Jonathan Ochshorn
Room 121-B, Rand Hall
Department of Architecture
Cornell University
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ARCH 262: Building Technology, Materials & Methods
Assign #2: Bearing wall buildings


assigned: Sept. 20, 1999
due: Sept. 29, 1999
Use the information contained in the text (Allen, Fundamentals of Building Construction, 3rd edition), especially the details on pp.325-327 (figs. 10.10, 10.11, 10.12), to create an exterior wall section for a 2-story building with the following characteristics:
  • 8"-thick CMU (concrete masonry unit, i.e., concrete block) bearing wall with 4"-thick textured concrete block facing and 2" air space (cavity) between;
  • concrete slab on grade;
  • reinforced concrete foundation wall;
  • concrete footing (bottom of footing 36" below grade);
  • window (similar to that shown in fig. 10.10);
  • parapet wall* (similar to that in fig. 10.12);
  • roof system consisting of open web steel joists bearing on the CMU, corrugated steel deck, 1/2" gypsum sheathing*, roof membrane, polystyrene foam rigid insulation, stone ballast (similar to fig. 10.12)
  • wall insulation, either in cavity (as in Brand*), or on inside face of CMU (as in Allen).
* for additional details, see Ronald Brand, Architectural Details for Insulated Buildings, on reserve (#8 on list), especially pp. 98-99.

References:
See reserve list for other possible references

Requirements:
One exterior wall section. Photocopy or "blueprint" on 8-1/2" x 11 or 11" x 17" paper, folded in half. No rolled-up drawings or drawings mounted on boards, please! Use scale: 1-1/2" = 1'0"; label neatly all relevant parts of the construction. Use break lines in walls to reduce size of drawing. See Allen, Architectural Detailing, p. 204 for an example of how to format notes; see Brand, Architectural Details for Insulated Buildings TH1715 B66x 1990 (also on reserve) for an alternate model in which notes are consolidated.


last updated: 16 Sept. 1999
Copyright 1999 J. Ochshorn. All rights reserved. Republishing material on this web site, whether in print or on another web site, in whole or in part, is not permitted without advance permission of the author.