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Posts Tagged ‘Insulation’

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Spray-applied Polyurethane Insulation for Steel Buildings

Wednesday, January 26th, 2011

Aside from fiberglass insulation, another type of insulation system for steel buildings is spray-applied polyurethane foam. Polyurethane foam bonds well with the steel surface, even conforming to irregular surface profiles and providing an effective seal, that’s why the insulating material is also used as waterproofing augmentation for steel buildings.

Spray-painted polyurethane foam can be used to insulate steel building interiors and exteriors. However, the performance of the SPF system depends not only on the polyurethane foam but also on the other components and the surrounding conditions inside and outside of steel buildings.

To ensure SPF’s maximum performance, it is crucial that material suppliers be consulted first on the different aspects of the insulation system including material selection, expansion joints, load design, choice of vapor retarders, thermal barriers, and flashing details.

The first crucial step of this project is to determine the thickness of the insulation material. The best method to do this is to make an analysis of the following situations and determine the minimum value for each. The greatest of these values is the best insulation thickness for the particular steel building.

· Building and Energy Codes: Steel buildings are required by most code agencies to meet the energy conservation standards prescribed by the Council of American Building Officials (CABO) Model Energy Code.

· Condensation Control: Condensation can occur inside steel buildings when moisture collects on exposed metal surfaces especially during humid days. Warm air holds more moisture than cold air, that’s why condensation is created from warm air. The temperature at which air is saturated and can no longer hold the moisture is called dew point. To control condensation, the insulation thickness should be based on the design dew point as well as the design exterior ambient temperature of steel buildings.

· Economic Thickness: It is true that greater insulation thickness significantly decreases heat and cooling costs. However, at some point, the cost of adding insulation exceeds the expected energy savings. The economic thickness calculation establishes how much insulation thickness should added that meets a specified return on investment from savings in energy costs.

· Minimum Practical Thickness: To achieve proper foam cure and to conform to the substrate, spray polyurethane foam must be applied to a minimum thickness. For most smooth substrates, the minimum is one inch. On the other hand, unusual substrate configurations in steel buildings may require greater thickness to achieve an appropriate finished foam surface.

(to be continued)

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Posted in Steel Buildings | 65 Comments »

Prefabricated Steel Buildings as Music Studios

Monday, November 29th, 2010

Are you serious about your music career as a band and want to have a great place to practice without disturbing your family or the entire neighborhood? Your parents’ garage may have been okay at the start but they most probably limit your practice hours to a minimum.

Or, you may be an entrepreneur who wants to start a music studio business where you can rent the place for band practice? Well, for whatever purpose, prefabricated steel buildings are perfect as music studios because they offer more advantages than traditional modes of construction.

Today’s steel buildings can be made for just about any purpose and budget. Prefabricated steel buildings are cost-effective and easy to construct. Plus, they offer many options for soundproofing, which is the major concern for music studios.

The cost-effectiveness of steel buildings starts in their design and construction. Savings come in the form of reduced material costs – waste materials are kept to a minimum because the components are pre-engineered to their exact specifications and measurements. In addition, steel buildings allow for reduced labor costs since all the components just need to be bolted together, no need for cutting, drilling, and welding.

Steel buildings are ideal for music studios because they are can be built with clear-span interiors, providing you a lot of freedom of movement as well as enough space for storage of equipment and instruments.

Insulation for steel buildings allows them to be energy efficient by reducing the need for heating and cooling equipments – providing savings in energy costs. However, there is an additional benefit of insulation, which is soundproofing. Insulation prevents the transmission of noise into and out of your steel music studio. At the same time, it inhibits the echoing of indoor sound within the steel building.

The simplest steel building design that is appropriate for a music studio is the arch. The good news is, this simple design is the favorite of do-it-yourself builders. Steel building kits come with easy-to-read and easy-to-follow erection manuals that will give step-by-step directions for building your steel music studio.

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Posted in Prefabricated Steel Buildings, Steel Buildings | 3 Comments »

Steel Buildings – Understanding U-Values of Insulation

Thursday, July 8th, 2010

In order for you to determine whether you are over or under insulating your pre-engineered steel buildings, it is important that you understand the terminologies used in the word of insulation. There are three ratings used for estimating heat loss: the R-Value, the U-Value, and the k-Value.

The last post talked about the R-Value, which measures the ability of a material to resist heat flow – the higher the R-Value, the better thermal efficiency. Now, let’s talk about the U-Value.

The U-Value is the rating used to measure the heat flow through a complete building component, e.g. the roof, the walls, or a window. U-Values determine how much heat is transmitted. This means that the lower the U-Value, the higher the insulation value.

U-Values are relevant in both warm and cold climates. For those living in mostly warm weather, the U-Value measures how long the insides of a building can be kept cold. Good U-Values are important measures for determining the sufficient amount of energy needed to keep the indoor temperature comfortable.

Using steel building components that have low U-Values offer a number of advantages. First, it saves you a lot of money because of reduced energy consumption, which in turn helps preserve the environment. Second, good U-Values create comfortable indoor temperature. This is important in maintaining good health for the building occupants.

For external walls and roofs, a U-Value of less than 0.2 is already a good rating. This value can be achieved by installing a thermal insulation with a thickness of about 20 centimeters or more. For windows, a U-Value is less than 1.0 is considered good.

Manufacturers of pre-engineered steel buildings and accessories should know the R-Values and U-Values of their products. If you looking for building components that provide good insulation, just remember these:

The higher the R-Value, the better
The lower the U-Value, the better.

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Understanding the R-Value of Insulation

Wednesday, July 7th, 2010

The last post talked about how heat flows or transfers from one object to another through the process of conduction, convection, or radiation. Insulation is installed in a pre-engineered steel building mainly for the purpose of maintaining a comfortable temperature inside the metal structure.

Whether you are buying insulation materials from a lumberyard or from a steel buildings manufacturer, you will notice that the materials are labeled with performance ratings called R-Values.

A material’s R-Value is the measure of its ability to resist heat flow. Therefore, the higher the R-Value, the higher the material’s insulating effectiveness or thermal resistance.

The mathematics of determining the R-Value of your steel building’s insulation depends on the type of insulation used – the materials, their thickness and their densities. For example, a 2-inch thick insulation board has twice the R-Value of a 1-inch thick board.

The R-Value of the insulation for a pre-engineered steel building that is installed in a multi-layered style is computed by adding the R-Values of the individual layers. Installing additional insulation in your steel building increases its resistance to heat flow or the R-Value.

The amount of insulation or the R-value that you need depends on your climate, type of heating and cooling system, and the size of the area you plan to insulate.

Insulation reduces unwanted heat loss or gain and can decrease the energy demands of heating and cooling equipments. The equation below calculates heat loss using R-Values.

(Steel Building’s Heat Loss) = [(Steel Building’s Total Surface Area) /   (Surface Area R-Value)] x (Temperature Difference)

Temperature difference means the difference in temperature expressed in degree Fahrenheit on the two sides of the steel building’s surface, typically interior and exterior.

The steel building’s total surface area is expressed in square feet. The surface area R-Value is the R-Value of the surface being evaluated such as an insulated wall. Heat loss is expressed in BTU’s (British Thermal Unit) per hour.

It is important to know the R-Value of the insulation material for your pre-engineered steel building because some states require a minimum amount of thermal resistance for roof systems of commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings.

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Posted in steel building construction | 15 Comments »

Steel Buildings – FAQs About Prefabricated Steel Buildings III

Monday, July 5th, 2010

Q:      Approximately, how long would it take to assemble my prefabricated steel building?

A:      The answer to this question depends upon a lot of factors. For a small shed, self-storage building, or steel building garage, it will take at least a full day for   you to assemble the metal structure. This is true provided that all of the following are also true: at least one other person is helping you, you have carefully read and understood the erection manual, and the steel building’s foundation is already in place.

However, for much larger steel buildings, such as those used for offices, schools, and churches that need to be assembled by professional erectors, construction time takes approximately from 1 to 3 months.

Q:      What happens if I need to replace a part of my prefabricated steel building a couple of years after its construction, won’t that be a problem?

A:      Most reputable manufacturers of prefabricated steel buildings, maintain a complete inventory of steel building replacement parts. That’s why, it’s very important to choose your steel building supplier well, so that you won’t have to worry of this need ever arising.

Reputable suppliers provide a 50-year structural warranty, which shows you how confident they are of their experience, skill, and technology. If you buy from these suppliers, replacement of parts in the future is the least of your worries.

Q:      Do I need insulation? If so, how much do I need?

A:      If you want to make your prefabricated steel building energy efficient, you need insulation. Insulation is one of the reasons for the popularity of prefabricated steel buildings. Today’s high costs of energy have made insulation a critical part of any steel building construction.

Thickness is the key to effective insulation. Determining the “economic thickness” of the insulation is vital in avoiding over or under insulating a steel building. These can be determined by taking the following factors into consideration: energy costs, type of climate, building’s end use, costs of purchasing and maintaining heaters or air conditioners, and the total costs of the insulation and climate control equipments.

Your prefabricated steel building manufacturer or your builder can advise you on this matter.

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Posted in Steel Buildings | 3 Comments »

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