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Assessment of light-frame wood structures for wind and seismic loadings requires engineering information about the wood materials and connections in the subject building. The knowledge base can be developed by inspection and further enriched by knowledge of age effects on materials and connection properties. Nineteen wood-frame structures built between 1905 and 1970 and scheduled for demolition were located through local municipal building departments and sampled for wood materials and nail connections prior to demolition. The project plan was to evaluate the materials from the buildings while watching for trends in materials over time, calculate the expected connection capacity using the materials' test results, and then compare the calculated allowable connection capacity to tests of single-fastener connections extracted from the same buildings. Insect damage and fungal deterioration were present in many of the structures and were avoided when sampling for test specimens. Inferences are not made regarding the effect of biological deterioration and climatic conditions on the wood material properties. The Douglas-fir studs and plank-shiplap sheathing extracted from the source structures had an average dowel bearing strength ([F.sub.e] = 29 MPa) that was statistically similar to the National Design Specification for Wood Construction table value for a specific gravity (SG) of 0.47 for dowels with diameters of less than 6.35 mm. The nails had average bending-yield strength of 671 MPa as compared to the contemporary reference value of 690 MPa for nails in this diameter class. No time trend was observed in the SG of the wood or the bending-yield strength of the nails. In general, the connection tests yielded good agreement between the European yield model equations and calculated connection capacity. Validation of the material conditions in older structures requires cautious inspection. The inference from this investigation as related to rehabilitation is that nailed connections without deterioration due to decay, insects, temperature, and/or moisture perform in a manner consistent with the current design standard. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0000116 CE Database subject headings: Wood; Frames; Nails; Shear walls; Service life; Buildings, residential; Connections. Author keywords: Wood; Light-frame; Nails; Shear walls; Service life.

The goal of this study was to develop an understanding of the nature of wave loading on a wood-framed scale residential building model for a variety of building configurations and test conditions. Testing was performed on a 1/6th scale two-story wood-framed residential structure. The structure was impacted with waves and tested in both flooded and nonflooded conditions. The measured forces were mainly uplift forces due to wave loading, and resulting overturning moments. The qualitative analysis of the data showed that differences in structural stiffness throughout the structure will cause a different load distribution in the structure, e.g., overhanging eaves above the garage can provide unanticipated loading conditions, water traveling beneath the structure generates predominantly uplift forces, and the effect of waves breaking on or near the structure greatly increases the loading. The ratio of force from the windows closed condition to the windows open condition is approximately 2.5:1. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)CF.1943-5509.0000039 CE Database subject headings: Buildings, residential; Wood structures; Frames; Floods; Structural behavior.

Wood poles are a critical part of the electrical transmission system in North America. Wood poles are normally selected on the basis of visual features such as knots, slope of grain or other defects, but there is currently no simple, nondestructive bending (NDB), pre-flexural testing for sorting poles prior to use. In the present paper, the potential for NDB based on bending below the proportional limit was examined to calculate modulus of elasticity (MOE) and thereby predict actual modulus of rupture as determined by destructive bending (MORDB). The investigation was performed on 92 full length 13.3-m long Douglas-fir pole sections. Pre-flexural testing was reasonably correlated with MOEDB, but less well correlated with MORDB. The testing also revealed that visual selection of the best face of a pole, which is used to select a pole oriented to line direction (the "best face"), was poorly correlated with pre-flexing. Increasing the number of NDB tests did not noticeably improve the prediction. The results suggest that pre-flexing might be useful for identifying poles' performance in service, if more data are available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A specification to test and evaluate the flexural creep and duration of load effects for structural wood-based products was finalized as ASTM D 6815-02. The test method requires relatively large forces be sustained for at least 90 days. Further, the test is conducted in an environment that is moisture and temperature controlled. The typical apparatus for this test uses weights and ratio pulleys, but the heavy loads make loading and unloading difficult and potentially dangerous and the footprint must be large enough to provide space for lifting. This paper describes an apparatus that requires a minimum of floor space and uses hydraulic loading so that it is safer to load and unload. Operation and typical data for the test are used to demonstrate the specification and the apparatus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]