What are helping hand brackets?

Helping hand brackets are key components of a modern exterior wall system, providing structural support for rainscreen cladding and external wall insulation. They act as the main anchors that bridge the gap between a building’s exterior substrate and the outer facade panels.

These brackets create a cavity required within rainscreen systems, by acting as adjustable stand-offs between the building’s structural wall and the external cladding. This cavity provides insulation and ventilation, both essential for modern facade performance.

Helping hand brackets feature L- or U-shaped projections that extend outward from the wall. This creates the cavity required to accommodate insulation and provide the ventilated air gap, essential for rainscreen performance.

Benefits of helping hand brackets

Aluminium is highly conductive, helping hand brackets are commonly installed with isolator pads to minimise thermal bridging. This will improve the building envelope’s performance by reducing energy loss, helping buildings meet strict U-values, and lowering condensation risks.

Installation Considerations

There are several factors to consider when installing a helping hand bracket. These include safety, proper fixing, and matching the wall conditions. Depending on the type of sub-structure you are fixing the brackets to, each wall will require the appropriate fixing method for installing the bracket.

Installing the helping hand bracket requires structural and thermal planning as it is critical to position the bracket correctly to ensure structural stability. Key considerations include load bearing capacity, thermal bridging, cavity adjustment and material expansion. Many helping-hand brackets are designed to temporarily grip the T or L rails to keep them in hands-free alignment, but this is strictly a temporary measure.

Aluminium helping hand brackets offer a lightweight yet strong structural solution. Aluminium also offers a high level of corrosion resistance and durability, providing a framing solution that will last the lifetime of a building.

Typical application of the Helping Hand brackets

Applying the helping hand bracket requires precision. It is important to secure the bracket to the wall using primary anchors, and then insert aluminium T and L rails into the gripping portion of the helping hand bracket to achieve the correct alignment. Once level, the rail is secured to the bracket.

If you would like to learn more about Helping Hand brackets and how they support modern rainscreen systems, contact us today for expert advice and product guidance.