Durable Design:Lessons from HistoricWood Structures

Presented: 14 January 2015Webinar

Matthew Bronski, PE, Associate PrincipalSimpson Gumpertz & Heger

Disclaimer: This presentation was developed by a third party and is not funded byWoodWorks or the Softwood Lumber Board.

“The Wood Products Council” isa Registered Provider with TheAmerican Institute of ArchitectsContinuing Education Systems(AIA/CES), Provider #G516.

Credit(s) earned on completionof this course will be reported toAIA CES for AIA members.Certificates of Completion forboth AIA members and non-AIAmembers are available uponrequest.

This course is registered withAIA CES for continuingprofessional education. Assuch, it does not includecontent that may be deemedor construed to be anapproval or endorsement bythe AIA of any material ofconstruction or any method ormanner ofhandling, using, distributing,or dealing in any material orproduct.___________________________________________

Questions related to specific materials,methods, and services will be addressedat the conclusion of this presentation.

Course Description

While modern construction techniques are helpingdesigners achieve increasing levels of building performance,durability is one objective that can benefit from lessons ofthe past. This presentation is based on an independentresearch project that examined the durability of historicwood buildings in Rome in the context of their constructiondetails. Undertaken by the speaker, Matthew Bronski, overten months, the project included hands-on study of abouttwo dozen historic buildings ranging in period from the firstcentury B.C. to the early 1900s. Through project examples,Bronski will offer a compelling diagnosis of durabilitysuccesses and failures, while sharing a series of lessons andprinciples that can be used to design more durableenclosures.

Learning Objectives

1. Consider how historic wood construction details have succeededtechnically, and how they might be applied to modern projects.

2. Analyze traditional construction principles for managing water onfacades and windows, in order to promote long-term durability

3. Examine how the overall enclosure in severe climates contributesto the durability of individual exposed wood members.

4. Learn to recognize and minimize vulnerabilities in exterior woodconstruction details, promoting performance, long-term durabilityand sustainability.

Opening food for thought-Learning from Historic Precedent

Which is the more logical,durable way to build?

What does your intuitiontell you?

Which answer would astudy of historicprecedent suggest?

Stepped pyramid

Inverted Stepped pyramid

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After all, Today we know much more about thefollowing than our forebears centuries ago:• Wood properties and behavior• Wood decay mechanisms• Structural engineering• Building enclosure design• Waterproofing• Preservative treatments• Engineered wood products• Materials science• Etc., etc., etc.

What can we really learn about durabledesign from centuries old structures?

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What can we learn about durable design fromthese 90-150 year old houses in US?

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What can we learn about durable designfrom these 300-600 year old buildings?

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What can we learn about durable designfrom this 1,900+ year old building?

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Vitruvius

Marcus Vitruvius Pollio,• Born c. 80 - 70 BC• Died c. 15 BC

Later (1684) depiction of Vitruvius presenting DeArchitettura to the Roman Emeror Augustus

De Architectura (TheTen Books”)

“Vitruvian Man” illustr.by Leonardo da Vinci

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Vitruvius

Marcus Vitruvius Pollio,• Born c. 80 - 70 BC• Died c. 15 BC

Roman Architect (et al)• Actually an Architect,

Engineer (Structural,Mechanical, Environmental,Military), Urban Planner,Master Builder, etc.

De Architectura (TheTen Books”)

“Vitruvian Man” illustr.by Leonardo da Vinci

Later (1684) depiction of Vitruvius presenting DeArchitettura to the Roman Emeror Augustus

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Vitruvius

Marcus Vitruvius Pollio,• Born c. 80 - 70 BC• Died c. 15 BC

Roman Architect (et al)• Actually an Architect,

Engineer (Structural,Mechanical, Environmental,Military), Urban Planner,Master Builder, etc.

• Wrote De Architectura (OnArchitecture) c. 25 BC

• Only surviving architecturaltreatise from classicalantiquity (either Greek orRoman)

De Architectura (TheTen Books”)

“Vitruvian Man” illustr.by Leonardo da Vinci

Later (1684) depiction of Vitruvius presenting DeArchitettura to the Roman Emeror Augustus

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Project

not a study of Vitruvius,• nor his treatise,• nor his built work

not a study of how Romanbuildings were constructed

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Project

Inspired by the methodology of Vitruvius(Book II). He

• Studied construction that either proveddurable or not

• Diagnosed WHY• Developed and published lessons learned for

building more durably

G. Fox Building, Hartford(Cass Gilbert, 1917) 14

Project

Inspired by the methodology of Vitruvius(Book II). He

• Studied construction that either proveddurable or not

• Diagnosed WHY• Developed and published lessons learned for

building more durably

My approach, goals similar - to develop“lessons learned” for

• rehabilitating existing buildings, and• constructing new buildings, more durably (and

hence more sustainably)

G. Fox Building, Hartford(Cass Gilbert, 1917) 15

Project

Vitruvius studied• Durability of buildings andmonuments from ancient Greece toRome (c. 25 B.C.)

Using his basic methodology, I• “Picked-up where he left off” in time• Studied a wide range of buildings fromancient Rome, through Renaissance,etc., to 20th century modern icons

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Project

My work in U.S. - bldgs span 200 yrs.My project in Rome – bldgs span 2,000 yrs.

• different climate,• different construction

On Borromini’s Oratorio dei Filippini (c. 1640) Early archival photo of AAR Fellows17

Project - Overwhelming need for this researchin both Historic preservation andcontemporary architecture

Most building envelopes and structuresactually succeed or fail at the intermediatescale

• By better understanding how details and designswork technically, we can better understand how topreserve or design these buildings

Failed

Failed

SucceededSucceeded Succeeded 18

Overwhelming need for this research-in contemporary Architecture

EIFS (“synthetic stucco”) houses in theS.E. USA

Highland District Hospital, Hillsboro OH

Current durability issues inArchitecture

• High-end to low-end• Renowned to unknown architects• East Coast to West Coast• Immediate recognition of issue

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Overwhelming need for this research-in contemporary Architecture

Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, Thousand Oaks California

Stata Center, MIT, Cambridge

Current durability issues inArchitecture

• High-end to low-end• Renowned to unknown architects• East Coast to West Coast• Immediate recognition of issue

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Overwhelming need for this research-in contemporary Architecture

Sustainability:

Durability is fundamental tosustainability

Sustainability advantages of buildingsthat last centuries

• Massive embodied energy savings of onedurable building over severalreplacement buildings

• Reduce landfill from demolition debrisfrom numerous replacement buildings

Villa Medici, Rome (c. 1544)

Palazzo Braschi, Rome (c.1790)

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Paving new aesthetic ground, and related perils;Philip Johnson House, 1942, Cambridge MA• His Master of Architecture thesis project• Modernist notion of bringing the outside in• Enclosed courtyard with seamless in-plane (at grade) transition

from inside to outside

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Philip Johnson House, 1942, Cambridge MA

• At grade transition from inside to outside• Not a slab on grade!• What technical difference does this create?

- Here - Versus here?

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Philip Johnson House, 1942, Cambridge MAAt grade transition from inside to outside

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Localized floor failure led toinvestigation

Philip Johnson House, 1942, Cambridge MA

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Investigativework:

Philip Johnson House, 1942, Cambridge MA

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Solution: Collaborative mock-ups ofperimeter floor repair

Philip Johnson House, 1942,Cambridge MA

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“Historic” ain’t as easy as it looks;Old South Union ChurchBuild 1854

In 1991, completelyrebuilt after a fire, toexactly match theoriginal appearance

In 1998, went to paintthe steeple…

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Original structure lasted 137years.

Why was damage noticed onthe rebuilt structure after 7years?

Old South Union Church

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Conducted an investigation

Problems were less aboutdifference in the woodspecies (pine)

More about detailing

Old South Union Church

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Solution: Preventative DetailingLittle details mean a lot!

Round trim (rondel windowsand clock face)

Old South Union Church

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Solution: Preventative DetailingLittle details mean a lot!Shiplap siding on upper spire

Old South Union Church

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Undercurrents throughout thispresentation

Historic construction details that persist over long periods oftime are usually:

• highly evolved, and• reflect accumulated wisdom and experience

Need to look closely at historic construction details to:• understand what you see, and• learn the broader lessons and principles

Thus, it’s important to look to the past in order to moreeffectively:

• Design and build well in the present• Innovate for the future

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Seek to Understand What You SeeExample – Traditional Roof Eave Detail, RomeVery common detail –1st c. A.D. to early 20th c.

• Ornamental? Just habit?

Traditional Roof Eave Detail, Casa di Dante, Rome (Trastevere)34

Seek to Understand What You SeeExample – Traditional Roof Eave Detail, RomeNot ornamentalHIGHLY evolved technical form

• Functional, structural,architectural are integrated

• A masterful symphony

Traditional Roof Eave Detail, Casa di Dante, Rome (Trastevere)35

Seek to Understand What You SeeExample – Traditional Roof Eave Detail, RomeNot ornamentalHIGHLY evolved technical form

• Functional, structural,architectural are integrated

• A masterful symphony

Traditional Roof Eave Detail, Casa di Dante, Rome (Trastevere)36

Seek to Understand What You SeeExample – Traditional Roof Eave Detail, RomeNot ornamentalHIGHLY evolved technical form

• Functional, structural,architectural are integrated

• A masterful symphony• Even the smallest detail is

evolved

Traditional Roof Eave Detail, Casa di Dante, Rome (Trastevere) 37

Seek to Understand What You SeeExample – Traditional Roof Eave Detail, RomeAccumulated wisdom of the tile overhang onwood -

• 3 cm (1-1/4”) – too short• 12 cm (4-3/4”) – too long• 7 cm (2-3/4”) – perfect!

7 cm (2-3/4” inch) clay tile overhang, Pallazetto Cenci (16th c.), Rome38

Seek to Understand What You SeeExample – Traditional Roof Eave Detail, RomeReason for the roof to overhangthe wall generously -• To protect the wall• (wood actually making stone

more durable!)

Casa de Salone Nero (L), Ercolano (Pre 79 A.D.) Via Porta San Pancrazio, Rome39

Seek to Understand What You SeeExample – Traditional Roof Framing, RomeRafters used “on the flat”?Square or round purlins?

• Structurally illogical, right?• Reconsider

Casa di Dante, Rome (Trastevere) Typical roof framing, Rome

Typical roof framing, Rome

Common Roman truss, antiquity – late 19th c. fromJ. P. Adam, Roman Building; Materials and Techniques

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Recognize and Minimize Inherent VulnerabilitiesTraditional Roof Framing: Anglo- American

Traditional timber framing details in New England,1685-1735 (from Abbott Lowell Cummings)

Anglo-American timber framing:• Beautiful, elegant, revered craftsmanship,but has some vulnerabilities...• Deep cuts weaken structural members• Structural failures tend to occur at

connections (inherent vulnerability)• Very time-consuming to build

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Recognize and Minimize Inherent VulnerabilitiesTraditional Roof Framing: Anglo-American

Structural failures at deeply-cut mortise and tenon connections, American roof framing

Anglo-American timber framing:• Revered beauty and craftsmanship,

but has some vulnerabilities...• Deep cuts weaken structural members• Structural failures tend to occur at

connections (inherent vulnerability)

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Recognize and Minimize Inherent VulnerabilitiesTraditional Roof Framing – Roman Tradition

Traditional Roman trussconnections

Roman Timber Framing Tradition:• Romans built their furniture with intricate mortise and

tenon connections, but not their structures• Roman structural wood connections less intricate, but

have elegance of simplicity:• No deep cuts – no weakening of structural

members• Very quick to build• Trusses and connections easily dissassembled, and

all parts easily reused

Common Roman truss, antiquity – late 19th c. fromJ. P. Adam, Roman Building; Materials and Techniques 43

Perils of NOT Seeking to Understand What You SeeEx. – Walter Gropius House (1937)

Walter Gropius – 1937 inspired by the vernacular white clapboardfarmhouses and barns of New England – reinterprets it

But – failed to understand the technical logic, or benefit from theaccumulated experience & wisdom of the vernacular

Gropius House, window detailing, 1937 – failureTraditional window detailing, 1923 44

Perils of NOT Seeking to Understand What You SeeEx. – Traditional, Vernacular New England HouseModern detailing failed the application– not the material

Gropius’s design failed to understand thetechnical wisdom of the vernacular hereinterpreted

Gropius House (built 1937) , 1990’s wood failures from poor detailing45

Canary in a coal mine aspect of wood construction

• “Canary in a coalmine” aspect• We learn detailing lessons more quickly with

wood than w/ other materials

Old barn just down the road Failures of 0-4 year old houses in Southeastern USA

The lesson of dryingpotential

• The garage paradox

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Principles of Durability-Enclosure Form-finding

• Which is the more logical,durable way to build?

• What does your intuitiontell you?

• Which answer would astudy of historic precedentsuggest?

Stepped pyramid

Inverted Stepped pyramid

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Principles of Durability- Enclosure Form-finding

Which is the more logical, durable way to build?

Stepped pyramid

Inverted Stepped pyramid

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Principles of Durability-Enclosure Form-findingWhich is the more logical, durable way to build?

Stepped pyramid

Inverted Stepped pyramid

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Principles of Durability- Enclosure Form-findingInverted Stepped pyramid

Paul Revere House (1680-83) Boston

• Inverted stepped pyramid• Not a new modern idea

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Canary in a coal mine aspect of wood construction

What traditional details andstrategies have evolved, inharsh climates, with exposednon-decay resistant wood, tomake it durable over centuries?

15th c. cottage, SussexEngland (John Fidler photo)

Vernacular construction, 16th – 19th c.,Comune di Ayas, Val D’Aosta (Italian Alps) 51

Canary in a coal mine aspect of wood construction

• What traditional details andstrategies have evolved?

• Timber framing in-filled with wattleand daub an extreme ex.

• Vitruvius decried wattle and daubfor its lack of durability – wrotethat he wished it had never beeninvented

Wattle and daub panel on 16th c.Shakespear’s House, England(John Fidler photo)

Wattle and daub (lime) interiorceiling on Palazzo Braschi (1790),Rome

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• How to make wood durable ina wet climate?• «Shed and Shelter»• Inverted stepped pyramid

form

Traditional Strategies for Enclosure Form Finding“Shed and Shelter” Early 20th c. house in suburban Boston

15th c. cottage,SussexEngland (JohnFidler photo)

Wattle and daubpanel on 16th c.Shakespear’sHouse, England(John Fidler photo) 53

Traditional Strategies for Enclosure Form Finding“Shed and Shelter”

Late 17th c. Early 19th c. Late 19th c. Early 20th c.

• Shed and Shelter• Inverted stepped pyramid form

• Common in wood construction across many periods andstyles

• Transferable strategy to other materials

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Renaissance-era building, Venice

Venice streetscapes

• Shed and Shelter• Inverted stepped pyramid form

• Transferable strategy to othermaterials

Traditional Strategies for Enclosure Form Finding“Shed and Shelter”

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• Other ways to shed andshelter– Planar wall, shedding

projections

Principles of Durability-Enclosure Form-findingCornice projection strategy

The Pantheon, Rome (124-126 A.D.)56

What can we learn about durable design fromthese 90-150 year old houses in US?

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• Other ways to shed andshelter– Shedding projections

from a planar wall

Principles of Durability-Enclosure Form-finding

Shedding strategy Basilica Palladiana, Vicenza, 16-17th c. (Palladio, et al) 58

Doesn’t need to look Historicist to learndurability lessons from historyDanieleson Cottage, Mackay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects,Nova Scotia

The value of a wrapped,sheltering roof

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Key Take-awaysSmall details mean a lot for watermanagement and durability (laps, dripedges, etc.)

High drying potential adds considerablyto wood durability

Don’t weaken structural members atconnections

Design enclosures to “Shed andShelter”

• “Shed” water at frequent intervals• “Shelter” vulnerable areas• Inverted pyramid is one common

form• Many variations on that theme

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Durable design; Closing Thoughts

Vitruvius told us:

ALL buildings, whether:• Public or private• Residential, civic, or

utilitarian

MUST have all threequalities to be architecture

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Questions?This concludes The AmericanInstitute of ArchitectsContinuing EducationSystems Course

Matthew BronskiSimpson Gumpertz &Heger, Inc.

Chicago, Boston, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington D.C.

MBBronski@sgh.com781-907-9000

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Disclaimer: This presentation was developed by a third party and is not funded byWoodWorks or the Softwood Lumber Board.