Equation Pad › Library › IS 456 › Stairs and walls
Retaining wall: design of the stem
Factored moment at the base of a cantilever stem and its vertical steel. Reference: IS 456:2000 Cl. 38.1.
Open this sheet in Equation Pad Browse the Library

Example only. This sheet shows one way to set out the check. It is not endorsed by the bodies that publish the design codes and does not reproduce them. Check every clause, value and assumption against your own copy of the current edition of IS 456 before you use it, and have the result checked by a competent person. See the disclaimer.
The calculation, line by line
Every line below is typed into Equation Pad exactly as shown; the app typesets it, works out the value with its units and shows checks as TRUE or FALSE. Change any input and everything below it updates.
# Data
h := 4.0 m
gamma_s := 18 kN/m^3
k_a := 0.333
D := 300 mm
d := D - 50 mm =
f_ck := 25 MPa
f_y := 415 MPa
b := 1000 mm
# Moment
M_u := 1.5*k_a*gamma_s*h^3/6*b = kN*m
# Steel
M_u <= 0.138*f_ck*b*d^2 =
A_st := 0.5*f_ck/f_y*(1 - sqrt(1 - 4.6*M_u/(f_ck*b*d^2)))*b*d = mm^2
A_st.min := 0.0012*b*D = mm^2
s := 1000 mm*pi/4*(16 mm)^2/max(A_st, A_st.min) = mm
How to use this example
- Click Open this sheet in Equation Pad. It opens as a new worksheet in your browser; nothing is installed.
- Change the inputs at the top to those of your project.
- Check the clauses and coefficients against the code, add your own checks, and save the sheet or export a PDF with your title block.
More IS 456 sheets on stairs and walls
- Dog-legged staircase flight
- Retaining wall: active earth pressure
- Retaining wall: overturning, sliding and base pressure