Optimum wall thickness of a house made of aerated concrete – calculation for construction

Selecting the appropriate materials is essential to guaranteeing long-term comfort and durability when building a house, as it is a substantial financial commitment. Aerated concrete is a common choice among contemporary builders due to its lightweight yet durable characteristics. But figuring out the ideal wall thickness for your house is one of the most crucial factors to take into account when using aerated concrete.

It’s critical to have the proper wall thickness for a number of reasons. It has an effect on your home’s overall energy efficiency, thermal insulation, and structural integrity. If your walls are too thin, they might not offer enough insulation or support. If it’s too thick, you might be wasting materials and needlessly raising the cost of construction.

We’ll walk you through the variables involved in determining the appropriate wall thickness for an aerated concrete home in this post. We’ll examine how strength, insulation, and affordability are balanced, giving you useful information to help you decide what to do for your building project.

Pros and cons of block material

Aerated concrete, like any other building material, has benefits and drawbacks. Their unique porous structure plays a crucial role in defining the primary characteristics of aerated concrete blocks, impacting both the installation and operation procedures.

• High heat saving rates – due to the presence of air in the structure of the material, it perfectly retains heat inside the building, without requiring additional insulation and allowing you to save on heating when living in the house up to 30-40%.
• Excellent sound insulation, which is also important for residential buildings.
• Fire resistance, safety and environmental friendliness – aerated concrete does not pose any danger to people, it burns poorly, does not emit toxins during operation, etc.d.
• Simple, easy and inexpensive installation – due to the large size, ideal geometry and low weight of the blocks, you can build a house with your own hands, without involving additional employees or special equipment.

• The ability to implement any project – due to the fact that aerated concrete is easy to cut and saw, the creation of additional blocks is carried out quickly and effortlessly.
• A wide selection of finishing materials – to protect aerated concrete from the outside and inside, and also to give it an aesthetic appearance.
• Low weight of the entire structure, which allows you to save on the foundation, some elements.
• The ability to further reduce heat loss by laying blocks not on cement mortar, but on a special glue that eliminates the likelihood of cold bridges.

The material has some drawbacks that are worth mentioning, including its relatively low strength (aerated concrete is therefore preferred for low-rise buildings and internal partitions in high-rise buildings), its hygroscopicity (aerated concrete has a high water absorption capacity, so finishing a home built of aerated concrete blocks requires carefully chosen materials, the selection of which is quite broad these days), and others.

Thickness of load-bearing walls

When determining the ideal wall thickness for a home in a given area, it’s a good idea to conduct geological surveys beforehand, account for all climate-related variables, research the characteristics of the chosen grade of aerated concrete, and consider other building materials. Make sure to complete the computation and create a project.

• Requirements and norms of SNiP 02-02-2003, which gives all the necessary data to save energy and maintain a comfortable temperature indoors, and also regulates all the rules for a building with heating, permanent living.
• The resistance of the selected brand of aerated concrete to temperatures, frost, moisture, etc.D.
• Materials used to protect aerated concrete from moisturizing, wall insulation, etc.D.
• Planned heating costs (and calculations of whether it is worth investing in additional measures and materials at the construction stage in order to save a certain amount later).

The best way to determine the ideal thickness for an aerated concrete wall is to use thermal calculations, which are performed by experts and follow current regulations.

You can attempt to calculate everything on your own if you are unable or unwilling to pay for the services of a skilled craftsman.

• The minimum thickness of any enclosing structures for houses and summer cottages is 20 centimeters for self-supporting structures made from D400 block. But experts advise stopping, after all, at a minimum of 30 centimeters.
• If you have a basement or ground floor, due to high loads it is better to take D500-D600 with strength class B3.5-B5, make walls 40 centimeters thick.
• The minimum thickness of internal partitions from a D500 block should be 10-15 centimeters, inter-apartment partitions – 30 centimeters.
• Carrying walls from gas blocks of autoclave hardening should be a thickness of at least 37.5 centimeters, self-supporting – from 30 centimeters.
• Objects in a warm climate, one-story – the thickness of the walls can be 25 centimeters.

Thickness of partition walls

Because there are less loads in these areas, an aerated concrete wall inside the premises (partitions) may be thinner than a load-bearing wall. The partition height and the material’s load-bearing capacity are factored into the calculations. Thus, ten centimeters of thickness will be sufficient if the wall is no taller than three meters. It is preferable to use 20 centimeter thick blocks if the height exceeds five meters.

Accurate calculations are preferable when determining the indicator, but standard values can also be used. Blocks with a thickness of 7.2–20 centimeters, grade D500/D600, are used to construct load-bearing partitions. It is possible to enhance the heat and sound insulation properties of blocks of grades D350 and D400 by building regular partitions from them.

To improve the overall strength and dependability of the structure, a reinforcing belt should be installed on partitions that are at least 8 meters long and 4 meters high.

Wall thickness for different regions

To determine how thick the internal and load-bearing walls should be, it is preferable to leave the calculation to a specialist who is familiar with all the standards and specifications and who can account for the subtleties and features. Typically, they consider the necessary indicators of strength and heat conservation when determining the thickness. Internal non-load-bearing partitions can be made thinner, but load-bearing walls are the primary focus of the calculations.

Experts’ general recommendations are as follows: in average regions (Moscow and the surrounding cities), a standard thickness of 40 centimeters is sufficient; in warm regions, 30 centimeters is used as a baseline, and in cold regions, 50 centimeters. However, since these are merely mediocre indicators, it is best to concentrate on the calculations that yield the highest accuracy.

It is common practice to use the following data as a starting point: SNiP states that the resistance of walls to heat transfer in the middle zone of Russia should be 3.2 W / m * C. The indicator is higher in colder climates and lower in warmer climates. The following options provide the required level of thermal protection (the indicated level in 3.2): Wall thickness from D300 blocks is 30 centimeters, from D400 it is 40 centimeters, and from D500 it is 50 centimeters.

The building’s overall thermal efficiency is influenced by the wall thickness and insulation (which includes the walls, ceilings, roof, floor, reinforced belts, windows, and lintels). Thirty to forty percent of a building’s heat is lost due to inadequate wall thickness. The best option is thought to be D400/D500 blocks with a wall thickness of up to 40–50 centimeters for homes with permanent residents. D400 blocks can be used to construct a country home with walls that are 25 to 30 centimeters thick.

The walls may be thinner if insulation is intended. In this case, it’s critical to determine the appropriate thermal protection indicator in the end using the aerated concrete values and the chosen insulation (foam plastic, mineral wool, and t.d.). As a result, insulation costs rise while they fall for aerated concrete.

The better the material, the higher its thermal protection value. The following table displays the indicators:

The following table lists the various grades of aerated concrete’s thermal conductivity coefficients, with lower being preferable:

This example can help you comprehend the calculation algorithm. The thermal resistance in Moscow and the surrounding area should be R = 3.28 if you want to build a house. Insulation is used, along with autoclaved aerated concrete D500 with a thickness of thirty centimeters.

• The thickness of the wall made of aerated concrete (0.3 meters) is divided by the thermal conductivity coefficient of the D500 grade (0.14) – the thermal resistance of the bare wall is R = 0.3/0.14=2.14 m2 * C / W.
• The resulting indicator must be subtracted from the desired value: 3.28-2.14=1.14. This is the thermal resistance of the insulation.
• Mineral wool, for example, gives a thermal conductivity coefficient of 0.04. If you multiply 0.04 on 1.14, the desired insulation thickness is obtained: 0.04×1.14=0.0456=45 millimeters=4.5 centimeters. That is, the thickness of the insulation with walls of 30 centimeters should be about 5 centimeters.

You can easily perform calculations for any brand of aerated concrete block and type of insulation by knowing the standard values.

GOST requirements

All construction projects involving porous lightweight concrete must strictly adhere to specific guidelines.

• The maximum wall height is determined only by calculation.
• The height and number of storeys of buildings are strictly limited: it is allowed to erect buildings up to 5 storeys and no more than 20 meters in height from autoclaved aerated concrete. If the buildings are nine-storey, then the self-supporting walls should not be higher than 30 meters. Foam blocks are used for the construction of a three-storey building, subject to a maximum height of 10 meters.
• It is important to observe strength indicators taking into account floors: class B3 blocks.5 are used for 5-storey buildings, for 2-3-storey buildings, blocks of classes B2 and B2 are suitable.5 respectively.
• For self-supporting walls, blocks of strength class B2-2 are used.5.

Thermal insulation, structural strength, and cost-effectiveness must all be balanced for the ideal wall thickness in an aerated concrete home. Finding the ideal thickness guarantees that the home will continue to be affordable, strong, and energy-efficient. This entails taking the local climate, load-bearing specifications, and construction standards into account. Accurately determining and choosing the ideal wall thickness improves the home’s safety and comfort while also lowering heating and cooling expenses over the long run.

Reviews of builders

It is wise to consider the reviews of people who have used the material before and can make certain deductions when determining the thickness of walls.

• It is best to use a special glue for laying blocks, which is applied to the surface of the material in a thin layer. It is important to maintain the optimal thickness of the seam layer, since otherwise it can let in cold and reduce the thermal insulation characteristics of the house.
• In cold regions, in addition to choosing the optimal wall thickness, you need to take care of thermal insulation (preferably on both sides).
• When performing strength calculations, take into account the additional mass created by thermal insulation materials.

• Seasonality – for country houses, a wall thickness of 20 centimeters will be sufficient, which will successfully withstand the weight of the roof covering, protect from autumn and spring cold. If you plan to live all year round, then the thickness should be at least 40 centimeters.
• All load-bearing walls are made 10-15 centimeters thicker than the internal walls.
• When increasing the height of the house, choose blocks with higher strength. For a one-story building, a wall of 25 centimeters from structural and insulating blocks is sufficient, for two or more floors, structural blocks and a wall thickness of 30-40 centimeters are chosen (there is a high probability of the need for thermal insulation).
• How long the cold season lasts, what is the average daily temperature – all this must be taken into account when choosing the thickness of the walls and thermal insulation. The value is always higher for Siberian regions.
• The thickness of the blocks is reduced in proportion to the increase in the thermal insulation layer or the choice of a more effective material.

For a home built with aerated concrete, selecting the proper wall thickness is essential to guaranteeing both energy efficiency and structural integrity. You can choose the ideal thickness to keep your house cool in the summer and warm in the winter by knowing the unique climate conditions and building requirements.

Thick walls offer superior insulation in colder climates, lowering the demand for additional heating. Conversely, a moderate wall thickness in warmer climates can assist in keeping interior temperatures comfortable without incurring excessive cooling costs. It’s critical to strike a balance between these elements to get the best outcomes for your particular circumstances.

An excellent material for building energy-efficient homes is aerated concrete, which is adaptable and has good thermal insulation qualities. You can optimize the advantages of aerated concrete and achieve long-term savings and comfort by determining the ideal wall thickness based on regional weather patterns and the layout of your house.

In the end, meticulous planning and careful evaluation of all pertinent factors are crucial to choosing the appropriate wall thickness. Using precise calculations and advice from building experts will enable you to make an informed choice that will satisfy your requirements and guarantee a long-lasting, energy-efficient house.

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WALL THICKNESS