fea element size

huangyhg

fea element size
i'm modeling a floor diaphragm with an fea program. what are reasonable element sizes to start with?  2'x2'? 4'x4'?
check out our whitepaper library.
i'm assuming that you're doing this for lateral analysis.  if so, then start with a fairly coarse mesh, subdivide it and see if the answers change.  if not, stick with the coarse mesh.  exact size to start with?  impossible to say without knowing more about your bldg.  start on the high side.  10'x10', 5'x5'?