Wall Bracing III Certification Quiz

Once you have passed and submitted the quiz, you will receive your AIA or ICC Certificate of Completion.

Learning Objectives

Apply the IRC wall bracing provisions to example plans
Understand the IRC simplified wall bracing method
Understand the APA simplified wall bracing method
Input plan information into the APA Wall Bracing Calculator

1. In which of the following scenarios would the seismic provisions need to be checked?

Single-family home in Seismic Design Category B
Townhouse in Seismic Design Category C
Duplex in Seismic Design Category C

2. What must you do to apply the IRC Simplified Method to a single-family residence in Seismic Design Category D?

The number of bracing units must be multiplied by 2
The longest side of your rectangle is limited to 35 feet
You cannot use the IRC Simplified Method in this case

3. When using the IRC Simplified Method on a two-story house, how do you account for a one-story attached garage?

The garage should be included in the first-floor rectangle, and not included in the second-floor rectangle
If there are no bedrooms in the garage area, it can be ignored
The garage should be treated as a separate structure

4. The online APA Wall Bracing Calculator is based on:

The APA Simplified Method
The IRC Simplified Method
The IRC Wall Bracing Provisions

5. Which of the following narrow bracing methods counts as a full bracing unit when using the IRC Simplified Method?

GS-PF
PFG
PFH

6. With the IRC Simplified Method, how can you reduce the minimum bracing length to three feet?

Continuously sheath the house
Reduce edge fastener spacing to 4" oc
Limit the long side of the rectangle to 40 feet

7. According to APA’s full-house testing, which of the following code-prescribed bracing methods resisted the most load?

Intermittent Wood Structural Panels
Continuously Sheathed Wood Structural Panels (CS-WSP)
Let-In Bracing (LIB)

8. Which of the following are advantages to the APA Simplified Method vs. the IRC Simplified Method?

The APA Simplified Method only applies to CS-WSP, which offers flexibility to count narrower piers
CS-PF can be used and counts 1.5x the actual length
Partial credit is allowed
All of the above

9. What are the options if a side of the house is longer than 60 feet when using the APA Simplified Method?

Divide the house into multiple rectangles and follow the rules from APA SR-102 for the common wall
The APA Simplified Method cannot be used; use the IRC prescriptive method
This is outside the IRC and you should consult an engineer

10. What is the difference in the placement requirements between the IRC prescriptive method and the two simplified methods?

No difference; first braced wall panel (BWP) within 10 feet of the end of the braced wall line (BWL) and not more than 20 feet edge-to-edge of BWP for both IRC prescriptive method and the simplified methods
The simplified methods require a BWP within 12 feet of the end of the BWL; IRC prescriptive requires first BWP within 10 feet
The simplified methods allow BWP to be 25 feet edge to edge; IRC prescriptive limits this to 20 feet

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