| Summary: | The objective of this study was to develop and validate practical modeling
methods for investigating load paths and system behavior in a realistic, light-frame wood
structure. The modeling methods were validated against full-scale tests on subassemblies
and an L-shaped house. The model of the L-shaped house was then modified
and used to investigate the effects of re-entrant corners, wall openings and gable-end
retrofits on system behavior and load paths. Results from this study showed that the
effects of adding re-entrant corners and wall openings on uplift load distributions were
dependent on the orientation of the trusses with respect to the walls. Openings added to
walls parallel to the trusses had the least effect on loads carried by the remaining walls in
the building. Varying re-entrant corner dimensions of the L-shaped house under ASCE
7-05 (ASCE 2005) design wind loads caused increasing degrees of torsion throughout the
house, depending on the relative location and stiffness of the in-plane walls (parallel to
the applied wind loads) as well as the assumed direction of the wind loads. Balancing the
stiffness of the walls on either side of the house with the largest re-entrant corner helped
to decrease torsion in the structure somewhat. Finally, although previous full-scale tests
on gable-end sections verified the effectiveness of the gable-end retrofit that was recently
adopted into the 2010 Florida building code, questions remained about the effects of the
retrofit on torsion in a full building. The current study found that adding the gable-end
retrofits to the L-shaped house did not cause additional torsion. === Graduation date: 2013
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