What is the Advantage and Disadvantage of wall straightening turnbuckle

In the mid-to-late s, a product was introduced that revolutionized the ICF industry. Turnbuckle bracing gave installers the ability to make slight adjustments to the wall after it was filled with concrete. No longer did installers have to struggle with assembling wooden bracing from scratch onsite and hope the wall stayed put when filled.

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Bracing pioneers like Shane Nickel at Reechcraft and Jerry Albert at Amazing Brace laid much of the groundwork to convince the industry that turnbuckle bracing was worth the investment. That effort has largely paid off, and today turnbuckle bracing has become industry standard. More than any other innovation, bracing has allowed ICFs to enter the mainstream construction market and create walls that are straight, plumb, and square.

In the first decade of this century, a number of other companies rolled out innovative systems with unique advantages. Mono-Brace was one of the first with a &#;fold-away&#; design, where all parts of the brace, including guardrails, adjustment assembly, and all associated connecting pins folded into the strongback. The Mono-Brace system is designed to work with regular buck scaffolding, so it has been a popular choice for tall-walls for years.

In about , Giraffe Brace hit the market with a robust design featuring tubular steel instead of square, which meant protected threads and easier adjustments. They quickly set a new standard for the industry with a neatly organized, easy-to-transport 24-brace crate that left competitors scrambling to catch up. Storage crates are useful for rental operations, hauling bracing to a jobsite, and moving equipment from floor to floor.

Plum-Wall recently upped the ante, offering to powder coat their bracing crate in your company colors. For a small fee, they&#;ll laser cut your company logo into the plate steel on each end of the crate. &#;That&#;s security and advertisement,&#; says Chad Hiller, a senior executive at Plumwall. Plumwall&#;s brace is distinct in that the system that can be adjusted from the platform with a cordless drill. This allows a single worker to do what would require two workers with any other system.

Even with the construction downturn, bracing innovation has continued. The most recent ideas focus on reducing cost. WASS Bracing and Fab-Form&#;s ZONT system are throwbacks to the wood-based scaffolding of the &#;80s and &#;90s. Both are adjustable, but require significant onsite fabrication. The cost is far lower than all-metal systems, and because the wood shoring is temporary, it can be reused for framing interior walls. &#;Our system is 1/10 the cost of metal bracing,&#; says Rick Fearn, president of Fab-Form. &#;The entire system fits in a pair of five-gallon buckets.&#; Fearn is adamant that wood is a viable bracing material. &#;We&#;ve been bracing concrete with 2x4s for 200 years. There&#;s nothing unusual about that. And turnbuckles compensate for any irregularities in the lumber.&#;

He says that horizontal bracing makes sense, since most ICF blocks go up in rows, and that the system eliminates the need for truss wire inside the forms.

In short, each of the dozen brands currently on the market has advantages and drawbacks. It&#;s easy to get confused, so to make comparison easier, this magazine has compiled a chart listing the major features of all the major bracing systems on the market. (See the following pages).

This chart is not intended to contain every data point needed for a purchase decision. Readers will note that one of the most important data points&#;price&#;is completely absent. A number of other features, like how well it can be modified for tall walls, and its ease of storage and transportation, are only hinted at. Yet the chart contains enough information that is should be fairly easy to compile a short list of candidates that meets your specific requirements.

When it comes to selecting a system, here&#;s what the experts say:

&#;The most important criteria is &#;Will it do the job&#;&#;that is, will it create straight, plumb, square walls?&#; Jeff Bresler, at Mono-Brace, says. &#;Equal to that is &#;can you be safe doing it,&#; and &#;can you do it in a cost-effective way.&#;&#;

David Russell, president of Superior Alignment Systems, offers a similar list. &#;First and foremost, contractors want ease of use,&#; he says. &#;Will they need to manually bolt things together or does it have quick-locks? Does it move the wall easily, and does the wall stay put when you walk away? Second is strength and durability. Third is probably storage, the amount of space it takes up when not in use.&#;

Nearly all of the manufacturers said the up-front cost of the purchase didn&#;t seem to be a major hurdle. &#;We&#;re going after the guys who do ICF as a specialty, who do multiple projects year after year,&#; says Hiller, at Plumwall. &#;They know that a good brace will actually save them money in the long run.&#;

Bresler agrees, &#;Price is important, so part of the decision is made on cost, but it&#;s not so much the initial outlay for the product. It&#;s the labor component on each job that translates into money. Contractors want a system that&#;s quick going up and quick to come down.&#;

How important is durability? Russell, at Superior Alignment, says, &#;The long term durability of the brace isn&#;t related to the thickness of the brace. It&#;s how they&#;re treated.&#;

Giraffe Brace makes one of the most robust systems, and Ken Williams says it&#;s because bracing will inevitably see some abuse. &#;When it&#;s teardown time on the second floor of a house, I&#;ve seen guys toss sets out the window,&#; he says.

Russell calls the description unrealistic. &#;If my crew threw bracing out of a second story window, they&#;d get fired,&#; he says. &#;Bracing doesn&#;t need to be tough enough to be driven over by a dump truck. For years, we rented 300 sets of braces, and we very rarely had to replace a part. They do come back dirty, but I don&#;t see durability as a major factor.&#;

Bresler says the bigger issue is not damage, but lost parts. &#;Distributors should be asking, &#;How much space does it take up?&#; and &#;can I keep track of all the parts,&#;&#; he says. &#;The easier it is to
take care of the more he&#;s going to like it.&#;

Are you looking for a product to help take up slack in your straight pull, inline rigging assembly? The turnbuckle is what you will need. Watch our video explaining the different styles of turnbuckles and how to use them in your next project.

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Turnbuckles are used to take up slack and apply tension to a rigging assembly.

They are designed to be loaded in straight pull, inline applications. They come in a variety of types, sizes, and coatings to suit many suspending, tie down, and tensioning type applications.

Turnbuckles are categorized by thread diameter, take up length, and end fittings.

Thread Diameter

Thread diameter refers to the diameter of the threaded portion of the end fittings. Larger thread diameters will have a greater load carrying capacity than smaller thread diameters.

Take Up Length

Take up refers to the total length that the end fittings can screw in and out of the turnbuckle body to take up tension.

To increase the amount of total take-up capability in your system, either choose a turnbuckle with more take-up, or attach 2 or more turnbuckles together, in line.

Tensioning

Turnbuckles can tension assemblies without twisting them up because one end fitting is left hand threaded and the other is right hand threaded. This design feature ensures only the turnbuckle body twists when tensioning.

Sizing Turnbuckles to Other Rigging Components

It is important to note that the working load limit should always be taken into consideration when sizing and matching turnbuckles to other rigging components.

For example, a 1/4&#;x 4&#; turnbuckle has a much lower working load limit than ¼&#; cable or ¼&#; eyebolt , and the fittings may not connect easily. Up-size the turnbuckle to a size that more closely matches or exceeds the working load limit of the rest of the assembly or a working load limit that meets your loading requirements.

End Fittings

E-Rigging offers typical turnbuckles with a selection of 3 different types of end fittings with each fitting having its own purpose, advantages, and disadvantages.

Eye End Fittings

Eye end fittings are used with other components that can be opened and connect into the eye such as a shackle or quick link. They contain no moving parts and are the most cost-effective end fitting of the three.

Jaw End Fittings

Jaw end fittings are composed of a jaw, bolt, and nut. These are used to connect to other components that cannot be opened, such as an eyebolt or swaged sling eye.

Depending on size, some jaw turnbuckles only come with a pin and cotter.

You can find a list the of the components included with each jaw on our Turnbuckles page.

Hook End Fittings

Hook end fittings are used for temporary connections and are easily attached and detached from other rigging components.

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We do not recommend hook fittings in situations where tension can unexpectedly release from the turnbuckle as this may cause the hook to dislodge.

Double check your fittings when using hook turnbuckles because the hooks are large and may not fit with other fittings having a similar working load limit. Toggle Jaw

Toggle Jaw is a specialty end fitting which is available on some of our stainless-steel turnbuckles. It is especially useful when the turnbuckle must articulate in a direction that isn&#;t allowed by the other component used in the application.

Cable Railing Swage Turnbuckles

E-Rigging also carries a variety of Cable Railing Swage Turnbuckles which are used in cable railing systems. Visit our Cable Railing page and our YouTube channel for more information on these types.

Drop Forged vs Formed and Welded

Our galvanized turnbuckles are drop forged.

Our stainless turnbuckles come in both drop forged or formed and welded varieties.

The formed and welded turnbuckles are nearly as strong as the drop forged turnbuckles, and offer significant cost savings. For critical applications that require stainless turnbuckles, the drop forged turnbuckles will offer better long-term reliability due to the end fittings&#; elongated design that reduces stress and their superior manufacturing process.

Coating Types

Our turnbuckles are made from hot dipped galvanized steel and type 316 stainless steel. For more information on coating types, please watch our video on YouTube or check out our Blog.

Stainless Steel Turnbuckles

Our most corrosion resistant

Best suited for outdoor applications

Highly resistant to rust

Ideal for use in or near saltwater environments where corrosion frequently occurs.

The best choice when using other stainless steel components.

Hot Dipped Galvanized Turnbuckles

Lower cost than stainless steel

Suited for outdoor environments

They are not as corrosion resistant as stainless steel.

Installing Turnbuckles

Unscrew End Fittings of the Turnbuckle

Unscrew the end fittings of the turnbuckle so that they are both fully extended. This can easily be done by unscrewing each end fitting one at a time until they are both equally extended.

Attaching Fittings for Jaw and Eye Turnbuckle

Jaw End

Unscrew the bolt from the jaw.

Insert the jaw over the eyebolt.

Then, insert the bolt back into the turnbuckle and fasten it tightly.

Eye End

Insert the eye into the opened shackle.

Close the shackle so that the eye is locked into place.

Tension

To tighten the turnbuckle, you can either use your hand, a screw driver, or a wrench to turn the body. Make sure to stop the end fittings from spinning with the turnbuckle body. This will prevent the screws from screwing in unequally. Tighten until your rigging assembly is tensioned to the desired point needed for your application.

Locking and Application Considerations

If your application will expose the turnbuckle to vibration, it is good practice to lock the end fittings from turning by using lock wire. This will prevent unwanted loosening over time.

Your turnbuckle may also be equipped with lock jam nuts to prevent loosening.

These can be used in non-critical applications, but are not recommended for critical applications as they put extra strain on the threads.

Pipe Turnbuckles

For pipe style turnbuckles, a small screw driver or other small diameter type rod can be used to tighten the turnbuckle. Insert it into the hole in the body of the turnbuckle and turn to the desired tension.

If you have any questions or need help choosing the products for your next rigging assembly, contact us . We look forward to helping you get your next project started.

Double check your fittings when using hook turnbuckles because the hooks are large and may not fit with other fittings having a similar working load limit.

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