Typical Column and Wall Loads for Apartment Building 1

[learning2geotech]

What are typical column and wall Loads for a 5-story wood-framed apartment building?

 

[kissymoose]

I'd say go with at least 500lbs and 25plf, respectively.

 

[jayrod12]

Generally speaking, we've always provided these loads to our geotechnical consultants when necessary. Just like I wouldn't be expected to determine bearing capacity from a soil sample, I don't expect them to determine their own loads. Any reasonable structural engineer should be able to provide this if they have a preliminary layout of the building.

Because we really can't determine this without knowing the layout.

 

[phamENG]

I do feel for the OP, though - often times I receive the geotech report as part of the RFP. Sort of a chicken and the egg thing: how does the structural engineer provide a proposal without knowing the level of effort to design the foundation (spread footings vs. piles and grade beams), but how does the geotech know what loads to consider?

Best case scenario - geotech performs investigation and determines the foundation type, then the structural provides a proposal and starts work. As soon as they have preliminary loading worked out, they feed it to the geotech to then finalize their report.

Collaboration is hard(?), but it's the only way to deliver a good and efficient product.

 

[JAE]

Floors 2 - 5 (assume 8 ft. tributary floor width on the exterior walls and 18 ft tributary roof width)
4 floors x 8 ft. x (15 psf DL + 40 psf LL) = 1760 plf
1 roof x 18 ft. x (12 psf DL + 30 psf LL) = 756 plf
5 levels of exterior wall at 10 psf x 10 ft. height = 500 plf
(note - if exterior brick veneer included then add 40 psf to the exterior wall weight)

Total with no brick = 3,016 plf
Total with brick = 5,016 plf

Not sure how to estimate column loads - depends a lot on the framing layout.

 

[phamENG]

If it's wood, probably safe to assume you won't have beam spans greater than 20ft, so with JAE's numbers you could go with 60kips? That's steel framing on the first floor for an open lobby or some-such.

 

[jayrod12]

Most buildings I do have a concrete topping on the wood floors, so my dead loads are a good 25 PSF higher than JAE used.

 

[Aesur]

What are typical column and wall Loads for a 5-story wood-framed apartment building?

Can you provide any additional information? Maybe a site plan?

The following are estimates based on my experience, I am not familiar with your local environment nor location, ie snow loading etc..

I would take a guess that on the high end, the building width 70 feet wide with a roof trib to exterior walls parallel to the corridor of 16', roof loading: 18 psf dead, 20 psf roof live 5 stories is probably in the 60' tall range with 15 psf walls (unless there are veneers). So for exterior walls, I estimate around 1500 to 2000 plf.

Exterior End Walls: 30/2 floor trib, no roof: 15' => (4)(15')(46+40)+60'(15 psf)=> 6000 to 6200 plf.

Interior Party Walls, these will most likely be double walls, however they are beside each other, so for loading for geotechnical purposes I would figure as a single line load: no roof trib, 30' truss spans, therefore use 30' trib, 4 stories above (don't include for ground level), interior walls typically 10 psf min, 46 psf dead, 40 psf live: (4)(30')(46+40)+60'(10 psf)(2 walls) => 11520 plf

Corridor walls: 4' floor trib, 17.5' roof trib, 60' tall walls: 18 psf roof dead, 20 psf roof live, 46 psf floor dead, 100 psf live: 17.5(18+20)+(4)(4')(46+100)+60'(10psf) => 3300 to 3500plf.

Column loading could include live load reductions, therefore the following is probably conservative: assume 32' span (across a unit) and 30' trib (truss span), normally we see something along the lines of needing beams to support walls above the 1st level creating an open area for commercial use or amenities, so (30')(32')(4)(46+0.5(40))/2+47.5(10psf)(2)=>127kips

 

[learning2geotech]

Thank you Jae. Can you assume column bay of 20'x20' for the column load? Typical wood-framed apartment building. I'm just looking for a ballpark number.

 

[learning2geotech]

Thank you yall. Looks like 1 klf wall load and 25 kips column load per floor is good to start for napkin planning

 

[JAE]

I'd totally agree with jayrod12 - most apartment buildings do use a 1 1/2" lightweight gypsum topping on the floors.

learning2geotech - 20 x 20 bays would be a good rough estimate.

For teh wall load - not sure 1 klf is even close to adequate.

 

[jayrod12]

It's also locale dependent. Aesur gave good guidance, but in my locale all the floor joists span from corridor to outside walls, Same as the roof. So we end up with easily 6-7 klf at the walls.