POB4-Construction of Internal and External Walls

Walls serve the following purposes:

• They hold up the roof

• keep the occupants of the building warm

• Provide protection against the elements

• Divide the building into rooms, providing privacy and different spaces

• Transfer the weight of the chimney onto the floors

Walls come in two major categories:

• Internal

• Cavity

• External

• Shallow

Many buildings now have cavity walls which means the outside wall is a ... one because it is exposed to the elements outside the building. The internal wall is dry but it needs to be kept separate from the outside wall by a cavity.

• Wet

• Dry

Internal walls divide up the space within the building. These do not have all of the demands of the external walls. They are less likely to be load bearing and they do not have to be insulated so are, therefore, ......... .

Internal walls can be ..... or ..... (particularly if they are load bearing), which is then covered with plaster. Alternatively they can be a ....... or ...... framework, known as stud work, which is covered plasterboard, to form a wall.

Walls can also be classed as .... bearing(fulfills the function of providing support) or non .... bearing(serving to separate spaces but do not provide any weight support).

Arches, or lintels are found :

• in non load bearing internal walls

• under the damp proof coarse

• when any gaps or openings for windows or doors have to be bridged

• in between the bridging joists

Walls that have an outer and an inner wall and a cavity between them are called

• Tongue and groove

• Cavity walls

• Internal load bearing walls

• External non load bearing walls

Cavity walls are made up of one inner and one outer skin as follows:

• Exterior skin-Blockwork

  Interior skin-

  Brickwork

• Exterior skin-Brickwork

  Interior skin-

  Blockwork

• Exterior skin-Stud wall

  Interior skin-

  Brickwork

• Exterior skin-

  Brickwork

  Interior skin-

  Stud wall

This membrane is installed under the concrete in ground floors in order to ensure that ground moisture does not enter the building.

• DPM

• DPC

• DPS

• UPS