Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Sep 16, 2015 12:59 am Our concerns regarding steel frame include heating/cooling issues. Will it be a hotbox? Are there things we can do to prevent/help? Will it be noisy? I.e. Bad acoustics and noise travel through walls? Re: Steel frame versus brick 2Sep 16, 2015 8:26 am Hi WWHF Pros and Cons Steel frame building elements Pros are, Light weight, high strength, design flexibility, ..etc,etc Cons are, You can also add to heat conduction thermal expansion/contraction in hot climates, corrosion in marine environments, etc,etc Like most things you can make allowances to deal with these issues at the design stage ie, thermal insulation and expansion joints,coatings,etc Cost wise traditional building methods Brick and timber are still cheaper in the long run Designer,Engineer (Civil,Const & Envir),Builder,Concrete & Masonry Contract.Struct Repairs Re: Steel frame versus brick 3Sep 16, 2015 8:27 am We have built steel once and again now. We live in a five year old timber frame rental. There is no noises from a steel frame in our experience. I think Comfort comes down to insulation, solar access and design. Benefits for us of the steel frame was mainly termite proofness. Re: Steel frame versus brick 4Sep 16, 2015 9:01 am I think this question is more about steel vs brick rather than steel vs timber. Framing plus brick veneer has quite different thermal properties than brick only. The brick has a higher thermal mass, but the framing with insulation has higher thermal resistance. So a brick house will take a longer time to heat up when it's hotter outside than inside, especially if there are heat sources inside the house. But then it will also take a lot longer to cool down after the outside temperature has dropped. If you are using air-conditioning for a long period of time and keeping the internal temperature constant, it's mainly about the heat conductivity, and here the insulated framing will perform better than brick as you have greater insulation. Building usage makes a difference. If the house is empty during the day, lightweight construction is far better. The house heats up while you are out, but by the time you get home in the evening, it's cooling down outside and you just open the windows and it cools down fairly quickly. In comparison, a brick house has been heating up all day, and then at evening it stays hot through the night unless you run an air-conditioner constantly to take the heat out. On the other hand, if there are people home during the day, they can take advantage of the thermal mass with the house generally being cooler during the morning and early afternoon than a framed house. Thermal mass has its limits though, and if it stays hot overnight, there is no opportunity for the building fabric to be cooled down. Also, people are getting more picky about temperature, and tend to run air-conditioners anyhow, which tends to start defeating the benefits of the thermal mass. Things work opposite in winter. Here the high thermal mass more benefits occupancy patterns where there is nobody home in the morning, as it can take a long time for the house to heat up. Generally full brick houses are less popular in colder climates, as in those cases the insulation tends to become more valuable than the thermal mass. This is 100% true. You can not hang anything on steel frames. very frustrating 8 8077 Hi I am wanting some opinions about the build of a steel shed I am going to get one about 4.5 x 2.5 m steel shed and the height will be about 2.3-2.4m high The one I am… 0 14560 Hi, I have a steel frame house which was built 2 years ago. When you are down stairs you can hear clunking noises when someone is walking around. We were told if you… 0 4503 |