Comprehensive Guide to Building Construction Materials and Types

1. 6 Building Construction

2. Objectives (1 of 3) • Describe the characteristics of the following building materials: masonry, concrete, steel, glass, gypsum board, and wood.

3. Objectives (2 of 3) • List the characteristics of each of the following types of building construction: fire-resistive construction, noncombustible construction, ordinary construction, heavy-timber construction, and wood-frame construction.

4. Objectives (3 of 3) • Describe the function of each of the following building components: foundations, floors, ceilings, roofs, trusses, walls, doors, windows, interior finishes, and floor coverings. • Describe how each of the five types of building construction react to fire.

5. Introduction (1 of 2) • Building construction affects how fires grow and spread. • Fire fighters need to understand how each type of building construction reacts when exposed to the effects of heat. • Determines when it is safe to enter a burning building and when it is necessary to evacuate

6. Introduction (2 of 2) • Occupancy • How a building is used • Classifications indicate who is likely to be inside, how many people, and what they are likely to be doing • Contents • Vary, but usually related to building use

7. Construction Materials • Key factors affecting combustibility: • Combustibility • Thermal conductivity • Decrease of strength at elevated temperatures • Thermal expansion when heated

8. Types of Construction Materials • Masonry • Concrete • Steel and other metals • Glass • Gypsum board • Wood • Plastics

9. Masonry • Inherently fire-resistive • Poor conductor • Openings can allow fire to spread. • With prolonged exposure to fire, masonry can collapse.

10. Concrete • Naturally fire-resistive • Poor conductor of heat • Strong under compression • Weak under tension • Can be damaged through exposure to fire • Spalling

11. Steel (1 of 2) • Strongest material in common use • Strong in both compression and tension • Will rust if exposed to air and moisture • Not fire-resistive • Good conductor of heat

12. Steel (2 of 2) • Expands and loses strength when heated • Any sign of bending, sagging, or stretching indicates immediate risk of failure.

13. Other Metals • Aluminum • Siding, window and door frames, and roof panels • Often melts and drips in fires • Copper • Primarily used for piping and wiring • Zinc • Used as a protective coating for metals

14. Glass • Noncombustible, but not fire-resistive • Ordinary (nontreated) glass will break when exposed to flame.

15. Gypsum Board • Very good insulator • Limited combustibility • Paper will burn, but gypsum itself will not. • Often used as a firestop • Prolonged exposure to fire will cause failure.

16. Wood • Most common building material • Highly combustible • Weakens when heated • Fire-retardant chemicals can weaken wood.

17. Plastics • Rarely used for structural support • Combustibility varies • Many plastics release dense, toxic smoke when they burn. • Thermoplastic materials melt and drip. • Thermoset materials lose strength but will not melt.

18. Types of Construction • Type I: Fire-resistive • Type II: Noncombustible • Type III: Ordinary • Type IV: Heavy timber • Type V: Wood frame

19. Type I: Fire-Resistive (1 of 2) • All structural components must be noncombustible. • Used for: • Large numbers of people • Tall or large area • Special occupancies

20. Type I: Fire-Resistive (2 of 2) • Building materials should not provide fuel for a fire. • Steel framing must be protected. • Fires can be very hot and hard to ventilate. • In extreme conditions Type I buildings can collapse.

21. Type II: Noncombustible (1 of 2) • All structural components must be noncombustible. • Fire-resistive requirements are less stringent than Type I.

22. Type II: Noncombustible (2 of 2) • Structural components contribute little or no fuel. • Fire severity is determined by contents. • Most common in single-story warehouses or factories

23. Type III: Ordinary (1 of 2) • Used in a wide range of buildings • Masonry exterior walls support floors and roof. • Usually limited to no more than four stories • Limited fire-resistance requirements

24. Type III: Ordinary (2 of 2) • Two separate fire loads: • Contents • Construction materials • Fire resistance depends on building age and local building codes. • Exterior walls, floors, and roof are connected.

25. Type IV: Heavy Timber (1 of 2) • Exterior masonry walls • Interior structural elements, floors, and roof of wood

26. Type IV: Heavy Timber (2 of 2) • No concealed spaces or voids • Used for buildings as tall as eight stories • Open spaces suitable for manufacturing and storage • New Type IV construction is rare.

27. Type V: Wood Frame (1 of 3) • Most common type of construction in use • All major components are wood or other combustible materials.

28. Type V: Wood Frame (2 of 3) • Used in buildings of up to four stories • Wooden I-beams and trusses • Just strong enough to carry required load • No built-in safety margin • Collapse early and suddenly

29. Type V: Wood Frame (3 of 3) • Balloon-frame construction • Exterior walls assembled with continuous wood studs. • Platform-frame construction • Exterior wall studs not continuous.

30. Building Components • Foundation • Floors and ceilings • Roofs • Trusses • Walls • Doors and windows • Interior finishes and floor coverings

31. Foundation • Transfer the weight of the building and its components to the ground • Ensures building is firmly planted • Weak or shifting foundations can cause collapse.

32. Floors and Ceilings (1 of 2) • Fire-resistive floors • Floor–ceiling system designed to prevent vertical fire spread • If space above ceiling is not partitioned or sprinklered, fire can quickly extend horizontally across a large area.

33. Floors and Ceilings (2 of 2) • Wood-supported floors • Heavy-timber floors can often contain a fire for an hour or more. • Conventional wood flooring burns readily and can fail in as little as 20 minutes. • Modern, lightweight wood I-beams and trusses

34. Roofs • Not designed to be as strong as floors • Three primary designs: • Pitched roofs • Curved roofs • Flat roofs

35. Pitched Roofs • Sloped or inclined • Can be gable, hip, mansard, gambrel, or lean-to • Usually supported by rafters or trusses • Require some sort of roof covering

36. Curved Roofs • Used for large buildings that require large, open interiors • Usually supported by bowstring trusses or arches

37. Flat Roofs (1 of 2) • Have a slight slope for drainage • Wood support structures use solid wood beams and joists.

38. Flat Roofs (2 of 2) • Open-web steel trusses (bar joists) often used for support • Most coverings highly combustible • Ventilation may involve cutting through many layers of roofing.

39. Trusses (1 of 2) • Triangular geometry creates a strong, rigid structure. • Usually prefabricated wood or steel • Three types: • Parallel chord • Pitched chord • Bowstring

40. Trusses (2 of 2)

41. Walls • Most visible part of a building • Constructed of a variety of materials • Walls are: • Load-bearing • Nonbearing • Specialized

42. Load-Bearing Walls • Provide structural support • Either interior or exterior • Support both “dead load” and “live load” • Damaged wall can result in collapse.

43. Nonbearing Walls • Support only their own weight • Can be breached or removed without compromising structural integrity • Either interior or exterior

44. Specialized Walls (1 of 2) • Party walls • Common to two properties • Almost always load-bearing • Often a fire wall • Fire walls • Designed to limit horizontal fire spread • Extend from foundation through roof • Constructed of fire-resistant materials

45. Specialized Walls (2 of 2) • Fire partitions • Interior walls that extend from a floor to underside of floor above • Fire enclosures • Fire-rated assemblies for vertical openings • Curtain walls • Nonbearing exterior walls attached to the outside of a building

46. Doors • Can be used for entry, exit, light, and ventilation • Mostly constructed of wood or metal • Hollow-core wood doors offer little fire resistance. • Solid-core doors provide some fire resistance. • Metal doors more durable and fire resistant.

47. Window Assemblies • Used for light, ventilation, entry, and exit • Window type depends on a variety of factors.

48. Fire Doors and Fire Windows(1 of 3) • Constructed to prevent the spread of flames, heat, and smoke • Must meet NFPA 80 • Labeled according to approved use

49. Fire Doors and Fire Windows(2 of 3) • Class A • Class B • Class C • Class D • Class E

50. Fire Doors and Fire Windows(3 of 3) • Fire windows are used when a window is needed in a required fire-resistant wall.