SACRAMENTO – (INT) – Registration continues until March 19th for a residential earthquake retrofit program that provides homeowners up to $3,000 to strengthen their home.

The Earthquake Brace + Bolt (EBB) program applies to these homes:

• wood-framed construction built before 1980
• built on a level or low slope
• constructed with a 4-foot (or less) cripple wall under the first floor OR
• constructed with a cripple wall between 4 feet and 7 feet (requires an engineered solution)
• have a raised foundation

Surrounding the crawl space under the first floor, many houses have a short wood framed wall ("cripple wall") that needs to be strengthened to help prevent the house from sliding or toppling off of its foundation during an earthquake. Strengthening involves adding anchor bolts and plywood bracing in the crawl space.

There are more than 1.2 million houses in California built before 1980 in high-hazard areas that are vulnerable to collapse or destruction by sliding off the foundation during a strong earthquake. Seismic retrofits can help reduce damage.

More information at: www.EarthquakeBraceBolt.com.

Story Date: March 27, 2020