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Handbook for Building Simple, Earthquake-Resistant Houses

Copyright©2009

Build Change
Jl. Beringin IV No.4 Lolong Belanti
Padang, West Sumatra
Indonesia
Post Code: 25136
Tel/Fax: +62-751-705-4538

Build Change
Unit #5, 15th floor, Building #3 (3-1505)
81 Shunjiang Rd.
Chengdu, Sichuan
PR. China
Post Code: 610021
Tel: +86-28-8459-7345

Build Change
1233 California St. NO. 310
San Francisco, California
USA
Post Code: 94109
Tel: +1-415-235-9930

[email protected]
www.buildchange.org

ISBN: in Process

All photos and images are copyright Build Change unless otherwise stated.
Reproduction is forbidden without written permission.

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Build Change is an international non-profit social enterprise that designs earthquake-resistant houses and
trains builders, homeowners, engineers and government officials to build them. Build Change’s work has
improved the design and/or construction of over 5,700 houses in Indonesia and China.

This handbook provides simple guidelines for safe construction of the two most common structural sys-
tems for single family homes in rural Indonesia: confined brick masonry and timber frame with masonry
skirt. The handbook was developed during Build Change’s programs in Aceh and West Sumatra, Indonesia.
It was first published in September 2008. It can be used by builders, homeowners, government officials,
engineers, architects, and construction supervisors. A detailed design guideline for confined masonry is
available at www.buildchange.org. Detailed drawings, bills of quantity, and construction quality checklists
are available upon request.

Build Change provided hands-on technical assistance and training to 655 homeowners who lost their
houses in the 2007 earthquakes in West Sumatra and Bengkulu. None of the houses that met our mini-
mum standard were damaged in the 2009 earthquakes. It is not the earthquake that kills people, it is the
collapse of a poorly designed or built building. This handbook is dedicated to homeowners and builders in
Indonesia, with the hope that they can use it to keep their families safe during earthquakes.

Padang, West Sumatra, Indonesia, December 1, 2009

Elizabeth A. Hausler, Ph.D.

Founder and CEO, Build Change

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This booklet is the result of contributions of many individuals, including Build Change’s Indonesian engineers,
architects, and construction supervisors; many builders and homeowners from Aceh and West Sumatra,
and Build Change’s team of pro bono, licensed structural engineers from the San Francisco Bay Area.

Other primary sources of inspiration include Don Hausler Masonry Construction and the guidelines for
earthquake-resistant simple masonry houses produced by Teddy Boen for Indonesia and Marcial Blondet
from Peru.

Insights and hard work from all parties are greatly appreciated.

Build Change’s house design for Aceh won a 2006 Excellence in Structural Engineering award from the
Structural Engineers Association of Northern California.

Build Change is a 2008 Tech Awards Laureate (www.techawards.org) and Winner of the Katherine M.
Swanson Foundation Equality Category Cash Prize for making culturally appropriate, earthquake-resistant
housing solutions available to all homeowners, regardless of income level.

Build Change is a founding member of the Confined Masonry Network, an international network of
academics and earthquake engineers promoting earthquake-resistant design and construction of confined
masonry. CM_NET has reviewed and approved this handbook.
(www.confinedmasonry.org)

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Chapter 1: Seismic Hazard in West Sumatra ..1
Chapter 2: What Type of House Should I Build - Timber or Brick? ..5
Minimum Standard for Timber House ..6
The Timber Frame ..7
Semi Permanent House: Masonry Skirt Wall ..8
Wall Material Options ..9
Reinforced Concrete Frame, or Confined Masonry? ..10
Problems With Poorly Built Confined Masonry ..11
Earthquakes Don’t Kill People, Poorly Built Buildings Do ..12
Which is Better, RC Frame or Confined Masonry? ..25

Chapter 3: How to Choose Good Quality Materials ..28

River Stone ..28
Mountain Stone ..28
Sand ..29
Gravel ..30
Bricks ..31
Cement ..32
Concrete Spacers ..33
Steel ..34
Foundation ..35
Steel Reinforcement for the Masonry Wall ..36
U-Shaped Steel Plate and Bolts ..37
Timber ..38
How to Store Materials ..39

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Chapter 4: How to Build an Earthquake Resistant House ..40
1. Choose a Safe and Stable Location ..40
2. Check that the Soil is Strong Enough to Support the House ..41
3. Take Care for Drainage and Grading ..42
4. Build a Strong Foundation ..43
• Stone Masonry Strip Footing for a Permanent House ..43
• Line Out and Batterboard ..45
• Foundation Excavation ..46
• Build a Strong Foundation Using Mountain Stone/River Stone ..47
5. Connect the Tie Columns and Bond Beams ..48
• STEEL REINFORCEMENT CONNECTION DETAIL: L AND T JUNCTION ..50
6. Mix, Pour and Cure Good Quality Concrete ..52
• Formwork and Concrete Spacer ..54
• Pouring Concrete ..54
7. Build a Strong Masonry Wall ..56
• Mortar Mix ..56
8. Connect the Wall to the Column Using Steel Reinforcement ..62
• Alternative Method for Reinforcing Walls and Openings ..63
9. Install Frame, Doors and Windows ..64
10. Concrete Cast for Column ..65
11. Connect the Top of Tie Columns to the Ring Beam ..67
12. Plaster the Wall ..69
13. Connect the Truss to the Ring Beam ..70
14. Timber Joinery for Truss ..72
15. Timber Truss Detail Drawing ..73
16. Installing the Ridge Sheet ..74

Minimum STANDARD for single-story confined masonry house ..76

CITATIONS ..77

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1
2
3
4
5
Choose good quality timber Use preservative paint

Dimensions of foundation: 40 Scarf joint for beams

25 x 40 x 50 cm

Nail the wire to the frame

Pour concrete on column column column firmly and stretch tight
footing and give anchor anchor anchor

Use anchor on wall Plaster and mortar mix 1:3

masonry

4” nail

Every timber connection Tenon

should have a proper joint
Truss Connection

Every connection should

have a wooden peg or nail
to secure joint

Must have diagonal bracing Wind Bracing

on every corner

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For more information on truss connections see page 72

For more information on timber see page 38

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8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
See pages 62 & 63 for more See pages 48-50 for more
information on steel reinforcement information on steel bar-bending

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17
18
19
20
21
For more information see pages 62 & 63

22
For more information see page 62-63

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24
25
26
27
28
29
30
*See pages 62 & 63 for more information

31
32
33
For more information see pages 48-51

34
35
For more information see page 62 & 63

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37
38
39
40
41
42
43
For more information see pages 46 & 47

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45
* For more information
on soil types see page 41

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47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
page 62

63
64
page 54

65
66
For more information see pages 48-51

67
For more information see pages 52-56

68
see page 56

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70
71
72
73
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1 Foundation 4 Walls Without Openings
• Soil must be strong enough to support the weight of • Use steel bed joint every 7 courses, tied into tie
the house columns, or
• Fill all the spaces between foundation stones with • Use a single steel bar every 1 m of masonry, tied
mortar into tie columns, extending at least 50 cm into the
wall
2 Tie Columns and Ring Beams • Add minor column to walls of more than 4 m
• Stirrups must have hook and hooks are rotated
• Use good quality sand and gravel 5 Walls With Openings
• Use a mixture of 1:2:3 • Use steel bed joint every 7 courses and above and
• Good casting: there is no exposed steel below openings, tied into tie, or
• No cavities • Use a lintel beam above openings and a single steel
• Compact with a steel rod and tap with hammer bar every 1 m of masonry, tied into tie columns,
• Must have a connection between the ring beam and extending at least 50 cm into the wall
column
• Do not use recycled or rusty reinforcing steel 6 Connection Between Ring Beam and Truss
• Tie steel bars from overlap from ring beam to truss
3 Masonry Wall or
• Use confined masonry • Use bolts and steel plate / strong nails in truss
• Soak the bricks before laying
• Spacing between bricks should be maximum 1.5 cm 7 Gable
• Distance brick with columns 3cm • Do not use masonry for gable wall. Use wood, CGI
• Cast column after height of the wall reaches 1 to 1.2 m sheet, or other lightweight material
• Use good quality bricks, sand, and concrete
• Fill all joints between bricks

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Chapter 1, “Rawan Sumatra Earthquake” is reprinted with permission from Dr. Danny H.
Natawidjaja.

The sketch on page 22 and 27 drawn by M. Alfata Isa, Technical Team Leader for Build
Change.

The sketch on page 24 and 44 drawn by Nahdhul Rida, Technical Supervisor for Build
Change.

The sketch on page 41 reprinted with permission from the Dr. Adi Jatmika Suryabrata,
M.Sc., Ph.D., from “Guidelines for Building Earthquake Resistant Houses Simplified”.

The sketch on page 46 reprinted with permission from Marcial Blondet, from
“Construction and Maintenance of Confined Masonry Houses, for Masons and
Technicians”, edited by Marcial Blondet.

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Build Change is an international non-profit social enterprise that designs earthquake-resistant
houses and trains builders, homeowners, engineers and government officials to build them.

www.buildchange.org
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