This section talks about roof systems and how to prevent water from getting inside. The pitch of the roof structure determines the type of roofing and it is a water resistant covering for the roofing material, like overlapping or interlocking shingles and tiles. Flashing also prevents water from getting into the roof and it should be installed on the edges of the roof. Exterior walls also have to be flashed around the bottom of the door and window openings. Water vapor is the type of moisture that gets into the interior spaces of a building and when it reaches a surface that is cooled, condensation happens.
Author: ashley ortiz
This section starts with Ching explaining masonry arches and lintels. Masonry Arches use the strength of the brick and stone to span openings. He also explains the different arches, for example, a segment arch is struck from a center below the spring line. He goes into wood beams and joists. Wood joist floors is a essential subsystem of wood light frame construction. It can serve as structural diaphragm to transfer lateral loads. Wood subflooring spans across floor joists and is used as a working platform. Steel beams have different types of connections; framed connection, seated connection, shear connection, and semi-rigid connection.
In this section, it focuses on brick/ CMU bonding, wood components, steel shapes, reinforced concrete, and precast concrete floor systems. Bricks can have different course heights, bondings and mortar joints. In wood, there is hardwood and softwood. Hardwood is graded according to how much usable lumber it has that can be cut into smaller pieces of a certain grade and size. Softwood is classified by yard lumber, softwood for general building purposes, or factory and shop lumber, selected for further manufacture. He also explains the different types of steel shapes; s shape, w shape, c shape, and structural tubing. When talking about reinforced concrete, Ching explains what different reinforced things are used for, for example, reinforced concrete beams are made to resist applied forces. Precast concrete slabs and beams are span units that could be supported by site cast concrete, steel, precast concrete frames.
This reading is about materials, more specifically, stone, brick/CMU, wood, steel, concrete and reinforcement. Brick, stone, and CMU are all examples of masonry. Stone is a combination of different types of minerals and to be qualified as a construction material, it has to have strength, hardness, durability, workability, density, and appearance. Brick is a masonry unit of clay and has multiple ways it can be processed depending on the type of brick is expected. Wood is an easy to work with material and there are two major types, softwood and hardwood. Softwood is from any type of evergreen and hardwood is from a broad- leaved flowering tree. Steel reinforcement is used on concrete since concrete doesn’t handle tension that good. It can also tie vertical and horizontal elements together. When making concrete, it can be molded into various shapes. After 28 days it is placed, it gets tested to see if it is strong enough to be used.
This section mentions structural units, structural spans, structural patterns, and lateral stability. Structural units keeps a building organized and is the building block for the structural system. A structural unit is able to be formed from columns, beam, slab, and load bearing wall and can make space for habitation. Horizontal spans can be concrete slabs or grinders, beams, and joints. Load bearing walls or framework of columns and beams can be used for the vertical support. Structural spans is about the relationship between the span and spacing which influences the dimensions and scale of spaces. Structural patterns is about grid lines and critical points which help to indicate columns or load bearing walls. Lateral stability is about a building being made stable enough so that it can not be effected by any conditions.
This section of the book talks about how the construction of buildings and architecture aren’t really the same but it is useful to know how the different parts of the building come together so that it can be successful, specifically the physical systems. These systems define, organize, and reinforce the ordering of a building. For example, three types of systems are structural, enclosure, and mechanical. Structural systems is about the building being designed and constructed so that people can access it. The enclosure system is the outside of the building like the roof, exterior walls, windows, and doors. Lastly, the mechanical system is the services that can be provided to a building, like heating and ventilation or the water supply. These three systems all come together even though they deal with different parts.
The means of egress is how people will exit a place and it must provide safe and easy way for occupants to exit. The three components to the egress system are exit access, exits, and exit discharge. Exit access is the pathway leading to the exits and they should be easy to access. The exits have to evacuate the people in a building to a safe place and into an exit discharge. An exit discharge is the safe place outside the building. This is all just in case an emergency happens, like a fire. There are different types of stairs and regulations to how they are suppose to be made. Some types of stairs are straight run, quarter turn, half turn, winding, circular, and spiral stairs.
