When selecting which wall tie to use in a given condition,
a number of factors must be considered e.g. cavity size, building
type, location and height.
In order to determine the correct wall tie to use, guidance
must be sought from several statutory documents. Generally,
the purpose of the British (and now European) standards is
to ensure a common minimum standard to which all products and
services must adhere.
The “old” standard which covers the manufacture
of figure 1 (butterfly) ties, figure 2 (double triangle) and
figure 3 (fishtail vertical twist) ties.
This standard was concerned with consistency of manufacture for these products,
the standard itself goes into no detail regarding the performance or application
of the products.
This standard (which was an updated version of CP110 - code
of practice), refers to B.S 1243 and goes some way towards
clarifying applications for the three different types of tie,
in particular regarding their use in different cavity widths.
Also advises on density of ties per square metre and number
of ties around openings. The standard also discusses movement
joints, their position and construction.
B.S.D.D 140
Although only a draft for development (D.D) this standard has
generally been adopted as an industry standard for wall tie
designs and applications.
The document is a performance standard, i.e. it is unconcerned with the appearance
of the tie, but is more aimed at indicating minimum tensile and compressive resistances
for the products.
The document grades ties from type 1 (heavy duty) to type 6 (light duty) timber
frame ties.
Type 2 being a general purpose tie for domestic and small scale commercial developments,
and type 4 being for housing.
Since the purpose of a wall tie is to assist the cavity wall in resisting wind
load, the document is also concerned with indicating areas of the country with
differing average wind speeds which, along with height and building type, affect
choice of wall tie.
This varies according to cavity width, generally vertical spacings
are 450mm, horizontal spacing is 900mm (up to a 75mm cavity)
or 750mm (above 75mm). For estimating purposes the use of 5N° wall
ties per square metre is appropriate. In addition wall ties
spaced not more than 300mm vertically apart should be provided
within 225mm of unbonded openings.
Whilst the British Standards suggest a minimum embedment of
50mm, in order to allow for site variation and reasonable working
tolerance, Vista Engineering would suggest a minimum of 63-75mm.
The bulk of Vista Engineering’s product range is produced
in Grade 304, 18/8 austenitic stainless steel. Galvanised material
(with the exception of internal fixings) has lost favour due
to poor anti-corrosion performance.
There is a standard of stainless steel known as 316 (or marine grade) whose corrosion
resistance is higher than 304,for information on products in this range please
consult Vista Engineering Sales or Technical departments.
Strip products conform to B.S.EN 10099-2.1.4301, wire products to B.S. 1554 1990.
