Are you in an earthquake resistant building? Find out.

[beachrunner]

I don't see many residential buildings here in the DR that are built to earthquake resistant standards. I am a professional engineer that specializes in construction management. Even if someone developed a set of plans for a project here that were 100% consistent with earthquake and hurricane resistant design standards, there is almost 0% chance that these details and specifications would be successfully executed and implemented during the construction phase. It seems that many maistros in this country take many liberties despite the best laid plans being available. Of course, this happens in the States and many other countries as well.

One personal experience that I have had is more cosmetic than anything else. It relates to the use of glass block in block walls as decorative elements. DON'T DO THIS! Almost all locations where I have seen this detail used end up with 50% or more cracked glass blocks after a year or so. I have concluded it is likely due to seismic activity.

Have a Merry and Earthquake Free Christmas!

 

[Castellamonte]

That means your house won't be standing when the next hurricane or earthquake hits. Every time a hurricane hits Florida
it destroys all houses there or caused the roofs to blow off, that's why home insurance is so expensive there. The same thing with Los Angeles every time they have a earthquake every thing is a mess there.

Dominican middles class homes don't suffer damage during hurricane (and they are not built with the Miami-Dade standards) because that will mean building woods, cartons homes. During earthquake house only suffer minus cracks, nothing major.

Actually, you are incorrect in the implication. MD hurricane standards for a Category 1 hurricane are much more substantial than anything I will ever encounter on the north coast of the Dominican Republic. LA earthquake standards provide better support for quakes than you imply, certainly for the level of quakes along this coast.

Obviously (duh) if a Category 5 hurricane hits or a 10.0 earthquake hits we'll have lots more trouble than my house collapsing. The point here is to design smartly; combine knowledge of the likelihood of an event with the necessity to protect against it.

That's what Eric and Donald did for me. Since I built my house we have had Hurricane Jeanne (technically she was only a Tropical Storm along here) == no damage except for my flower beds and several small earthquakes rumbling over the past decade == not even a crack. To me, that spells success!

 

[HIRAM]

BelgianK : follow up

Depends on your

 

[HIRAM]

Follow-up : depends your contract. We are building and the architect will do the follow up once in week untill finished.