The most common reason to install additional lateral restraint in a domestic property is to prevent unrestrained external walls from moving further out of plumb. An external wall that has moved laterally, or bowed, is fixed back to the main part of the building by making a strong connection between it and the internal floors or walls.
Lateral restraint techniques
These strong structural connections can be made using a variety of products including steel straps, resin anchors and helical bar. Custom steel brackets or helical bars are used to reconnect walls back to floors, or external walls back to internal walls. Lateral restraint techniques can also make use of steel beams and columns. We can either laterally restrain steel beams or columns back to other parts of a property, or provide restraint to masonry walls from steel beams or columns.
Helifix
Structural Repairs Ltd is an approved Helifix installer, whose product range includes a number of options for lateral restraint:
- Helibeams – pairs of long HeliBars bonded into the mortar bed of a wall to form masonry beams that reinforce and stabilise existing masonry while redistributing the structural loads;
- BowTies – long stainless steel ties used to stabilise bulging walls, without any external plates, by securing them to internal floor joists;
- CemTies – remedial ties used to stabilise all forms of solid masonry and reconnect separated internal and external walls;
- Remedial wall ties – either DryFix or CemenTies depending on the condition of the wall to replace or add to existing wall ties;
- Render pinning – to reattach detached render.
Helifix is the country’s leading manufacturer of helical bar masonry repair systems and its products can be used to provide a wide variety of lateral restraint. All Helifix work comes with an underwritten 10 year Helifix warranty covering the design, materials and workmanship and is further protected by the Consumer Protection Association (CPA). All designs are checked by a Helifix engineer and all products have been tested and quality assured.
If your engineer has specified the use of steel straps rather than a Helifix product we can install whichever design they propose. We either bring prefabricated steel to site or custom-make steel components on-site depending on the individual circumstances. All steelwork is fabricated and installed as per an engineer’s designs and is treated with red oxide paint if specified. Additional protection such as a hot dip galvanised finish or zinc ‘Galvafroid’ paint can be provided on request.
Lateral restraint works are sometimes combined with roof strengthening, wall tie replacement, drainage repairs and other forms of structural work. If your building is suffering from a lack of lateral restraint or any other structural defect please contact us for advice and to discuss your requirements.