Steel Studs.....?

Stuart Ablett

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Tokyo Japan
I'm building a very simple wall, it will have one door in it, I want to use steel studs, mainly because they are about the same price as 2x4s here, and they go up easy and quick, as well as straight, and because they do not burn! Really you should see the poor quality 2x4s we have been getting recently here, they are really bad, hockey stick like, and expensive.

Anyone with any experience framing a wall with steel studs?

NOT load bearing, just enclosing a space in our parking area to use as storage for my new business.

From what I understand you just put the channel top and bottom and then cut the studs to fit, and screw them in place, fairly simple no?

Double up on each side of the door and over the top of the door too?

I've never done steel studs, seen it done, worked around it while it was being done, but I've never done it.

Tips, or links etc would be great, I'l be showing some pics later when I have time to take some.

Cheers!
 
Stu, it is pretty much as simple as you said. However, I don't remember doubling the studs for doors back when I worked construction. This youtube video should get you started and he has more for things like doors and windows.
 
From what I saw at the home center there are two basic kinds of steel studs here.....
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These steel studs are not open on one side, they are a full rectangle, they look very solid

These one are more like what I'm used to seeing in Canada.....
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has holes etc to run wire.
 
Stu, it is pretty much as simple as you said. However, I don't remember doubling the studs for doors back when I worked construction. This youtube video should get you started and he has more for things like doors and windows.

Thanks Billy, that is pretty much what I remember, the only thing I have to choose is to run the full rectangle studs or the open studs, I have no plans for any electrical in the walls, so..... Simple is best?
 
Billy pretty much nailed the "how to". I worked with them for several years in commercial construction. If you want to put in a wooden jamb door that can be shimmed and nailed, just frame around the door opening with a regular 2x4 wood stud on each side in place of the metal studs and run one across the top of the opening to nail your trim to.
 
Billy pretty much nailed the "how to". I worked with them for several years in commercial construction. If you want to put in a wooden jamb door that can be shimmed and nailed, just frame around the door opening with a regular 2x4 wood stud on each side in place of the metal studs and run one across the top of the opening to nail your trim to.

The door jam is steel, and the doors are double door, and also steel, and very heavy.
 
Stu there are several gauges of metal studs here in Canada with the most common being 25 and 18. If your hanging a heavy double door I would go with the heavier studs if you can get them. Also what is the floor you are attaching the track to? If it is concrete or say carpet you can get heavy duty plastic velcro in rolls that is made for demountable partitions so there is no damage done to the floor.
 
I am all for steel studs. If I were building, I would definitely consider them.

One thing I have noticed in the commercial buildings I have had optical stores in, is that the walls vibrate. Slam a door and the pictures on the wall vibrate. If the store next door has a radio on their shelf, you can hear it perfectly, whether you want to or not.

Therefore, I would want the construction to be as rigid as practical to reduce vibration and undesired sounds...so the doubling of studs and crosspieces above sounds good to me.
I would also think greater mass in the skin (thicker, more dense material) would be a help. Does anyone make something like rubber to put between the studs and the skin to absorb vibration and skin resonance?

These are just comments from a user, not a constructor. I did not use steel in my medical buildings and each skin was an inch thick with drywall and plaster. Medical buildings also got fiberglass A/C ducting. Each exam room had its own separate return duct to the A/C unit. I did not want any conversations to travel from one room to another. I did use steel with steel lath and plaster in the optical store walls which were in the interiors of commercial spaces (malls).

Enjoy your new venture,

JimB
 
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The floor is tile, the area is used for parking cars. I'm also thinking of digging out one row of tiles to sink the door frame into so the door jam is almost flush with the floor, reason being is that pallet jacks with product on them will go in and out of said door often, and bumping over a 1" tall steel door jam at the bottom seems kind of silly.
The walls on the outside will be this stuff that looks just like concrete walls, it is about 3/4" thick and will go on over exterior plywood.

IMG_4470.jpg

The gray stuff with the yellow sign on it, kind of pricey, but it is like concrete board, and should last a very long time, will take some abuse and look fine. The other option is a tin like product, about 1/2 the price, but it certainly does NOT take abuse well, it does ding fairly easy. I'd need 15 pieces, which is well over $400 alone.

Trying to do this for as little money as possible, but as my labour is free :rolleyes: I think it is better to spend some money on the quality materials.

Some sizes for your all in inches, the wall is basically one long wall, with a short wall on the end, an L shape, like a long and a short side of a rectangle. Long wall is 22' long, short wall is 5' 7" long. The long wall will run up against a feature on the ceiling that is a bit lower than the rest of the ceiling, so it is 7' 6" tal the short wall will be the full 8' tall. The double door is 5' wide.
 
Some pics as promised......

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An overview, looking in from the street. The wall will run from just behind the micro van to the ver far end. Both of the gray colored storage locker kind of units will be moved to other locations.

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Behind the micro van, you can see the hatch on the floor that goes down to the Dungeon Annex below, that will be inside the new room. The boxes on the wall are to do with NTT and the internet stuff, not a problem it all stays there.

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I stood the door frame up in the location it will most likely go. When the building was constructed I figured that I'd end up building something like this room around the hatch for the Dungeon, so I got a second door frame built at the same time, the doors you see on the back wall, the two large steel doors, they cover the main electrical panel, and are of course locked, but when I build the new wall, those doors will be moved to the second door frame in the new wall, saving me a lot of cash as these doors are not cheap!

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Another shot showing the door placement

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A closer look at the doors

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Of course all the stuff in there will be moved or relocated to somewhere else.

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Just beside the emergency light to the right, you can see where there was a wall here before (long story) and that is where the new wall will also go.

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Here you can see the bottom of the door frame, I think we can all agree that it is rather tall, no reason I cannot bury 3/4 of that into the floor is there?

Cheers!
 
Here you can see the bottom of the door frame, I think we can all agree that it is rather tall, no reason I cannot bury 3/4 of that into the floor is there?

Do you even need the sill plate? Drill/cut latch hole in floor?

I did a 40'x13'4" wall a couple of years ago, with 2 windows & 1 5x door, which is largest I've done, and found some PDF's with construction details on the web. These dealt with doubling and tripling of headers and frames for windows and doors. Came from somewhere in earthquake prone California. :wave: I have them on the drive saved from a Powerbook, which has been recycled, if you want me to dig them up.
 
I'm with Ed on the sill plate, Stu. Yes, you can bury it, but I'm thinking it would be easier just to anchor the door frames to the floor and drill out for the latch.
 
Hi Stu,
Clearly there are not enough contractors on this forum... :(
And I'm not one either. :dunno:

But I do enjoy seeing the photos and reading the stories!


...art
 
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