The facing and backing shall be bonded so that not less than 10 percent of the exposed face area is composed of solid headers extending not less than 4 inches (102 mm) into the backing. The clear distance between adjacent full-length headers shall not exceed 24 inches (610 mm) vertically or horizontally. Where the backing consists of two or more wythes, the headers shall extend not less than 4 inches (102 mm) into the most distant wythe, or the backing wythes shall be bonded together with separate headers with their area and spacing conforming to the foregoing. Wythes of walls not bonded as described above shall be considered veneer. Veneer wythes shall not be included in the effective thickness used in calculating the height-to-thickness ratio and the shear capacity of the wall.
Exception:Where SD1 is not more than 0.3, veneer wythes anchored as specified in the building code and made composite with backup masonry may be used for calculation of the effective thickness.