 Ways of insulating masonry walls, insulation on the:

Loadbearing masonry construction has been used in the past in single

1) Outside face
and two-storey residential buildings. Reinforced concrete construction
o Exterior insulation and finish system (EIFS)
gave way to the use of smaller non loadbearing masonry units. Similarly, o Similar to a stucco building
light gauge steel components replaced traditional timber framing. o Consists of panels of plastic foam adhered to
Loadbearing masonry made a comeback with new components such the masonry, covered with a thin continuous
as SIP and ICF. layer of polymeric stucco, reinforced with glass
fiber mesh
 LOADBEARING MASONRY
o Protected from temperature extremes
o CMU or concrete masonry units replaced brick for structural wall and effectively stabilizes the building
o Brick sometimes only serve as veneer interior
o Qualities: permanence, solidity, fire resistance o Masonry may be prone to water leakage
o Carried out in the construction site with small, inexpensive o Option: rigid insulation set between furring strips,
tools and machines any siding can be attached
o No extensive preparation or fabrication in advance 2) Within the wall
o However, harsh climate can interfere with proper curing of mortar o Hollow cores of concrete blocks are filled with
o Reinforced Masonry Walls loose granular insulation or with molded-to-fit liners
of foam plastic
 Unreinforced masonry walls
o Both faces of the block can be exposed
 Cannot carry high stresses and not
3) Inside face
suitable in high seismic regions o Adhering slabs of plastic foam to the wall
 Thicker to resist buckling under lateral forces of and applying plaster directly to the foam
wind and other dynamics o Attaching wood or metal furring strips to the
 With reinforcing (steel, bamboo) inside of the wall with masonry nails or
 Determine the number, location and sizes of rebars powder-driven metal fasteners
o Furring strips are analogous to wood or metal
 Achieves tensile and compressive strength
studs and may be of any desired depth to
 May be of single wythe of brick with
house the necessary thickness of fibrous or
open core to accommodate vertical foam insulation
reinforcing steel  Creates space in which electrical
o Horizontal welded wire joint reinforcement wiring and plumbing that can easily
 CMU (concrete masonry units) load bearing walls be concealed
 Less expensive to construct and easier to insulate o Detailing masonry walls
 Larger size, larger hollow core to receive insulation  Masonry walls are porous to some degree
 Protect the surface of the masonry with wide roof overhangs
 Reduced number of units handles by each mason
 Provide high quality flashing at parapets and wall openings
o Thermal insulation
 Protect exterior wall surfaces with moisture resistant paint
 Poor insulator, but can store heat
or sealer, but must be reapplied regularly
 Effective in keeping building interior cool during
 Water resistant water coatings:
the hot day and warm during the cold night  Opaque and colored (up to 10 years)
(hot, dry climates)  Transparent (3 – 5 years)
o International Building Codes
 152mm (6”) minimum thickness for single story buildings
 203mm (8”) minimum thickness for more than one story high
  Anchor the wall to roof and floor structures  Imported hardwood – ash, oak, walnut, African
mahogany, beech
 Minimum reinforcement
 Softwood – Radiata pine, spruce pine, fir, hemlock,
 INSULATING CONCRETE FORMS ICF’s
Douglas fir, Western red cedar
o Replace wood and metal formworks
 Machined “joinery” products:
o Provides and insulating layer after concrete is poured on both sides  Jambs, S4S materials, and general mouldings –
o Typically stacked like CMU’s, held in place with adhesives or by meranti, eucalyptus
interlocking with one another  Component parts for furnitures, D/W
o Made of polystyrene (either expanded polystyrene [EPS]  Other products:
or extruded polystyrene [XPS])  Flooring and decking
o Easily cut and carved with a simple handsaw, power saw,  Plywood and panels
or hot wire to make openings and to accommodate  Veneer
 Logs
electrical conduits and plumbing
 Recycled timber – old-growth timber from virgin forests
o Finished with synthetic stucco on the exterior and covered
 Glue laminated timber – stronger, more dimensionally stable.
with drywall on the interior
o Joinery – beauty of timber frames come from the elegance of the “joints”
o Include integral metal furring strips to accept screws that connect the members
o For above-grade exterior walls  Designed to withstand the forces of:
o Sizes:  Compression, pushing a beam into a column
 Smallest, 10 inches tall by 3 feet long (250 by 915 mm)  Tension, pulling a beam away from a column
 Largest, 30 inches tall by 10 feet long (0.75 by 3.0 m)
 Shear, pushing downward toward the ground
 Thickness, 9 to 12 inches (230 to 300 mm)
 Torsion, rotating forces
 Grout: 3000 – 3500 psi concrete mixture with a 3⁄8-
 Traditional timber and frame joint:
inch pea gravel aggregate and a high (5-inch)
 Mortise and tenon held with wooded dowels
slump
 Pumped into the open tops of forms up to12  Mortise – rectangular recess
feet (3.6 m) tall  Tenon – tongue
o Lateral Bracing
o Typical exterior finish – synthetic stucco
 Diagonal knee braces – in pairs (one in tension, the other in
o Typical interior finish – gypsum board
compression), resists horizontal forces such as wind and
 TIMBER FRAME CONSTRUCTION earthquake
o Aesthetic appeal – color, grain figure and warm feel of wood o Wood Shrinkage
o Timber frame – made from large rectangular timber sections  Expansion and contraction by seasonal changes in

effectively joined at right angles moisture content in the direction perpendicular to the
grain
o Wrapped on the exterior with well-insulated panels that are
 Seasoned has less moisture than green (unseasoned) timber
tightly sealed together
 Differential shrinkage – minimized by eliminating the use of
 STRUCTURE OF THE TIMBER FRAME
cross- grained wood from principal lines of support
o Materials  Example, cut columns as single piece running the
 Sawn timber, commercial quantity: entire height (length) of the building
 Philippine hardwood – mahogany, acacia  BUILDING A TIMBER FRAME HOUSE
mangium, gmelina, teak o Starts with the careful cutting and labeling of the timbers
o Preparing the foundation in advance
o Start by framing a timber floor directly connected to the foundation
 o Lay the deck to make a sub-floor  LIGHT-GAUGE STEEL CONSTRUCTION
o Assemble beams and knee braces o Non combustible equivalent of wood light frame construction
o Use a crane for lifting assemblies in place – traditional “barn raising” o Light gauge members:
 Manufactured by cold forming –
o Temporarily brace the principal parts of the frame
 Sheet steel is fed from continuous coils through machines that
o Install smaller parts as – floor beams, rafters, knee braces to
fold it at room temperature into long members whose
complete and stiffen the structure
shapes make them stiff and strong
o Structural Insulated Panels (SIP’s)
 Light gauge – relative thinness of the steel sheet from
 Used to enclose both walls and roof
which members are formed
 Screwed or nailed directly to the outside surfaces of the frame  External dimensions – correspond closely to the dimensions of
 Form a continuous insulated enclosure and an air infiltration barrier the standard sizes of 2-inch nominal (38-mm) framing
 Interior finish with gypsum boards lumber
o Substitute for SIP’s  Used in framing in much the same way as 2-inch wood
 Studs with batt insulation and sheathing at the walls members are used, as closely spaced:
 Decking with rigid or batt insulation at the roof  Studs, Joists, Rafters – 50mm x 100mm to 50mm x 3014mm (2” x

 Interior partition walls are typically framed with 2 × 4 studs 4” to 2” x 12”) Cee sections that fit tracks
 Top and bottom wall plates, rim and header joists – tracks
o Requires detailed planning for the location and installation
 The webs of cee members – punched to provide holes
of electrical wiring, plumbing and HVAC ducts
at 2- foot (600-mm) intervals;
 Codes:  Designed to allow wiring, piping, and bracing to
o Not described in building codes pass through studs and joists
o Typical structural analysis of a timber frame structure:  Shape and depth of the section – determine strength
 Bent-by-bent computer examination of the and stiffness
forces with an emphasis on compression and o Studs in bearing walls – 18-gauge steel (1.60mm)
tension at the braces o Nonbearing partition walls – 20-gauge to 25-
 Building Green:
gauge (0.90 mm – 0.18mm)
 Accessories:
o It is wasteful to use heavy timbers in homes
o Sheet metal angles
o Use glue-laminated timbers and composite timbers of wood
o Straps
fiber – more efficient than solid timbers o Plates
o Recycled timber from old buildings – have superior structural properties o Various shapes
o Heating and cooling of the building will consume relatively  Joining thru:
little energy with: o Self-drilling, self-tapping screws
 A heavy timber frame enclosed with a foam core o Use pneumatic tools
o Pneumatically driven pins – used to fasten
sandwich or stressed-skin panels is relatively airtight and
sheathing to framing
well insulated, with few thermal bridges o Welding – strong connections
o Glues and finish coatings used with glue-laminated timbers o Light gauge steel frame building maybe:
may give off gases such as formaldehyde – can cause  Sheathed
indoor air quality problems  Insulated
 Wired
 Finished inside and out
o Framing procedures:  Extending use to larger buildings and to those whose uses
 Platform fashion require a higher degree of resistance to fire
 Members are significantly lighter than the wood members
 Ground floor – framed with steel joists
 Apply mastic adhesive to upper edges of joists  Span slightly longer distances than nominal 2-inch wood members
 Steel members tend to be straighter and more uniform than
 Lay down wood panel sub-flooring
 Make wall frames by laying flat on the sub-floor the joists wood members
 Flip over wall frames before sheathing o Disadvantages:
 Higher thermal conductivity
 Sheath or cross brace with steel straps
 Longer framing than wood
 Tilt up floor walls and screw to the floor frame
 each screw takes longer to install than does a nail into wood
 Frame upper platform, put up upper floor-walls
 more screws to install because more angles and clips
 Frame roof and ceiling
o Prefab trusses may be screwed or welded together are required
 Frame openings analogously – doubled members  walls must be flipped over before they are sheathed
 web stiffeners must be installed in the floor joists
around each opening; use joist hangers and right-
angle clips beneath each bearing wall
 Noisy and creates glare
 Stiffen at locations where loads are heavier to
 BUILDING GREEN WITH STEEL FRAMING
prevent buckling, use:
o Mining and quarrying [Iron ore, coal, limestone, air, and water]
o Steel web stiffeners (bearing stiffeners)
has negative impact to the environment
o Brace horizontally studs – 1200mm (4 feet) intervals;
o 4550 pounds of gaseous emissions are given off in
use steel straps screwed to webs of joists; 38mm (1 ½”
manufacturing, generating 600 pounds of slag and 50
cold-formed steel channels) thru the punched
pounds of dust
openings
o High embodied energy
o Bridge floor joists with solid blocking in between
o 80% of steel is recyclable
o Wall bracing, use:
o Requires little or no maintenance
 OSB or oriented strand board
 Diagonal steel straps screwed to studs
o ***** Permanent resistance to buckling, twisting, and
lateral loads such as wind and earthquake is
imparted largely and very effectively by
subflooring, wall sheathing, and interior finish
materials
o Hybrid Uses:
 Mix light gauge steel and wood light framing
 Ensure that wood shrinkage will not create
unforeseen stresses or damage to finish materials
o Advantages:
 Versatile and flexible
 Requires only simple, inexpensive tools
 Furnishes internal cavities for utilities and thermal insulation;
 Accepts an extremely wide range of exterior and interior
finish materials
Panelized Construction  Use only for the exterior shell of the building where insulation
is needed
Lighter weight materials with small cranes and boom trucks allowed
 Use standard framing for interior walls where floor and wall
panelizing companies to build larger sections of houses in their factories
cavities allow easy installation of electrical, plumbing and
(Allen & Thallon, 2011). The time saved at the site with panelized heating/cooling systems
construction can be equated into lower financial costs.
 FRAMED PANEL SYSTEMS

 CONCEPT & TYPES  Open Panels

o Non-insulated sections of a framed building
o The two types of panels are based on the standard
o Manufactured in a factory and joined at the site
materials and details of wood light construction o Made with same framing members as standard wood light
(framed) and rigid insulation with lightweight structural weight construction in terms of:
elements (SIP):  Sheathing
 Framed Panels  Finish materials
o Range from simple assemblies of structural framing and sheathing; to,  Joined at the edges
o Fully finished panels containing insulation, wiring and o Mostly walls are produced, some floors
plumbing with exterior and interior finishes o Construction crews are trained to set panels and do
conventional framing
o Two categories:
o First modern structural panels
 Open panels – prefabricated sections of walls and
 Two sheets of plywood spaced apart
(occasionally) floors and roofs with open cavities  Held rigid by 1” x 3” members
between the studs (and joists) o Design of the house
 Maybe finished on the exterior  Depends on the module of the plywood sheets
 Incorporated into the shell of a house  Placement and sizes of windows are coordinated with
 Lacks insulation, wiring and interior finishes the panel dimensions
 Limitations:
 Closed panels
 Shipping constraints
 More complete and include wiring, plumbing,
 Crane scheduling
insulation, vapor retarder and interior finishes  Most practical design – one story with hip roof
 Insulation is usually glass fiber batts
o Today’s panels
 Problems on joinery  Sheathing on the exterior side only
 Difficulties in inclement weather in  Allows the installation of electrical wiring, plumbing
transporting the panels and insulation from the inside of the house
 Structural Insulated Panels  Standard construction:
o Made of rigid insulation adhered in a factory to structural elements  2” x “4 or 2” x 6” studs with ½” (12mm) sheathing
 Typically with windows and doors installed at the factory
o Provides the stiffness and strength required for use in bearing
o Interior walls are framed but not sheathed
walls and roof assemblies
 Fitted with diagonal braces – to keep them square
o Used for the construction of exterior walls, roofs and ground floors
 Corresponds to the rough framing of conventionally
o Interior walls are constructed with standard framing framed residence
o For roof construction – typically used only for vaulted ceiling o Exterior wall panels
o Panels are expensive
  Advantages:
 Often completely finished with siding, trim and paint
 10-20% of the work to be done on site o Superior thermal envelope
o Faster to erect
 Completion of siding and trim at joints & edges of panels
 Usual panel sizes: 4’ x 8 up to 28’ x 8 ‘
o Construction
 Savings on labor costs
 Prepare foundation in advance - ready for the
 Savings on insulation installation costs
installation of floor panels
 Panels are lifted by cranes
 Building shell is complete at the side in just a few days
 Workers only need to connect the panels
 Panels are organized in the delivery truck according to
o Life-cycle cost – initial investment may be recovered in 10 years
the sequence of installation using a boom or small
o Reduced heating/cooling costs
crane
 Disadvantages:
 Floor panels to span over a basement
o Integration of electrical, plumbing, and heating systems is
 Fastened to a mudsill (sill plate)
more complicated and less flexible
 Wall panels
 Plumbing and heating systems can be
 Length – as long as the delivery truck
located in conventionally framed interior
 Height – effective limit to 10’ (3m) since walls are
walls,
shipped vertically to breaking the seals on the
o No open cavities to accommodate wires, pipes and ducts
windows
 1-inch-diameter (25-mm)horizontal (and vertical)
 Gable end walls – made in two sections
chases through wall panels are made to
 Nailed through their bottom plate
accommodate wiring
 Studs are strapped to the foundation
 Receptacles and other electrical devices are cut into the
 First floor walls are tied together with a second top plate
inside face of the panel opposite the chases
o The roof or upper floor is built on top of this
 Double framing members at the edges of joined panels  Plumbing and heating can be installed on the (inside)
surface of exterior walls
 STRUCTURAL INSULATED PANELS o Requires more time for the electrician
 Rigid insulation introduced to panelized construction o Higher costs than standard framing
o Panels – 1 5/8” (41mm) thick polystyrene with ¼” (6.4mm) thick  Performance
plywood glued to each side o Stronger, more energy efficient, and more environmentally responsible
 Stiff assemblage (like a steel I-beam) – studs and rafters o Structural performance
were eliminated  Rely almost entirely on an OSB skin that is laminated to the
 Use lumber at the edges of joined panels rigid insulation for structural integrity
 Other names: sandwich panels or stressed-skin panels  Edges of panels work collectively as a post-and-beam
 Other panels do not have a structural skin, they have structure, with the rigid insulation acting as diagonal
spaced wood or metal members that are integrated bracing
with the rigid foam  Stronger than standard framing
 Today’s insulated panels  Structural failure due to isolated instances of delamination
o Designs vary according to structural stability of facing from the foam plastic core
 (OSB) oriented strand board adhered to either side of a 3 ½”  Sagging in SIP roofs due to creep of the foam core – the
foam core of (EPS) expanded long- term deformation of materials subjected to
polystyrene or (XPS) extruded constant load
polystyrene  Lifetime guarantee may not be given with only 30-40 years
of experience with SIP technology
o Energy performance
Figure 2. Difference between XPS & EPS  Use less energy for heating/cooling
  In a comparison of 6-inch walls – standard (XPS) SIP wall has  Add a skirt around the perimeter of a house
an overall R-value of 21.6, whereas a wood stud wall has an o Bottom plate is attached to the subfloor before the wall is erected
overall value of 13.7 o Typical 4-by-8-foot (1.2 × 2.4-m) panels weigh approximately 110 to 130
 R-value: insulating material's resistance to pounds (50 to 60 kg) and can be positioned by two workers
conductive heat flow o Panels are mechanically fastened edge to edge
 Rigid insulation performs substantially better than fiberglass batts o Wall panels are nailed or screwed to one another at corners
 XPS has an R-value approximately 20 percent  Tied together at the top with a continuous plate
higher than that of fiberglass batts o Framing of upper floors with open-web joists or wooden I-joists
provides cavities in which plumbing and other utilities
 Fewer framing members in SIP walls to act as thermal
o Roof panels are attached to the top plates of walls with long nails
bridging that conducts heat rapidly through the wall
 Virtually no voids within a SIP wall
or screws that pass through the roof panels and penetrate the
top plate of the wall
 SIP panels, when installed carefully, create a more nearly
o Eaves and overhanging rakes – made by cantilevering the
airtight envelope than standard framing and thus reduce
insulated panel, even though the insulation performs no
infiltration
thermal function
 SIP house – 38% tighter & 14-20% lower heating/cooling costs
o Openings for windows and doors
o Environmental performance
 Manufactured into the panels at the factory or
 Use considerably less framing lumber and slightly less wood fiber
 Cut onsite with an oversized power saw and a router
 With the substitution of interior OSB for studs and the
o Panels are caulked or sealed at all edges as they are installed
reduction of wood waste
o To create as airtight an envelope
 Lumber is typically manufactured from high-grade
trees, while engineered OSB panels are made from
waste wood products
 Less wood waste but more rigid foam board waste both in
the factory and at the site
 Embodied energy - three to five times as much energy to
produce, but can be reclaimed with savings from
heating/cooling
o Fire resistance
 More resistant to fire
 EPS fumes are more or less the same as wood smoke
 Polyurethane smoke contains cyanide
 All foam plastics drip sticky, flaming goo during a fire, which
is a serious hazard
 Construction
o Follows the sequence of standard wood light frame construction
o SIP walls bear on the floor structure – either slab or framed
o SIP roof bears on the walls
o Constructed on a basement or crawlspace foundation
and a conventionally framed floor or a slab
o SIP may be uses as a floor structure supported by a simple post-
and beam foundation
 Provides the same subfloor platform on which to erect walls
“Primitive” systems use natural materials that are subjected to minimum processing and o Spanned with wooden lintels (as deep as the wall)
can be assembled with simple tools and unskilled labor. Professionally designed and  Insulation on the outside XPS boards, then covered
built systems will be discussed in this unit. with wire and cement or mud plaster
 Electrical wiring and plumbing are installed in

 EARTHEN CONSTRUCTION grooves cut into the walls

 Building code requirements
 Earth – a low cost and available building material
 Provide horizontal and vertical reinforcement in
o Low environmental impact
seismic zones
o Acts like masonry
2. Rammed earth – compacted moistened soil mixture between
o Solid earth walls afford
rigid forms
 Thermal mass  Forms – small and lightweight, removed upon completion of
 Low sound transmission the compaction
 Does not contain toxic substances  Labor intensive
 Not susceptible to attack by insects  Must use tractors and air-driven compactors to
 No construction waste (although labor intensive) reduce labor costs
 Rammed-earth walls – 30% clay, 70% sand and small gravel
 Types of earthen wall construction
 5% Portland cement as stabilizer
1. Adobe – air dried mud bricks
 Insufficient moisture leads to crumbly walls
 Building codes do not discourage adobe construction
 Too much moisture causes shrinking and cracking
 Soil must have 8-15% clay content  Half the strength of typical concrete
 Straw can be added for strength and to prevent cracking  Construction process
 Modern additions – emulsified asphalt to minimize  Rammed-earth wall is constructed on a concrete
moisture penetration foundation
 Adobe bricks (US) sizes: o Footing – sufficiently wide to support wall weight
 10”-12” (254-305mm) wide o Foundation stem wall – same thickness as the
 32-48 pounds (15-22 kg) rammed-earth wall (12”-24” or 300-600mm thick)
extends above the finish grade
 Smaller sizes for domes and vaults
 Constructing the wall
 Walls - laid up with a single wythe = 10”-12” thick
o Forms are set on top of the foundations
 Modern construction o Vertical reinforcing steel is put in place
 Built on concrete footing with a concrete stem o Soil mixture is dumped to depths of 6” (150mm)
wall that extends above grade o Soil is compacted with wooded tampers or
 First course are made with asphalt-modified adobe pneumatic compactors
o Controls moisture migration o Compaction – reduces earth mixture to half of
its original volume
 Top of wall – laminated wood bond or
o Forms are removed immediately when form is filled
reinforced concrete beam ties the o Place horizontal reinforcing steel on top of
adobe bricks compacted lifts at appropriate levels
o Provides anchoring for the roof structure o Wall height is limited according to seismic activity
 Openings for doors and windows o Roof is connected to a simple wooded
plate anchored to the top wall by anchor
bolts
 o Block the space for openings with forms
 Building code considerations  Mosses
 Walls are designed using the same procedure  Mortar
for concrete  Flexible synthetic material applied over a split, closed-
o Assumed compressive strengths 800-1200psi cell foam backer rod - adheres tightly, long life,
(5.5- 8.3Mpa) – concrete has minimum flexes with changes due to climatic conditions
2000psi (13.8Mpa)  Electrical wires can be hidden in the chinking
o Full-scribed style
3. Cob – mud mixture of clay, sand and straw that is piled
 Scribing – cutting away the underside of each log to that
onto a wall and formed by hand it is contoured to match the irregularities of the log
4. Contained earth – plastic or textile sacks filled with soil below
(sometimes sand) and stacked to form walls  Slow process, but leads to a clean fit without major
gaps between logs
 STACKED LOG CONSTRUCTION
 Scribed joints – sealed with expanding foam
 Most professionally built log houses are located in mountain  Unique characteristics
resorts and rural areas o Significant settling – 1/8” per foot of wall height (10mm per meter) over
o Materials – coniferous tree species (trunks are long, straight hot seasons
sections with minimal taper) o Walls can shorten vertically from 1”-8”
 White, yellow or lodgepole pine o Special details – windows, doors, columns and framed walls
o Loadbearing columns – fitted with screw jacks in the floor and
 Western red cedar
are lowered as the logs settle
 Douglas fir
o Windows and doors – installed when much of the settling has occurred
 Logs are peeled for aesthetic and practical reasons o Exterior sides and log ends – exposed to the weather, insects
 Trees are felled when the bark falls of logs (termites, carpenter ants, powder post beetles)
 Standing dead timber killed by high elevation, fire or  Provide generous roof overhangs
insects is a primary source because it is dry  Smooth sand and seal ends
o Preconstruction in commercial log yards, then  Apply: insecticides, mildewcides, fungicides
o Material maybe used inefficiently – green log construction
disassembled and shipped to the site for reerection
o High-end market
 Difficult joinery are made in controlled conditions
o Thousands of joints
 On-site construction time is reduced  Building codes
o Construction o Inability to meet R-19 – energy conservation code, insulation values
 Logs are stacked on top of one another and
 STRAW BALE CONSTRUCTION
notched to interlock at corners
 Uses bales that are stacked up as if they were huge masonry walls –
 Allow corner joints to lap
inexpensive alternative to costly imported lumber
 Logs are exposed both inside out for full aesthetic benefitd
o Basic building unit – two-string or a three-string bale of straw
 Logs are also used for the roof structure  Straw – waste product: stems of wheat, oats, barley, rice
 Framework: log beams, trusses, purlins or log rafters  Traditionally used for mulching or for bedding material
supports exposed decking for farm animals
 Two ways to seal between logs:  Different from hay – contains only the shaft of the
o Chinked style grain plant
 Simpler – allows the logs to be stacked on one  Must be dry, dense and of consistent size
another without advanced treatment for a perfect
fit
 Space between logs – filled with chinking materials:
  Laid out with straws parallel to the ground for wall construction –  Rough openings are framed with wood
stronger in this orientation o Finishing straw bale walls
 Baling strings – protected within the finished wall  Protection from moisture is critical – or straw will decay
 Wall surfaces can be notched for utilities and collapse
 Interior walls – framed with wood because bale take up  Build broad roof overhangs
much space  Typical exterior finish – three-coat Portland cement-
o Loadbearing straw bale walls based stucco, typically applied over stucco netting
 Logical and straightforward use – walls with stacked up
bales that support a roof
 Stacking – running bond pattern
 Bales – pre-compressed for stability and work out the 1”-2”
settlement when roof is added
 Squeezing the bales between the foundation and
a continuous wooded bond beam at the top of
the wall
 Foundation and bond beam – connected by  Interior surfaces – usually coated with gypsum plaster
 Thread rods running through the bales or  Consumes 70% more stucco or plaster than a smoothly
 Straps made of wire mesh or wood at both faces of framed wall – fill bales walls with a mixture of mud and
the bale straw before finish is applied
 Rough openings - pin wooded frame to the bales with dowels  Strength is increased when stucco is shot onto the walls (gunite)
o Infill straw bale walls o Advantages
 Constructed with an independent wooden frame that  Use of straw decreases the need to dispose it by burning
supports the roof – bales are used only as infill or composting – smoke and methane in the atmosphere is
 Code approval is simpler reduced
 Loads can be greater  Minimal embodied energy when produced locally
 Greater design flexibility  High insulation value R-33 for a 23” (585mm) wall
 More wall openings  Deep windows and doors adds aesthetics
 Addition of second story o Disadvantage
 Wooded frame  Vulnerability to moisture – may cause mold and mildew,
 Post and beam structure of conventional 4”x 4” or 6”x6” decay or the complete integration of the straw
members or  Survived catastrophic fires – superior to wood frame
 Flat box columns of 2”x4” and plywood that extend the construction in terms of combustibility
full thickness of the wall o Building codes
 Experiments with the use of metal, concrete,  Most codes do not recognize straw bale construction
concrete block or wooden trusses for columns
 Provides rough openings  GREENNESS OF EARTH, LOGS AND BALES
 Bracing – resists lateral loads with diagonal metal straps  Low embodied energy and use of low-cost materials
o Window and door openings o Earthen construction systems
 Decide to locate the window or door at the exterior,  Tear up the land
interior or the center of the wall  Require large amounts of very heavy manual
 Windows – nearer the exterior labor in construction
 Doors - nearer the interior
  Walls are durable if protected from groundwater and Multifamily Construction
precipitation Multifamily construction is often found in cities that adopted the
 Poor thermal resistance – requiring insulation European pattern of urban living. From townhouses to tenement houses,
o Log construction systems
multifamily buildings emerged with other multi-use and tall buildings in
 Extremely wasteful of wood
 Not highly resistant to the conduction of heat which issues of public health and safety are greater with higher and
 Contain miles of cracks that must sealed to minimize air filtration wider types of development
 Logs swell in humid weather and shrink in dry weather which may  FOUNDATION
cause tearing and loss of adhesion of the sealant  Requires stronger foundations because structural loads are
 Large gaps above doors and windows
o Straw bale construction systems
greater – footings are wider, stem walls are thicker and more
 Straw is a waste product reinforcing is required
 Consume less labor than earthen construction o Foundation type – dictated by the need for parking
 Good thermal insulation o Typical concrete foundation – concrete slab on grade
 If wetted, straw bales can decay and swell – weakens structurally (least expensive) where parking is outside the building
and give rise to molds and decay
 Footings are wider and thicker
 Swelling can crack the stucco
o Stronger foundation for larger footprint and uneven or
weak soil to prevent differential settling
o Urban contexts:
 Parking is below the building
 Mixed-use zoning – commercial uses on the ground
floor with residential uses stacked above
 Is parking is below grade – use long and continuous
foundation walls along with backfill
 Strategically locate shear walls of sufficient lengths
within the structure
 If wood light frame construction is used above
parking, the deck between them must have a fire-
resistance rating of 2 hours
 Deck – carries loads from the walls and columns in
the units above and transfer the loads to the
columns and walls of the parking garage
 Column locations are dictated by vehicle dimensions
 Fire-rated deck - options:
 Heavy timber beams and wood joists
 Structural steel framing
 Concrete slab poured over corrugated steel decking
 Pre-cast concrete hollow core planks
o Pour a 2” (50mm) concrete topping over the slabs
 Site-cast concrete decks
 o Post-tensioned two-way flat plate
 Understand the combustibility of interior finish materials
 With residential units above commercial units:
 Every material is tested and assigned a flame-spread rating
 Use a podium – ground floor with concrete columns
(ASTM E84) – relates to the known flame-spread characteristics
and concrete or masonry shear walls that support a
of asbestos board (flame spread 0) and dry red oak (flame
concrete slab
spread 100)
 FRAMING  Only Class A (flame spread 0-25) and Class B (flame spread
 Framing for walls, floors and roof is essentially the same for a single-family house 26- 75) are allowed for use in large areas of the building
o Greater lateral and gravity loads – increased height and mass o Fire sprinkler systems
o Same joists, rafters, trusses and other framing components  Sprinklers reduce the fire rating of the wall between units (i.e.
o Increased stud sizes and stud spacing in the lower level form 2-hour rating to 1-hour rating)
o Stronger shear walls  Choose between pressurized water systems and dry standpipes
o Wood frame construction up to 6 stories tall – structurally adequate o Fire separation
 Caution on the effect of change in moisture content that  1 or 2 hour rating will be required between units depending
can cause the cracking of plaster and envelope failures on the class of sprinklers
 Substitute dimension lumber with engineered wood  All require exits must be protected with 2-hour assemblies
o Framing of large steel beams, concrete or engineered wood o Fire blocking
 Deep beams – plan plumbing and ductwork carefully  In the framing – an integral part of the fire-resistance system
o Framing practices for acoustical and fire separation  Stop the flow of fire through blocking between floors
and between units
 ACOUSTICAL SEPARATION
 Equip ductwork with fire dampers
 Design walls and floors to absorb both airborne noise and structure-
borne sounds  SYSTEMS
o Meet code requirements  MEP systems – mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems
 STC Sound Transmission Class rating 33 – standard 2”x4” wall with o Size connections to all city or municipal supplied services –
½” drywall on both sides controls airborne sound water, electrical power, natural gas, sewer
 Add acoustic insulation to achieve STC 43 o Choose between centralized or individual HVAC units and hot
 Mount gypsum board on resilient sheet metal channels water systems
that damp the transmission of vibration by the wall o Consolidate meters on one area of the building
structure
 ACCESSIBILITY
 Codes specify STC 50 for walls between units – staggered
 Multifamily buildings up to five stories tall are typically equipped with
studs or double walls
a hydraulic elevator
 Carpet – easiest way to minimize the transmission of impact noise
o Elevator carriageway (shaft) – fire-protected concrete construction
 Apply a 1 ½” layer of low-density, self-leveling liquid gypsum
with 2-hour fire rating
over the subfloor before a carpet or resilient flooring is laid
o Option: use machine room-less (MRL) elevator
 Install batt insulation in joist cavities
o Provide a means of egress (escape) – two separate fire stairs at
 Seal electrical outlets
opposite ends of buildings
 Use sealants where necessary
 GREEN CONCEPTS
 FIRE PROTECTION
 Green potentials of multifamily houses
 Choose fire protection strategies in order to safely evacuate the
o Consume less site area and fewer building materials
building occupants if a fire should occur
o Heating/cooling each unit require less energy
o Regulating combustibility