In the Pacific Northwest, hillside homes have stunning views and allow residents to enjoy the region's natural beauty. However, hillside homes can be very dangerous in an earthquake!

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Hillside homes typically have foundations that "step down" the hillside in ever-taller pony wall sections. Retrofitting these homes still involves the "ABCs of retrofit" (anchoring the foundation, bracing walls, and connecting flooring), but will require extra engineering to ensure that the house is secure in its specialized environment. Hillside retrofits can be complex and often involve additional steps.

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Research on hillside home failures has shown that the "stepping" shear panels on the sides of the house do not work together as one unit, but rather, take the earthquake load sequentially during seismic shaking. The shortest and stiffest section of the paneling takes the full force of the earthquake until that section fails. Then the load is transferred to the next stiffest panel, and on down the stepped foundation, until the house collapses. For hillside homes, pony wall segments must be adjusted so that the shear load of the earthquake is spread equally across the walls, allowing the whole length of wall to work together to resist shaking.

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A-FFIX Retrofit is very experienced with retrofitting hillside homes and works with a structural engineering firm to create the specialized retrofit plans that are needed to secure hillside homes.