Friday, June 1, 2007

strengthening of floor joists with FRP's??

I have a project where we'd like to strengthen the existing open web floor joists (TJW) due to change of occupancy use.  Loads have increased from 50 psf live +20 psf partition to 100 psf live with no partition loading.

Has anyone ever strengthened these types of joists using FRP's adhered to the bottom chord only?? Is this even a possiblity, considering the different materials (i.e. wood chords, steel web members, steel pins) used in the joists? Presence of piping/ducting running through the web spaces precludes the use of sheathing the sides of the joists with plywood, which was my first thought.  Any other suggestions??  Thanks


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