What Is a Seismic Gap Between Buildings?
Seismic gaps (the separation — the adjacent buildings') prevent the pounding (the earthquake's — the buildings colliding; the damage's). The gap: the code's (the ASCE 7's — the SRSS; the drift's), the detailing (the flexible — the connections; the cladding's), and the maintenance (the debris' — the clearing). The adjacency's — the separation designed.
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Why gaps matter
The pounding (the out-of-phase — the collision; the columns' — the shear; the collapses' — the historic), the adjacency (the zero-lot — the urban's; the existing's — the new's), and the performance (the separated — the independent; the pounding's — the prevented).
Sizing the gap
The SRSS (the square-root — the drifts'; the ASCE 7's), the absolute (the sum — the conservative; the tall's), the setback (the property's — the line's; the air rights'), and the existing (the retrofit's — the gap's created; the demolition's — the partial).
Detailing and use
The flexible (the connections — the utilities'; the fire's — the rated), the cladding (the joints' — the accommodated; the waterproofing's), the occupancy (the bridge's — the linked; the separation's maintained), and the maintenance (the debris — the cleared; the drainage's). The gap is the insurance — the buildings never meeting.
The bottom line
Size seismic separations per ASCE 7 (SRSS of drifts) to prevent pounding — detail flexible utility/fire connections across the gap and keep it clear of debris.
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