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A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides
security Security is protection from, or resilience against, potential harm (or other unwanted coercive change) caused by others, by restraining the freedom of others to act. Beneficiaries (technically referents) of security may be of persons and social ...
, shelter, or soundproofing; or, is decorative. There are many kinds of walls, including: * Walls in buildings that form a fundamental part of the
superstructure A superstructure is an upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline. This term is applied to various kinds of physical structures such as buildings, bridges, or ships. Aboard ships and large boats On water craft, the superstruct ...
or separate interior rooms, sometimes for
fire safety Fire safety is the set of practices intended to reduce the destruction caused by fire. Fire safety measures include those that are intended to prevent the ignition of an uncontrolled fire and those that are used to limit the development and eff ...
*Glass walls (a wall in which the primary structure is made of glass; does not include openings within walls that have glass coverings: these are windows) * Border barriers between
countries A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state (polity), state, nation, or other polity, political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, so ...
* Brick walls *
Defensive wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...
s in fortifications * Permanent, solid fences * Retaining walls, which hold back dirt, stone, water, or noise sound * Stone walls * Walls that protect from oceans ( seawalls) or rivers (
levee A levee (), dike (American English), dyke (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is a structure that is usually soil, earthen and that often runs parallel (geometry), parallel to ...
s)


Etymology

The term ''wall'' comes from Latin ''vallum'' meaning "...an earthen wall or rampart set with
palisade A palisade, sometimes called a stakewall or a paling, is typically a fence or defensive wall made from iron or wooden stakes, or tree trunks, and used as a defensive structure or enclosure. Palisades can form a stockade. Etymology ''Palisade' ...
s, a row or line of stakes, a wall, a rampart, fortification..." while the Latin word ''murus'' means a defensive stone wall. English uses the same word to mean an external wall and the internal sides of a room, but this is not universal. Many languages distinguish between the two. In German, some of this distinction can be seen between ''Wand'' and ''Mauer'', in Spanish between ''pared'' and ''muro''.


Defensive wall

The word wall originally referred to defensive walls and ramparts.


Building wall

The purposes of walls in buildings are to support roofs,
floor A floor is the bottom surface of a room or vehicle. Floors vary from simple dirt in a cave to many layered surfaces made with modern technology. Floors may be stone, wood, bamboo, metal or any other material that can support the expected load ...
s and
ceiling A ceiling is an overhead interior surface that covers the upper limits of a room. It is not generally considered a structural element, but a finished surface concealing the underside of the roof structure or the floor of a story above. Ceilings ...
s; to enclose a space as part of the building envelope along with a roof to give buildings form; and to provide shelter and security. In addition, the wall may house various types of utilities such as
electrical wiring Electrical wiring is an electrical installation of cabling and associated devices such as switches, distribution boards, sockets, and light fittings in a structure. Wiring is subject to safety standards for design and installation. Allowable ...
or plumbing. Wall construction falls into two basic categories: ''framed walls'' or ''mass-walls''. In framed walls the load is transferred to the foundation through posts, columns or studs. Framed walls most often have three or more separate components: the structural elements (such as 2×4 studs in a house wall),
insulation Insulation may refer to: Thermal * Thermal insulation, use of materials to reduce rates of heat transfer ** List of insulation materials ** Building insulation, thermal insulation added to buildings for comfort and energy efficiency *** Insulated ...
, and finish elements or surfaces (such as drywall or panelling). Mass-walls are of a solid material including masonry, concrete including slipform stonemasonry, log building, cordwood construction,
adobe Adobe ( ; ) is a building material made from earth and organic materials. is Spanish for ''mudbrick''. In some English-speaking regions of Spanish heritage, such as the Southwestern United States, the term is used to refer to any kind of e ...
, rammed earth, cob,
earthbag construction Earthbag construction is an inexpensive building method using mostly local soil to create structures which are both strong and can be quickly built. Earthbag development Features It is also natural building technique developed from historic mi ...
, bottles,
tin cans A steel can, tin can, tin (especially in British English, Australian English, Canadian English and South African English), steel packaging, or can is a container for the distribution or storage of goods, made of thin metal. Many cans ...
, straw-bale construction, and ice. Walls may or may not be leadbearing. Walls are required to conform to the local building and/or fire codes. There are three basic methods walls control water intrusion: moisture storage, drained cladding, or face-sealed cladding. Moisture storage is typical of stone and brick ''mass-wall'' buildings where moisture is absorbed and released by the walls of the structure itself. ''Drained cladding'' also known as ''screened walls''Straube, J. F.and Burnett, E. F. P., "Driving Rain and Masonry Veneer". ''Water Leakage through Building Facades, ASTM STP 1314''. R. J. Kudder and J. L. Erdly, Eds. American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), 1998. 75. Print. acknowledges moisture will penetrate the cladding so a ''moisture barrier'' such as housewrap or felt paper inside the cladding provides a second line of defense and sometimes a ''drainage plane'' or ''air gap'' allows a path for the moisture to drain down through and exit the wall. Sometimes ventilation is provided in addition to the drainage plane such as in rainscreen construction. ''Face-sealed'' also called ''barrier wall'' or ''perfect barrier'' cladding relies on maintaining a leak-free surface of the cladding. Examples of face sealed cladding are the early exterior insulation finishing systems, structural glazing, metal clad panels, and corrugated metal. Building walls frequently become works of art, externally and internally, such as when featuring mosaic work or when murals are painted on them; or as design foci when they exhibit textures or painted finishes for effect.


Curtain wall

In architecture and civil engineering, curtain wall refers to a building facade that is not
load-bearing A load-bearing wall or bearing wall is a wall that is an active structural element of a building, which holds the weight of the elements above it, by conducting its weight to a foundation structure below it. Load-bearing walls are one of the ea ...
but provides decoration, finish, front, face, or historical preservation.


Precast wall

Precast walls are walls which have been manufactured in a factory and then shipped to where it is needed, ready to install. It is faster to install compared to brick and other walls and may have a lower cost compared to other types of wall. Precast walls are cost effective compare to Brick Wall compound wall.


Mullion wall

Mullion walls are a structural system that carries the load of the floor slab on prefabricated panels around the perimeter.


Partition wall

A partition wall is a usually thin wall that is used to separate or divide a room, primarily a pre-existing one. Partition walls are usually not
load-bearing A load-bearing wall or bearing wall is a wall that is an active structural element of a building, which holds the weight of the elements above it, by conducting its weight to a foundation structure below it. Load-bearing walls are one of the ea ...
, and can be constructed out of many materials, including steel panels, bricks, cloth, plastic, plasterboard, wood, blocks of clay, terracotta, concrete, and glass. Some partition walls are made of sheet glass. Glass partition walls are a series of individual toughened glass panels mounted in wood or metal framing. They may be suspended from or slide along a robust aluminium ceiling track. The system does not require the use of a floor guide, which allows easy operation and an uninterrupted threshold. A timber partition consists of a wooden framework, supported on the floor or by side walls. Metal lath and plaster, properly laid, forms a reinforced partition wall. Partition walls constructed from fibre cement backer board are popular as bases for tiling in kitchens or in wet areas like bathrooms. Galvanized sheet fixed to wooden or steel members are mostly adopted in works of temporary character. Plain or reinforced partition walls may also be constructed from concrete, including pre-cast concrete blocks. Metal framed partitioning is also available. This partition consists of track (used primarily at the base and head of the partition) and studs (vertical sections fixed into the track typically spaced at 24", 16", or at 12"). Internal wall partitions, also known as office partitioning, are usually made of plasterboard (drywall) or varieties of glass. Toughened glass is a common option, as low-iron glass (better known as ''opti-white glass'') increases light and solar heat transmission. Wall partitions are constructed using beads and tracking that is either hung from the ceiling or fixed into the ground. The panels are inserted into the tracking and fixed. Some wall partition variations specify their fire resistance and acoustic performance rating. ;Movable partitions Movable partitions are walls that open to join two or more rooms into one large floor area. These include: * Sliding—a series of panels that slide in tracks fixed to the floor and ceiling, similar sliding doors * Sliding and folding doors —similar to sliding folding doors, these are good for smaller spans * Folding partition walls - a series of interlocking panels suspended from an overhead track that when extended provide an acoustical separation, and when retracted stack against a wall, ceiling, closet, or ceiling pocket. * Screens—usually constructed of a metal or timber frame fixed with plywood and chipboard and supported with legs for free standing and easy movement *
Pipe and drape Pipe and drape refers to pipe (aluminum or steel), fixed or adjustable telescoping vertical uprights supported by a weighted steel base, and adjustable telescopic or fixed horizontals that provide a drape support frame with removable drape panels. P ...
—fixed or telescopic uprights and horizontals provide a ground supported drape system with removable panels.


Party wall

Party walls are walls that separate buildings or units within a building. They provide fire resistance and sound resistance between occupants in a building. The minimum fire resistance and sound resistance required for the party wall is determined by a building code and may be modified to suit a variety of situations. Ownership of such walls can become a legal issue. It is not a load-bearing wall and may be owned by different people.


Infill wall

An infill wall is the supported wall that closes the perimeter of a building constructed with a three-dimensional framework structure.


Fire wall

Fire