What are Roof to Wall Connections?
Before the invention of the wind mitigation inspection in 2003 most home owners probably didn’t know what a roof to wall connections was. Now 20 years later most Floridians have a PhD in the subject. Most people refer to this connection as a “hurricane strap”. But for those out of state newbies a hurricane strap is a framing connection that attaches the roof framing to the walls. This helps protect the home from the extreme high winds that most Florida homes see every year.
History of hurricane straps
Hurricane straps & clips can be found on homes dating all the way back to the 1950’s. It wasn’t in the building code back then, many builders would opt to have these installed for added wind protection. Most jurisdictions started to adopt this into their requirements in the early 70’s. Before builders started using these connections they would simply drive nails through the roof framing & into the wall. This is referred to a “Toe Nail” on the wind mitigation form.
Types of roof to wall connections
There are many different types of connectors used to secure the framing to the wall. Simpson Strong Tie seems to be the manufacture of choice for most. The most common types found on homes are metal brackets that either attach to the truss on one side or ones that wrap over the truss and are secured on both sides. Recently a new product from Simpson called the SDWC Truss Screw. These are used often on new homes and can only be seen during construction.
What if my home doesn’t have them?
If you have an older home pre-1960’s, then the house may not have hurricane straps installed. That is ok though as there are contractors out there that can still have them installed. Home owners will typically do this if they want to get home insurance discounts or they wish to add some wind protection to their home. Be careful though as there are a lot of companies that do not perform this type of retrofit properly. This will result in the home not qualifying for discounts on the wind mitigation form. This article addresses the issues found during a retrofit.
Are hurricane straps much stronger than toe nails?
The uplift resistance for each type of roof to wall attachment varies quite a bit. Most toe nail connections will have an uplift resistance of around 300-800lbs depending on size & number of nails. On the other hand you can have metal U straps installed which can have an uplift resistance of more than 2000lbs! That is a large difference especially when you factor in that there can be over 100 points of attachment even in a small home. This is why the roof to wall connection on the wind mitigation form is a big discount with insurance companies.
If you would like to find out if your home qualifies for a discount you can book a wind mitigation inspection with us here.