If you place a storage building, you can assume that the storage building is strong enough and won't collapse like a house of cards with a bit of wind or snow. There are various ways to ensure the stability of a building. Depending on the construction and material of the building, it is determined how the wind load can be transferred to the foundation. Kroftman's engineers have chosen to use wind braces in all our storage buildings, both from the E-series and the H-series. Other terms for a wind brace are also stability brace or wind cross. These wind braces provide strength and should not be omitted or moved arbitrarily. In this blog, you can read more about it:

1. How do wind braces ensure the stability of the storage building?
2. Why is a foundation also important for the stability of the storage building?
3. Why shouldn't you move a wind brace in a storage building?
4. Is there a correlation between the snow load of the storage building and the number of wind braces?

1. How do wind braces ensure the stability of a storage building?

A storage building is a rectangular "box" and in this form, it lacks sufficient stability. To create stability, our engineers have incorporated wind braces into the design of our storage buildings. The wind braces are executed as a cross because the construction can be subject to wind forces from both sides. So there is always one "brace" effective. By brace, we mean in the case of our storage buildings a diagonally placed steel cable or metal strip that increases the rigidity of the construction. This ensures the stability of the storage building. You attach these wind braces during assembly in the side, front, and rear walls, and in the roof. Depending on the size of the storage building, multiple wind braces are installed. In the drawing below, you can see the construction of the shed with the yellow highlighted wind braces in a cross shape.

In the roof, the wind braces are in the first and last segment (or bay). In the front and rear walls, the wind braces are in the far left and right parts of the wall. For smaller storage buildings, one wind brace in the front and rear wall is sufficient. For longer storage buildings, additional wind braces are added to the side walls to ensure stability.

2. Why is a foundation also important for the stability of the storage building?

The wind braces ensure that the storage building remains upright when the wind blows on it. These forces are transferred to the foundation by the wind braces. There will be tensile force on the foundation. The foundation is the link with the ground. If the foundation is not strong enough, it will detach from the ground or a piece of foundation will break off. In addition to the tensile force, the foundation must also be able to bear the weight of the storage building and the snow load. The foundation must be calculated for all these forces. So, a lot depends on a solid foundation. It is also not for nothing that you must demonstrate with a building permit that the foundation for your storage building is strong enough. In the static calculation you receive with your storage building, you can find which loads your foundation must be able to withstand. A structural engineer can then advise you on what your foundation should look like to meet these requirements. This also depends on how strong the ground is on which you place the foundation.

3. Why shouldn't you move a wind brace in a storage building?

The wind braces are included in the static calculation. Moving a wind brace in an existing storage building can affect the stability of the storage building. That is also the reason why we advise not to move the wind braces. In the front and rear walls of the storage building, this is not possible anyway. In a longer storage building, you could potentially move the wind braces in the side walls if you would like to install an additional door. However, a wind brace can never be moved to the first or last segment. Do you want to move a wind brace in an existing storage building? Please consult with us first. We will ask our engineers to see if moving the wind brace is safe.

However, in a new storage building, you don't need to move a wind brace. With the quotation tool on our website, you can assemble your desired storage building. If you want the doors in a different location than the standard location, our sales department will contact you to discuss the options. Once you have made your choice, we will create a wireframe drawing. This drawing shows the door positions for your storage building. Our engineers will check based on this drawing whether the desired door combination is also possible with the required wind braces. If that is the case, we will ask you to approve the drawing. This way, there can be no misunderstandings between you and Kroftman. It is clear for both parties where the doors and wind braces should be placed.

4. Is there a correlation between the snow load of the storage building and the number of wind braces?

Our storage buildings are designed and optimized for a certain maximum allowable combination of snow and wind loads. You can find this on our website. Under each type of storage building, you will find the tab 'Specifications'. In these specifications, you can see the maximum wind and snow loads for which a shed is designed. These are recorded in the official strength calculations. It doesn't matter whether the shed is anchored with ground pegs or concrete anchors. The vertical parts of the storage building bear the storage building and the load on it. The wind braces lead this load to the ground in a controlled manner. Wind braces provide stability to the storage building but no additional load-bearing capacity.

This means that if you wanted to increase the allowable snow load, you cannot do so by adding an extra wind brace. However, it is possible, but only for our H600, H700, and H800 series storage buildings, to install extra tie rods in the roof. This makes the truss stronger and increases the allowable snow load of these storage buildings by 0.2 kN/m2. The cost for this is approximately 60 euros per tie rod. Depending on the size of the storage building, you will need 3 to a maximum of 10 (one for each truss). If you would like to know more about this, please contact us.

We hope the above information helps you make an informed decision. If you want to know exactly what your chosen shed will cost, please fill in our quotation tool without obligation. We ask you to fill in your postal code to calculate the transport costs of your shed. Once you have requested the quotation, you will receive your login details for your personal Kroftman page within a few minutes. Here you will find the quotation with the total price including any transport costs.

You can create multiple quotations and select different options. This way, you can compare them well.

Do you still have questions? We are happy to help you further.