Southern California, including Los Angeles, is among the most seismically active regions in the entire world. There’s constantly a substantial and reasonable risk of a strong earthquake or frequent smaller tremors that can do damage to your house if it’s not bolted to the foundation.
If you own a residential or commercial property in Los Angeles, it’s important that you plan on protecting your property earthquake retrofitting, or seismic retrofitting, before the worst occurs.
The Importance of Earthquake Retrofitting
The safety of the residents on your property and also the value of your home should definitely be considered when you live in a seismically active region such as Los Angeles. Earthquake retrofitting a property is not only the smart thing to do, but it’s also legally mandated in many cases. The unpredictability of earthquakes make seismic retrofitting critical to do sooner rather than later. Many times, insurance policies won’t cover earthquake damage without considerable extra cost.
JP Builders & Development can handle earthquake retrofitting and house bolting need in the Los Angeles area. Our engineering team can assess the property and apply the most optimal solution. If your home was built before 1945, it’s almost a certainty that it was built without being bolted to the foundation using what are called anchor bolts. The actual bolting provides more stability for a building during a seismic event so that it won’t slip or fall off of the foundation.
How is Seismic Retrofitting or Earthquake Retrofitting Done?
The first step of any seismic retrofit project is a thorough assessment of your house’s or building’s current state and foundation. For best results, a retrofit job should be done on a stable, well-maintained foundation. Once a complete assessment has been done, the next step in a seismic retrofitting is laying out a comprehensive plan for repairs of any pre-existing foundation and structural issues. Retrofitting on a damaged foundation is not an ideal scenario.
Once the existing foundation is stable and prepared for the actual retrofitting, the actual job can begin. Wall anchors and continuity ties are the most common methods of retrofitting, while steel brackets are used to provide a more reliable connection between the roof and the wall to prevent the separation of the two during a seismic event.
Earthquake Retrofitting Cost in Los Angeles
The importance of seismic retrofitting can not be stressed enough. It’s not worth the risk of severe earthquake damage to your home. Earthquake retrofitting costs a lot less then major construction needed after a structural failure from a ground shifting event.
At JP Builders, we guarantee that we have competitive prices for the Los Angeles area and we pride ourselves on honest assessments of needed work. Areas of service include (but are not limited to): Burbank, Culver City, Encino, Mar Vista, Sherman Oaks, Studio City, and Venice.
Don’t hesitate to reach out to us to schedule a free consultation and quote.