, was obtained by

subtracting 1.3 from the meter readings and

rounding the result to the nearest whole

number.

Plywood sheathing.—Douglas fir, 3-ply, %6 in.

thick, unsanded, bonded with water-resistant

protein glue having a soya-bean and casein

base, complying with Commercial Standard

Figure 2. —Frame of wall specimen BV Tti.

Severe cross-grain in studs.

meter. The moisture meter was graduated for

Douglas fir. To determine the error of the

meter, 17 samples taken from the frames were

dried in an oven at 212° F xmtil the weight was

constant. The moisture content was the difference between the initial weight and the

weight when dry, divided by the weight when

dry. The average for these samples was 1.3

less than the average of the meter readings;

CS45-38, Douglas Fir Plywood, sheathing

grade.

Shingles.—Western red cedar. No. 2, 16 in.

long, five butts to 2 in. The moisture content

given in table 2 was determined by the moisture

meter on about 10 shingles of each wall specimen. The readings of the meter were not

checked by oven-dried samples.

Plywood wallboard.—Douglas fir, 3-ply, ji in.

[4]
thick, wallboard grade, sanded two sides,

bonded with water-resistant protein glue having

a soya-bean and casein base, complying with

Commercial Standard CS45-38, Douglas Fir

Plywood. The moisture contents given in

table 2 were determined by oven-drying to

constant weight, one sample taken from each

wall specimen.

(6) Nails

The nails were made from steel wire and the

description is given in table 3

.

Table 3.Description of nails

Steel-wire gage Type Size Length Finish Number Diameter

Penny In. In. Box 10 10 0. 135 Casing 4 1 14 .080 Common _ _ n 2 MVi . 113 Shingle. 2 1 15 .072 Zinc coated.

3. Description, Sponsor's Statement

The price of this construction in Washington,

D. C, as of July 1937, was $0.28/ft.2

(a) Four-Foot Wall Specimens

The 4-ft wall specimens were 8 ft 0 in. high,

4 ft 0 in. face width, and 4:^%6 in. thick. Each

specimen consisted of a wood frame to which

the faces were fastened. The frame consisted

of two studs, A, shown in fig. 3, and two half

studs, B, fastened to a floor plate, C, a top plate,

D, and girts, E, by naUs. The outside face

consisted of Douglas fir plywood sheathing, F,

and wood shingles, G. The inside face was

Douglas fir plywood wallboard, H. No paint

or other decorative finish was applied to the

specimens.

Studs.—The studs. A, were Douglas fir, 1%

by S% in. (nominal 2 by 4 in), 7 ft 7% in. long,

spaced 1 ft 4 in. on centers. The lower end of

each stud was fastened to the floor plate by two

16d box nails driven from the bottom of the

plate (not toenailed), and the upper end of each

stud was fastened to the top plate by two 16d

box nails driven from the top of the lower member of the plate.

Half studs.—The half studs, B, were Douglas

fir, by 3% in. (nominal 1 by 4 in), 7 ft 7}^ in.

long. The lower end of each stud was fastened

to the floor plate by two 16d box nails driven

from the bottom of the plate (not toenailed),

and the upper end of each stud was fastened to

the top plate by two 16d box nails driven from

the top of the lower member of the plate.

Floor plate.—The floor plate, C, was Douglas

Figure 3.

Four-foot wall specimen BU.

A, studs; B, half studs; C, floor plate; D, top plate; E, girts; F, sheathing;

G, wood shingles; H, plywood wallboard.

fir, 1% by 3% in. (nominal 2 by 4 in), 4 ft 0 in.

long.

Top plate. —The top plate, D, consisted of two

pieces of Douglas fir, 1^^ by 3% in. (nominal 2 by

4 in), 4 ft 0 in. long, fastened by six 16d box

nails, two naUs midway between the studs, and

two midway between each stud and half stud,

driven from the top of the upper member of

the plate.

Girts.—The three girts, E, were Douglas fir,

1% by 3% in. (nominal 2 by 4 in), 1 ft 2% in.

long, fastened at midheight to the studs by

[5]
16d. box nails, two at each end. The nails in

the two outer girts were driven through the

studs and half studs. The center girt was

toenailed.

Sheathing.—The sheathing, F, was two pieces

of 3-ply Douglas fir plywood, %e in. thick and

4 ft 0 in. square, having a transverse joint on

the girts. The sheathing was applied so that

the grain of the outer plies was transverse. The

sheathing was fastened to the half studs, floor

plate, top plate, and girts by 6d common nails

spaced 6 in., and to the studs by 6d common

nails spaced 1 ft 0 in.

Shingles.—The shingles, G, were western red

cedar, 1 ft 4 in. long, exposed 6 in. to the weather

and fastened to the sheathing by 2d galvanized

shingle nails, two in each shingle.

Wallboard.—The wallboard, H, was 3-ply

Douglas fir plywood, 8 ft 0 in. by 4 ft 0 in. by

% in. The wallboard was applied so that the

grain of the outer plies was longitudinal (vertical). The wallboard was fastened to the half

studs, floor plate, and top plate by 4d casing

nails spaced 6 in., and to the studs and girts by

4d casing nails spaced 1 ft 0 in.

(6) Eight-Foot Wall Specimens

The 8-ft wall specimens were 8 ft 0 in. high,

8 ft 0 in. face width, and 41^6 in. thick. The

specimens were similar to the 4-ft specimens,

except that there were seven studs spaced 1 ft

4 in. on centers. There was a full-sized stud at

each edge extending one-half its thickness beyond the faces; over-all width 8 ft 1% in.

Sheathing.—The sheathing was two pieces of

plywood, 8 ft 0 in. by 4 ft 0 in., with a trans- verse joint on the girts. The sheathing was

fastened to the edge studs, floor plate, girts,

and top plate by 6d common nails spaced 6 in.,

and to the other five studs by 6d common nails

spaced 1 ft 0 in.

Wallboard.—The wallboard was two pieces of

plywood, 8 ft 0 in. by 4 ft 0 in., with a longitudinal (vertical) joint on the center stud. The

wallboard was fastened to the edge studs, center

stud, floor plate, and top plate by 4d casing

nails spaced 6 in., and to the other four studs

and the girts by 4d casing nails spaced 1 ft. 0 in.

(c) Comments

If the plywood sheathing and wallboard are

to contribute to the strength of a construction

similar to wall BU, it is essential that aU the

plywood be fastened at least as securely as for

this construction.

The sheathing, whether on the inside or the

outside face, should always be fastened by 6d

common nails. The spacing of the nails should

not exceed 6 in. along each edge of the plywood,

and should not exceed 1 ft along supports inside

the edge.

The plywood also maj> be fastened to the

frame by securely gluing aU the surfaces in

contact. This may be done either in a shop or on the building site.

The outside face may be shingles, as for wall

BU, or other materials such as stucco, brick

veneer, or any kind of wood siding.

4. Compressive Load

WaU specimen BU-Cl under compressive

load is shown in flg. 4. The results for waU

specimens BU-Cl, C2, and C3 are shown in

table 4 and in figs. 5 and 6. The lateral deflections shown in fig. 6 are plotted to the right of the vertical axis for

deflections of the specimens toward the outside

face (positive deflections) and to the left for

deflections toward the inside face (negative

deflections). Each of the specimens deflected

toward the inside face for loads almost to the

maximum load. At the maximum load each

specimen deflected in the opposite direction,

that is, toward the outside face. £

Probably the specimens deflected toward the

inside face because the wallboard was stiffer

under compressive loads than the sheathing.

The loading plates at the top and bottom of

the specimen extended beyond the wallboard

and the sheathing.

Although the wallboard was thinner than the

sheatliing, it was stiffer because it was one

piece and the grain of two of the three plies

was longitudinal (vertical). The sheathing

was in two pieces with a transverse joint at

[6]
midheight of the specimen. Under compressive loads this joint closed appreciably before

the edges of the sheathing came into bearing.

In addition, the grain of only one ply was longitudinal.

board carried little of the compressive load, and

the lateral deflection of the specimen changed

from toward the inside face to the outside face.

At loads of 5, 4, and 3.5 kips/ft for specimens

Cl, C2, and C3, respectively, the wallboard

Figure 4.

Wall specimen BU-Cl under com-pressive load.

At loads approaching the maximum load,

the wallboard buckled, resulting in separation

from the studs and half studs for half the height

of the specimen; as a consequence, the wallstarted to separate from the studs and half

studs, pulling the nails from the studs. At the

maximum loads (5.27, 6.75, and 4.8 kips/ft)

each of the specimens failed by the wallboard

[7]
separating from all the studs and half studs for

at least half the height of the specimen, and by

crushing of the lower member of the wall plate

locally at the ends of the studs and half studs,

causing the wall plate to rotate and allowing

the specimens to push out under load without

breaking the studs. Some of the shingles near

the upper end of the specimen separated from

the sheathing.

Table 4.

Structural properties, wall BU

[Weight, 4.23 lb/ft']

Load Load apphed

Specimen

designation

Failure

of

loaded

face,

height

of

drop

Failure

of

opposite

face,

height

of

drop

Maximum

height

of

drop

Maximum

load

Compressive _

Transverse. _

.

Do

Upper end, applied

one-third the

thickness (1.21 in.) from the inside surface of the studs

(see section III)

.

CI

/( ft ft Kips/ff

5. 27

6. 75

4. 83 C2

C3

5.62

Inside face; span

7 ft 6 in .

ITl

Ib/fP200

233

203 Its

[T3

212

Outside face; span

7 ft 6 in \n.. 162 222

271 \T5

ConcentratedDo

[T6..

Average . 218

Inside face.

.

IP/..

lb 750

650

650

Average

[P3

683

Outside face \P4-- ' 1, 000

' 1, 000

» 1,000 P5.-

Impact

Average-- -._

[P6

f

1, 000

Inside face; span

7 ft 6 in

(//.-

Us...

(')

(')

(') 10.0

(')

110. 0

110.0 110.0

Do _

Average--- (.') 110. 0

Outside face; span

7 ft 6 in 75...

1/6...

(')

(')

(')

(0

(')

(')

flO. 0 MO.O

*10. 0

Racking

Average (') (.')

Upper end

IRl..

Kips/ft'' 1.34

1.44

1.42

Average-.. _ .

R3

1.40

< A kip is 1,000 lb.

' Test discontinued.

' Face did not fail. 1 Test discontinued.

a]

Q /

/7

-•—

1

—°1 0

•

I hJB

/ A\

»

1

•

/ —

1/

/

1

1

1

•

BU

0 0.04 0.08 0.12

shorfenin<^ in. Figure 5.

Compressive load on wall BU.

Load-shortening (open circles) and load-set (solid circles) results for specimens BU-Cl, C2, and C3. The load was applied one-third the

thickness (1.21 in.) from the inside surface of the studs. The loads

are in kips per foot of actual width of specimen.

7

6

5

4

5

I-

-I

f

?^

—I —

_

-•v- X n

n

Specimen did not fail.

Specimen damaged

-0.^ 0 0.2 0.4 0.6

lafera/ def/ecHon in. Figure 6.

Compressive load on wall BU.

Load-lateral deflection (open circles) and load-lateral set (solid circles) results for specimens BU-Ci, Cf, and CJ. The load was applied

one-third the thickness (1.21 in.) from the inside surface of the studs. The loads are in kips per foot of actual width of specimen. The deflections and sets are for a height of 7 ft lOJ^ in., the gage length of the

deflectometers. [8]
Figure 7. —Wall specimen BU-TS vnder transverse load.

250

200

100

50

o —•

o .

I

• apBU-I

250

0 17 5

defleciion in. Figure 8. —Transverse load on wall BU, load applied to inside face.

Load-deflection (open circles) and load-set (solid circles) results for specimens BV-Tl, T2, and TS on the span 7 ft 6 in.

1)to

200

150

100

50

0

1—•

[ •

•

o—

1

o

o o

•— —o

o- o o

o o

o o

1

1m oL • qp:

' J/T • aS)-

1 Jr

• CD

» d>

1 T

Tj•o

1/

BU-4 0/23

deflecfion in. Figure 9. —Transverse load on wall BU, load applied

to outside face.

Load-deflection (open circles) and load-set (solid circles) results for specimens BU-T4, To, and T6 on the span 7 ft 6 in.

[9]
5. Transverse Load

Wall specimen BU-T3 under transverse load

is shown in fig. 7. The results are shown in

table 4 and in fig. 8 for wall specimens BU-Tl,

T2, and T3, loaded on the inside face, and in

fig. 9 for wall specimens BU-T4, T5, and T6,

loaded on the outside face.

Specimen Tl (loaded on the wallboard) failed

by rupture of both studs and one half stud near midspan. Specimen T2 failed by rupture of

both studs and both half studs near midspan.

In specimen T3 one stud broke at a load of

153 Ib/ft^ and a half stud at 175 Ib/ft^. At the

maximum load (203 Ib/ft^) the other stud and

the other half stud broke. The faces were imdamaged.

Specimen TJf. (loaded on the shingles) failed

by rupture of all the studs and half studs at or between the loading roUers. The wallboard pulled away from the floor plate and

one broken stud punched through, pushing

the waUboard from all the studs at midspan.

In specimen T5 one stud and one half stud

broke at a load of 200 Ib/ft^. At the maximum

load the other stud broke and the wallboard

pulled away from the floor plate, but was

undamaged. In specimen T6, one half stud

broke at a load of 87.5 Ib/ft^ and the other at a load of 255 Ib/ft^ at or between the loading

roUers. The specimen failed when both studs

ruptured near midspan. The waUboard pulled

away from the floor plate but was undamaged.

6. Concentrated Load

Wall specimen BU-P2 under concentrated

load is shown in fig. 10. The results are shown in table 4 and in fig. 11 for wall specimens BU-Pl, P2, and P3, loaded on the inside

face, and in fig. 12 for wall specimens BU-P4.,

P5, and P6, loaded on the outside face.

The concentrated loads were applied to the

inside face of specimens PI, P2, and P3 on the

waUboard between a stud and a half stud and

from 2 to 2)2 ft from one end of the specimen.

Each of the specimens faUed by punching of

the disk through the wallboard.

The concentrated loads were applied to the

outside face of specimens PJf., P5, and P6, on a

shingle from 3 to 4 in. from the lower edge and

about 2 ft from one end of the specimen between a stud and a half stud. On specimen

P4 at a load of 750 lb the shingle split along

the grain at both edges of the disk. On

specimen P5 at a load of 800 lb the shingle

split along the grain at one edge of the disk,

Figure 10.

Wall specimen BU-P2 under concentrated load.

[10]
m

m

m

^^^^

1300

I

^.200

o

m

0

• •

1—•] —

'

»

t • / — —

(

\—7^—

( 

—

/

1

•

•

—

•

/•

— V

1 —

/

•r—

1

BU-I

Q 0.04 0.08 0.12

indenfaiion in. Figure 11.

Concentrated load on wall BU, load applied

to inside face.

Load-indentation results for specimens jBO-PJ, P2, and PS.

1—

— •

r

z

—

• —i •—

»

-1

J

Jm—

r•

1m

0.2

indenfaiion in. Figure 12.

Concentrated load on wall BU, load applied

to outside face.

Load-indentation results for specimens B U-P4, PS, and P6.

at 900 lb also at the other edge, and. at 1,000

lb the shingle below split along the grain. On

specimen P6 at a load of 800 lb the shingle

spJit along the grain at one edge of the disk

and at 1,000 lb a)so on the other edge. The

sets after a load of 1,000 lb had been applied

were 0.30, 0.34, and 0.33 in. for specimens P^,

P5, and P6, respectively, and no other effect

was observed.

7. Impact Load

Wall specimen BU-Il during the impact test

is shown in fig. 13. The results are shown in

table 4 and in fig. 14 for wall specimens BU-Il,

12, and 13, loaded on the inside face, and in fig.

15 for wall specimens BU-I4, 15, and 16,

loaded on the outside face.

The impact loads were applied to the center

of the inside face of specimens II, 12, and 13,

the sandbag strildng the wallboard directly over the center girt and midway between the

studs. On specimen II at a drop of 3 ft the

wallboard started to separate from the center

girt, pulling some of the nails from the girt;

at 6.5 ft the wallboard started to separate from

the studs near midspan; and at 8.5 ft the wallboard separated from the floor plate and top

plate at midwidth. The set after a drop of 10

ft was 0.27 in. ; one half stud was split for about

1 ft along the grain at midspan, but the faces did

not fail. On specimen 12 at a drop of 6 ft the

wallboard separated from the floor plate, pulling

some of the nails with it; at 8 ft some of the

shingles started to separate from the sheathing near midspan; at 8.5 ft one half stud split

slightly; at 9 ft one stud broke at midspan;

and at 9.5 ft the half stud previously split

broke and the wallboard started to separate from

the girts. The set after a drop of 10 ft was

0.46 in. ; the outside face failed by separation of

some of the shingles near midspan at the break

in the studs, but the inside face did not fail. On specimen 13 at a drop of 5.5 ft the wallboard

separated noticeably from the floor plate and

one half stud, pulling some of the nails with it; and at 9 ft some of the shingles separated from

the sheathing near midspan and one half stud

split. The set after a drop of 10 ft was 0.60

in. ; the wall board separated from the center of

[11
Id

8

I

0

0

Figure 13. —Wall specimen BU-Il during the impact test.

10

1

» 1-00- 1 <

1

•

1

1

1 •

1

1•

1•—

'

1•1/ Si//

I 2 5

defleciion in

O-i-On

Figure 14.Impact load on wall BU, load applied to inside face.

Height of drop-deflection (open circles) and height of drop-set (solid

circlets) results for specimens BU-Il, 72, and IS on the span 7 ft 6 in.

17 3

def/ecf/on in. Figure 15.

Impact load on wall BU, load applied to outside face.

Height of drop-deflection (open circles) and height of drop-set (solid

circles) results for specimens BU-I.'„ IS, and 16 on the span 7 ft 6 in.

112J
the specimen where the bag struck, but the

faces did not fail. The impact load was applied

to the center of the outside face of specimens

Ui, 15, and 16, the sandbag striking the shingles

directly over the center girt and midway

between the studs.

On specimen I4 at a drop of 9 ft one of the

half studs split along the grain; at 9.5 ft the

wallboard separated noticeably from the outer

girts and some of the shingles near one end of

the specimen separated from the sheathing.

BL-Rl, R2, and R3 are shown in table 4 and

in fig. 17.

The racking loads were applied to specimen

Rl at one end of both members of the top

plate only, and the stop at the diagonally opposite corner of the specimen was in contact with

the opposite end of the floor plate and the

longitudinal (vertical) edges of both the sheathing and the wallboard.

At a load of 1 kip/ft the wallboard buckled

from the longitudinal (vertical) plane and at

I'^KJORE 16. - Wall speciinen BIJ-R2 under racking loud.

The set after a drop of 10 ft was 0.42 in.; both

studs were split near midspan, but the faces did

not fail. On specimens 15 and 16 at drops of

7 and 9 ft respectively, the wallboard separated

noticeably from the frame near midspan, pulling

some of the nails with it. The sets after a drop

of 10 ft were 0.11 and 0.20 in., respectively, but

the faces and studs did not fail.

8. Kacking Load

Wall specimen BU-R2 under racking load is shown in fig. 16. The results for wall specimens

the loaded corner separated from the upper

end of the edge stud for a distance of about

2 ft downward from the top plate; there was

about ]{ in. longitudinal displacement between

the two wallboards at the joint. At 1 .25

kips/ft the separation of the wallboard extended

down to midheight. At the maximum load

the specimen failed by separation of the wallboard and sheathing from the first three studs near the load and from the lower end of the

edge stud at the stop.

In specimens R2 and RS the racking loads

13 J
were applied to one end of a 6- by 6-in. timber,

8 ft 3 in. long, fastened to the upper surface of

the top plate by twenty No. 14 wood screws,

2% in. long, spaced uniformly. They were

countersunk into the timber and extended

about 1% in. into the top plate. The stop

was in contact with the opposite end of the

floor plate and the lower edges of the faces.

At a load of 1.25 kips/ft on specimen R2 the

wallboard and sheathing buckled outward from

the longitudinal (vertical) plane and separated

from the upper end of the edge stud at the

' ' 1.4

1.2

^

0.8

0.6

I

0.2

0

• 0 O O

D y ( )

O 1 'o /

/

f / • qp

f

i

BU

0 OA 0.8 1.2

deformaf/on in./8ff

Figure 17.Racking load on wall BU.

Load-deformation (open circles) and load-set (solid circles) results for specimens BU-Rl, R2, and R3. The loads are in kips per foot of face width of specimen.

loaded corner, pulling the nails from the stud;

the wallboard separated from the lower end

of the stud at the stop; and there was about

}^-in. displacement at the joint between the

two pieces of plywood sheathing. At the

maximum load the specimen failed by displacement of the top plate transversely with respect

to the studs, pulling the nails from the studs

and through the upper edge of the wallboard

and sheathing, and also through the edge along

the edge stud at the stop. The wallboard

separated from the other studs, pulling the

nails from the studs, and the center stud ruptured at midheight.

At a load of 0.875 kip/ft on specimen R3 the

wallboard and sheathing at the loaded corner

buckled, resulting in puUing of naUs and

separation from the edge stud along the

upper part of its length. The sheathing at

the corner in contact with the stop also separated

from the edge stud along the lower part of

its length. At a load of 1.25 kips/ft there was

about %-in. displacement at the joint between

the two pieces of plywood sheathing. At the

maximum load the specimen failed by displacement of the top plate along the upper ends of

the studs, pulling the naUs from them and

through the upper edge of the wallboard and

sheathing, and also through the edge along

the edge stud at the stop. The wallboard

separated from the other studs, pulling the

nails from the studs.

The description and drawings of the specimens were prepared by E. J. Schell, G. W.

Shaw, and T. J. Hanley of the Building Practice

and Specifications Section, under the supervision of V. B. Phelan, from the information

supplied by the sponsor and from the speci- mens. The structural properties were determined by the Engineering Mechanics Section, under the supervision of H. L. Whittemore

and A. H. Stang, with the assistance of the

following members of the professional staff: F. CardUe, R. C. Carter, H. Dollar, M. Dubin,

A. H. Easton, A. S. Endler, C. D. Johnson,

A. J. Sussman, and L. R. Sweetman.

V. SELECTED REFERENCES

American Builder and Building Age, 59, No. 12, 41-84

(1937) ; 60, No. 12, 43-86 (1938); 61, No. 3, 46-49

(1939).

Architect and Engineer (September 1938).

Architectural Record, 83, No. 5, 92-99 (1938); 83,

No. 6, 74-79 (1938); 85, No. 3, 38-40 (1939).

Construction Methods and Equipment, p. 36-41

(March 1939).

Engineering News-Record, 120, 855-858, 881-883

(1938) . The Timberman, 39, No. 2, Plywood Supplement 10-24

(1937).

Washington, May 25, 1939.

[H]
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