Method and means for reinforcing a steel stud wall

Claim 1

A wall construction for producing a reinforced partial wall which terminates short of the ceiling and is of adequate strength despite the use of steel-stud construction, comprising: (a) a length of floor track mounted to an underlying surface; (b) a plurality of vertically extended, horizontally spaced steel-stud ribs defining a wall plane which extends up from the floor stopping short of the ceiling and has at least one unsupported end; (c) the lower ends of said ribs nesting in said track and being fastened thereto with at least one of said ribs being disposed near said unsupported end of said wall; (d) two gypsum sides sandwiching said ribs therebetween; and, (e) at least one L-shaped brace with legs of substantially greater thickness and strength than that of said ribs, and having one leg lying inside said track and being fastened directly and very securely to the underlying surface through said track with conventional fastener means designed to adequately withstand reasonable lateral forces expected from normal residential or commercial use, with the other leg extending upright and being fastened to said at least one of said ribs to reinforce same at the end of said wall, with said other leg extending up a substantial portion of the height of said wall to reinforce same well beyond the bottom region immediately adjacent said floor track.