Different Types of Walls
Wall is the structure that defines the area of the space or a room. It gives the safety and shelter to those living inside. There are many types of wall used in the building the house such as –
Load Bearing Walls
It is also known as bearing wall. It is the active element of a building that helps to hold the weight of the materials above it. It helps in conducting the weight to the foundation structure below it. Load-bearing walls are used since the earliest forms of construction. There are different types of load-bearing walls such as :
- Precast Concrete Wall
- Retaining Wall
- Masonry Wall
- Pre-Panelised Load Bearing Metal Stud Walls
- Engineering Brick Wall
- Stone Wall
Non-Load Bearing Wall
The non-load-bearing walls are used inside the house. The non-load bearing walls, as the name suggest, does not support any additional structural weight of the building or even their weight. The non-load-bearing walls are the joists and rafters that run parallel to the wall. The various types of non-load bearing walls are –
- Hollow Concrete Block
- Facade Bricks
- Hollow Bricks
- Brick Walls
Cavity Walls
A cavity wall is a type of wall is hollow at the centre. They can be described as consisting of two layers of brick I or cinder blocks with hollow space at the centre of it. The important function of the cavity in the cavity wall is to drain water through weep holes at the base of the wall or above windows. The weep holes allow wind to create an air stream through the cavity. It helps to remove the evaporated water from the cavity to the outside of the wall. It also enables the use of low-cost non-rigid batts insulation
Shear Walls
A shear wall is a vertical element of a seismic force that helps in the resisting system. It is designed to resist in-plane lateral forces, such as the wind and seismic loads. Based on the type of material used, shear walls are of various types:
- Concrete Block Shear Wall
- Mid-Ply Shear Wall
- Plywood Shear Wall
- Reinforced Concrete Shear Wall
- Steel Shear Wall
Partition Walls
Partitions are a type of non-load bearing walls that separate different spaces in the house or any building. Partition walls can be built with solid materials such as brick or blocks or can be a framed structure to partition various spaces in the house. Framed partition walls are also referred to as stud walls and can be made using timber, steel or aluminium frame.
Glass partition walls are made using glass panels that work as a transparent divider. The glass panels are made of high-quality safety glass and do not support any weight on them. It helps in space management, provide an open space environment, and let light to penetrate deep into the building.
Wall Panel
Wall panel is a single piece of material that is used as the visible and exposed wall covering for a wall. It is generally made of wooden blocks and is used to create an aesthetic look to the building.