Down Bracing

I live in N E Ohio and have seen numerous old house, barn, and church frames with "down" braces extending from posts to sills (not quite sure "down braces" is the correct term, it's what I've always called them).

Some questions for those familiar with this bracing technique:

1) Specific to any particular ethnic group and/or region?

2) Were these absolutely structurally necessary, or just an insurance measure employed by the carpenter to stiffen or triangulate the bents/bays and to be used in conjunction with the "standard" braces (post to tie and/or plate)?

3) Do these "down braces" generally function in compression as standard knee braces do?

4) Do any of you traditional framers employ these in your work?

Thanks for any feedback.

Hi Ron,

We just relocated another of those from Ohio to Texas. I will try and address your questions.


1) Specific to any particular ethnic group and/or region?

You can find them throughout different timber framing cultures but they are very common among Dutch-Germanic Barnwrights.

2) Were these absolutely structurally necessary, or just an insurance measure employed by the carpenter to stiffen or triangulate the bents/bays and to be used in conjunction with the "standard" braces (post to tie and/or plate)?

Actually, oblique bracing can do more harm to a frame than good, in many instances as these braces act as 'fulcrums' leveraging and prying joints apart under heavy weather or seismic loads. The "buttress brace," (what you are calling a down brace) is actually the better form of the two types, however they tend to get in the way of practical use of space, so tend to be found only in the outer walls, or in areas where they are not an obstruction.

3) Do these "down braces" generally function in compression as standard knee braces do?

99.9% of all oblique bracing forms work in compression, this is why they generally don't even need (we seldom do in new work) to be peg.

4) Do any of you traditional framers employ these in your work?

I often use them in frames of Dutch or Germanic orgin if that is the clients aesthetic. I specialize in North American, Middle Eastern, and Asian designs so we tend to only use "horizontal bracing modalities," which are some of the oldest continuous use types of bracing in the world as they react to seismic events much better than do oblique bracing forms. This is all you will find in regions like Japan, Korea, China, Himalayas, and mountains of Turkey for example. Infill methodolgy is also employed more commonly as well.

a few remarks,
1: far fewer than 99.9% of oblique bracing is compression. this ignores all of central Europe and much of Scandinavia where tension braces are common.
however, in general you can assume that if it mortise and tenon joined, it is a compression brace.

furthermore, oblique bracing doesn't weaken the frame if done properly. that is, if a brace is directly matched it is incapable of acting as a lever against the corresponding timbers. this is the law of balance that french carpenters are so obsessed with. oblique bracing is a danger if the principle of balance is defied.

also, horizontal bracing alone has its own set of disadvantages.

as for the so-called down bracing, it is not absolutely necessary but is common. it is a good way of balancing forces by having a set of knee braces matched with a set of buttress braces.

I have always called these "down braces" struts.

I have used them in my work form time to time.

I know of a local barn, on the coast of Maine, three bay, side entry, that has such bracing.

Hi David,

I do appreciate your knowledge and enthusiasm, but you really make subjective statements as facts when they are not so, lets be clear about that.

I have on more than one occasion now been corrected by your observation without any validation. I do love your interest and knowledge, in the narrow and refined style you work in, that of Swiss, and a wonderful form it is. However, when it comes to sharing technical knowledge of these other forms, there history, origins and designs, you really need to have gone to those different countries, worked in those different styles and embraced their wood cultures to truly understand and critique them.

We can agree to disagree on the finer points, but I would appreciate a degree of professional recognition on your behalf considering I have been to these regions, do work in these different styles, and have cut and/or facilitated restoration of countless frames over the last 35 years.

It confuses a conversation when you present subjective information as facts based on only academic interpretation, not hands and eyes on experiences with the vast wood cultures that are out there.

1. Very little, (a very small proportion) of oblique bracing works in tension, and those that do, only function at a limited percentage compared to the work they do dynamically in a frame in the way of compression.

2. From an engineering perspective, the buttress brace is often the stronger form within the frame.

3. All oblique bracing, whether balanced or not, subject the joinery at the closest intersection to increased loads do to the fulcrum effect.

4. Learn a few hundred of the oblique bracing methods of Asian orgin, and then cut several hundred of them as active joints in frames, then explain to me their, "set of disadvantages." I would also except documentation in orgin languages explaining the disadvantages as compared to oblique brace methods of framing, they are much fewer in my observation and in the wood cultures I have studied over the decades.

Hi David,

I do appreciate your knowledge and enthusiasm, but you really make subjective statements as facts when they are not so, lets be clear about that.

I have on more than one occasion now been corrected by your observation without any validation. I do love your interest and knowledge, in the narrow and refined style you work in, that of Swiss, and a wonderful form it is. However, when it comes to sharing technical knowledge of these other forms, there history, origins and designs, you really need to have gone to those different countries, worked in those different styles and embraced their wood cultures to truly understand and critique them.

We can agree to disagree on the finer points, but I would appreciate a degree of professional recognition on your behalf considering I have been to these regions, do work in these different styles, and have cut and/or facilitated restoration of countless frames over the last 35 years.

It confuses a conversation when you present subjective information as facts based on only academic interpretation, not hands and eyes on experiences with the vast wood cultures that are out there.

1. Very little, (a very small proportion) of oblique bracing works in tension, and those that do, only function at a limited percentage compared to the work they do dynamically in a frame in the way of compression.

2. From an engineering perspective, the buttress brace is often the stronger form within the frame.

3. All oblique bracing, whether balanced or not, subject the joinery at the closest intersection to increased loads do to the fulcrum effect.

4. Learn a few hundred of the oblique bracing methods of Asian orgin, and then cut several hundred of them as active joints in frames, then explain to me their, "set of disadvantages." I would also except documentation in orgin languages explaining the disadvantages as compared to oblique brace methods of framing, they are much fewer in my observation and in the wood cultures I have studied over the decades.

On number four I made an error. I meant to say, "learn the horizontal bracing methods of Asian Origin." Sorry for the confusion.

1) Specific to any particular ethnic group and/or region?

Very common in German bank barns of Pennsylvania.

2) Were these absolutely structurally necessary, or just an insurance measure employed by the carpenter to stiffen or triangulate the bents/bays and to be used in conjunction with the "standard" braces (post to tie and/or plate)?

In context of forebay bank barns, the down braces tend to be very long as such there really is not a substitute to length. In exterior wall braces can run sill to plate or sill to post. In some cases I believe the long sill to post braces are part of the raising scheme, once the brace is set to post a strong structural element is in play, that maybe used as an anchor for pulling up other framework. In bents the long braces sometimes were employed as truss struts to support very large cantilevers in the forebays. The wall of forebay was in some cases a parallel chord truss with very long struts. So the long down braces can serve in various manners, besides windbracing.

3) Do these "down braces" generally function in compression as standard knee braces do?

Lacking specific tension joinery, yes in compression, however with the right connections why not engineer for tension, if needed.

4) Do any of you traditional framers employ these in your work?

I have.

You will also see downbraces on corner posts in early light frames with heavy posts and balloon frame infill.

P.S. Concerning destructive behavior of downbraces, from what I have seen, damage tends to take place in slow motion in cascading failure,a foundation subsides or a sill rots away then the post with all the building load bears up against the brace and the counter force breaks the post or joinery. I personally have not seen reaction to wind forces as a breaker of heavy framework in a otherwise healthy frame.

Thank you all very much for sharing your knowledge.
Very much appreciated!