Compensation frame and short frame

Low frames set beneath the standard frames to take up slopes and steps in the ground, or to bring a working level to an exact height.

Also called: levelling frame, short frame, half frame, small frame, height adjustment frame

Hardly any plot is level. The drive falls towards the road, there is a basement stair beside the house, the garden rises at the back. Base jacks only take up a limited amount, because their extension is restricted. Once the difference grows, compensation frames come in: low frames placed under the normal frames so that every lift above ends up at the same height.

Short frames have a second use. They bring a working level to a particular height – just below the eaves, for example, or exactly at a parapet. Without them the top lift would either leave too much headroom or force people to work bent over.

Design and sizes

A compensation frame looks like a shortened vertical frame: two uprights of 48.3 mm tube, a transom and spigots for the frame above. Its width matches the scaffold – 0.70 or 0.73 m for painting and rendering, 1.00 or 1.09 m for bricklaying.

Common heights: 0.50 m, 0.66 m, 1.00 m and 1.50 m, though not every system offers all of them.
Material: mostly galvanised steel, sometimes aluminium.
Fittings: the smaller frames often lack full diagonal connections – there is simply not enough height.
Alternative: for large or irregular steps, single levelling standards or tube and couplers.

How they are used

Survey the ground along the facade and fix the level of the first full lift, usually taken from the highest ground point.
At the lower points set sole boards and jacks and place the compensation frame directly on the jacks. Common instructions put them at the very bottom, not somewhere in the middle of the scaffold.
As a rule use only one compensation frame per frame line unless the instructions allow more.
Where a diagonal is required but the small frame has no fitting, brace with tube and swivel couplers, and add a ledger or horizontal brace above the jacks.
Then fit the normal frames, align and continue.
Recheck the tie pattern: levelling shifts the lifts and with them the anchor positions.

Mistakes and used parts

Stacking several short frames to fill a gap gives soft joints and is rarely a permitted configuration.
Winding jacks out to the stop because the right frame is missing – take the next larger frame instead.
On steep ground spread the load well on non-slip sole boards; swivel base plates help on slopes.
Spigots of short frames are often dragged along the ground. Check them for deformation and a firm fit.
Used short frames are often a mix of several systems. Make sure spigot, profile and width really match your scaffold.

Example: a terraced house whose drive drops just over 1 m across 12 m. At the house the frames stand on short jacks, mid-way a 0.50 m frame goes underneath, at the road a 1.00 m frame. The jacks take up the rest and the first full lift runs dead level. Short and compensation frames are listed under vertical framework.

Frequently asked questions

What heights do compensation frames come in?

Typical heights are 0.50 m, 0.66 m, 1.00 m and 1.50 m. Which sizes exist depends on the scaffold system.

Can compensation frames be used higher up in the scaffold?

For levelling at ground level they go directly on the base jacks. Other positions, for example at the eaves, are only allowed where the manufacturer's instructions provide for them.

How much height can a base jack take up?

That depends on jack length and system, usually a few tens of centimetres. Beyond that a compensation frame is used instead of winding the jack further out.