Wind Zone Calculation Reports

Why be concerned about high wind?

Building a new home is one of the biggest investments you'll ever make. If you are building your home in an area that is prone to damaging winds from hurricanes or other storms, your investment can be at risk! But, you can protect your investment! Building your home to meet code requirements can have a significant impact on whether your home withstands the next big storm.

How wind affects your home

The high winds generated from thunderstorms, hurricanes and tornados create forces that attack the integrity of a home in multiple ways:

• Uplift: When wind flows over the roof of the structure, creating a strong lifting forces on the roof which can cause it to break away.
• Racking: When wind blows against the side of the structure exerting a lateral force that causes it to lean over (rack) to one side.
• Sliding: When wind blows against the side of the structure exerting a lateral force, causing it to slide off of its foundation.
• Overturning: When the structure is anchored in place to limit racking or sliding, the lateral force of the wind causes the structure to rotate or overturn.

Without proper design and construction, these forces can produce structural damage and/or failure, potentially causing serious injury or death. Modern design and construction practices, such as structual connectors used in continuous load path transfer system, can effectively resist these forces by reinforcing the home from the roof to the foundation.

Who needs a report?
This is dependant on the specific location of your building site. If you are building in a location that is designated as a high wind zone you may need anchor straps, shearwalls and other special construction to resist lateral wind forces. The design of these special items can often be done by Home Designing Service, Ltd. but in extreme cases may require the services of a Licensed Professional Engineer. If your local building official requires these special design features we will be glad to provide you with a quote for our services, or refer you to a Licensed Professional Engineer.

The effects of high wind

You can learn more about anchor systems and continuous load path transfer systems here.

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