Floor Beam in Construction
A floor beam supports the floor joists of a building and transfers the load to adjacent girders and columns. Most floor beams are made of steel, reinforced concrete, wood, or precast concrete. A floor beam can also refer to the transverse beams of a bridge’s floor system. While the two types of floor beams have many common uses, they are distinct in construction and function. Here’s an overview of each of these structural elements.
The floor beam can either be standard or wide, with standard floor beams generally being used for residential construction. Wide beams are better suited for commercial projects, as they span greater distances and can support greater imposed loads. Both standard and wide beam solutions are suitable for open-plan designs. Standard floor beams are often used for ground floors of domestic dwellings, where they can support first-floor partitions and blockwork. Both options are fast and easy to install.
The span of a floor beam is its measurement from the center of the member to the end of its length. This measurement is also called the center-to-center distance of column sections. The larger the span, the deeper the floor beam must be. Higher beam dimensions are not recommended for unstable and poorly-drained soils. During construction, floor beams support floor slabs in old timber-built houses. Compared to timber, steel is much stronger and can be used for different types of construction.
The T-beam is also known as “slab-beam.” Its name comes from its fact that the slab is actually a part of the beam. The flange and the web of the beam are shaped like “Cs”. The L-beam is positioned at each corner of the slab and encircles the perimeter. The U-beam has a ten-m maximum span, and is highly compared to R.C. flat slabs in structural depth.
A floor beam’s deflection is the bend that a floor joist experiences during load transmission. The maximum allowable deflection is given as a fraction of the span in inches. The maximum deflection is specified as L/240 for floor joists in the 2012 International Building Code (IBC). The depth of a floor joist is calculated using the formula half the span plus two. For example, 16 feet would require a depth of 10 inches.
Another type of floor beam is the overhanging beam. This type of beam is used when a building has a ceiling that is not over six feet tall. It incorporates continuous ledges at the lower ends of the beam. The length and weight of a floor beam depends on the type of load it supports. The weight of the load is the main factor that determines the profile of the beam. A single overhanging beam is considered to be a single-story structure, while a multi-storey building can have two.
Floor beams and columns are important structural components of a building. They support the weight of the floors above and below, so they must be large enough to take all of the weight of the floors above them. Ideally, they are positioned in uniform spacing across all floors. However, this is not always possible in some complicated architectural designs. Regardless of the situation, the structural integrity of the building is supported by floor beams and columns.
