Inspection and structural assessment of traditional timber floors: a practical systematization
International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation
ISSN: 2398-4708
Article publication date: 14 February 2023
Issue publication date: 3 July 2023
Abstract
Purpose
This paper addresses the evaluation of traditional wooden floors, based on (1) visual strength grading (VSG) techniques adopted for ancient wooden structures; (2) a new approach to biological damage and (3) structural safety analysis. This assessment includes complex concepts. Therefore, the study presents a highly needed practical tool to help technicians make a preliminary assessment whereby many of the timber elements in our heritage can be saved from removal.
Design/methodology/approach
A simple and effective procedure was developed for each step. An inspection and diagnosis datasheet was drawn up, and the structural analysis presented by the Eurocodes was summarized. This methodology was then applied in a case study to demonstrate the complete procedure. During the assessment of this sort of structures, the drilling technique was a relevant method utilized as it provided essential and clear information about the beams' conservation.
Findings
The case study results indicate that 70% of the beams of the analysed structure exceed strict minimum performance criteria. This shows that other similar buildings can have their wooden elements saved from demolition, which is not the current regular refurbishment approach.
Originality/value
The current reality shows that the technicians' lack of capacity for a pragmatic assessment of the timber members’ structural capacity promotes their disinterest in them. To avoid that, this text presents a process for evaluating wooden floors using a simple and clear approach. This will prevent the demolition of wooden elements and instead encourage their preservation.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa (IPL) for the financial support to the TEC-TIMBER project, 2019-2020 (IPL/2019/TEC-TIMBER_ISEL), and CERIS / IST, and CivilCasa S.A. which granted access to the building under study.
Funding: The conduct of the research was partially funded by Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa (IPL) in support of project TEC-TIMBER - Techniques to assess the properties of timber on old buildings, 2019-2020 (IPL/2019/TEC-TIMBER_ISEL) in which the study has integrated. The sponsor had the role of financing the acquisition of test equipment essential for the development of the work.
Citation
Henriques, D.F., Clara, M.P. and Flores-Colen, I. (2023), "Inspection and structural assessment of traditional timber floors: a practical systematization", International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation, Vol. 41 No. 3, pp. 675-691. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJBPA-08-2021-0106
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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