BUILDING CONSTRUCTION 2014 / 2015 SESSION SS2

TOPIC : WALLS Walls are vertical erected structure of a building, the width i.e length exceeds four times the thickness

USES OF WALLS To enclose spaces (Privacy) To protect the inner part of the building from weather i.e Rain, Sun, Snow e.t.c To provide security to the occupant To provide support for roofs and floors e.t.c

CLASSIFICATION OF WALLS Walls can be classified by: 1. Structural function 2. Construction Position

STRUCTURAL FUNCTION i. LOAD BEARING WALLS: They carry vertical imposed loads in addition to the self load. The imposed loads include those from floors, roofs, other structural walls, live loads. Most external walls are load bearing walls ii. NON-LOAD BEARING WALLS: These walls support no other loads except their own weight. They include walls under windows, dwarf walls and some partitions CONSTRUCTIONAL POSITION i.EXTERNAL WALLS : They enclosed the building, roofs e.t.c most of them are load bearing walls, ii.INTERNAL WALLS : They are also known as partition walls. In some cases could serve as load bearing walls. They are mostly used to divide or demarcate the internal part of building into different spaces. OTHER TYPES ARE Cavity walls,parapet walls, Boundary walls e. t. c

FUNCTIONAL REQIUREMENT OF WALLS 1.It should be able to support upper floors and roofs together with all loads imposed on them. 2.Must be resistant to damp penetration 3.Must provide adequate thermal insulation 4.Must offer resistance to fire in the building 5.Strength and stability 6.Durability 7.Sound insulation e. t. c MATERIALS FOR WALLS i.Sandcrete Block/Brick ii.Timber iii.Stone iv. sheet metals v.Clay Brick/Block vi.Glass vii.Bamboo viii.Mud e.t. c

ASSIGNMENT 1.Define a wall 2.Differentiate between Load and non load bearing walls 3.State 5 functional requirements of wall.