Building Concrete Masonry Homes: Design and Construction

摘要

Concrete masonry units (CMU) have a significant percentage of the United States211u001emarket for foundation walls in homes. CMU also has a long history of use in above-211u001egrade walls in Florida, Texas, Arizona and other parts of the southern United 211u001eStates. Strength, durability, fire-resistance, and energy conservation are a few 211u001eof the benefits to CMU construction. However, there are often difficulties 211u001eencountered by home builders converting from a traditional above-grade framing 211u001ematerial to CMU walls. In most U.S. markets, wood is the predominant framing 211u001ematerial and the understanding of CMU construction for above-grade walls is 211u001eusually limited. Home builders attempting more comprehensive use of CMU have many 211u001equestions about the feasibility and appropriate use of concrete masonry 211u001econstruction, particuarly in relation to insulation placement and connection 211u001edetails. The objectives of this report are: to identify the major issues related 211u001eto the design, approval, and construction of a home with above-grade concrete 211u001emasonry walls in non-traditional CMU markets; and to identify different 211u001eapproaches to construction details, based on the two case studies in this report, 211u001ebetween concrete masonry walls and other structural and non-structural members, 211u001eincluding floor framing, gypsum wallboard, insulation, and window and doors.