Seismic Risk Mitigation for Your Home

Considering that a strong earthquake generates 60 years of landfill waste and vast amounts of long term chemical pollution, seismic preparedness is an important green building trait. Jay Lewis is president of Terra Firm, a Vancouver-based company that specializes in non-structural seismic mitigation. Jay presents the following 10 steps to make your home more siesmicaly resillient:

• Install anchor bolts between concrete foundation and wood framing.
• Consider installing Simpson Strong Ties between bottom sill and individual studs, particularly where studs are toe nailed.
• Carefully design interior partitions to provide sheer wall and seismic bracing.
• Consider instialling hot water tanks near walls so that they can be braced to resist tipping during an earthquake. This will reduce the chance of supply lines breaking and causing flooding damage.
• Fasten furnaces and boilers to the floor using angle brackets.
• Consider installing appliance straps on heavy appliances, particularly those that sit on wheels.
• Consider installing touch latches on cupboards containing glass and other breakable items.
• When renovating, consider replacing external brick chimneys with with boxed-in, or metal chimneys to reduce damage from falling bricks.
• Consider instailling natural gas valves fitted with automatic shut-offs.
• Avoid locating top heavy furniture where it can fall on a building's occupants, particularly in bedrooms and other sleeping areas.