The unique construction of steel
buildings raises some particular considerations when you install a
heating system in this type of building. If you have a new steel
building, here are some tips on how to outfit it properly with a
capable heating system.
Expect to Use a Larger HVAC System
You'll need a larger furnace for a
steel building than you would for a comparably sized commercial or
industrial building that's made from stick-and-frame construction.
There are a couple of reasons why.
First, steel is inherently less
insulating than the wood that stick-and-frame construction uses. This
results in a loss of insulating capabilities along exterior walls,
and the difference is significant. A steel wall offers 60
percent less insulationthan a wood wall does.
To compensate for the increased heat
loss that a steel wall allows, you'll need a furnace that's capable
of producing more heat. You don't necessarily need a 60-percent
stronger furnace, as you can take other steps to mitigate steel's
lack of insulation. A somewhat stronger furnace, however, will help a
lot.
Second, steel buildings usually have
large and open spaces. There's a lot of air in these spaces, and
it will take a strong system to move the air through a room. Without
a large system that can move a lot of air, the air that a furnace
heats up won't circulate through the big space of this type of
building.
A larger heating system will cost
increase your building's HVAC costs, but this consideration shouldn't
prevent you from building with steel. Commercial HVAC systems start
at just a few thousand dollars, a relatively small sum compared to
the full amount that a commercial building can cost.
Consider a Heavier Gauge Steel
If you're building a brand-new steel
building, you have the option to choose what gauge steel the building
is made of. Gauge refers to the thickness of steel, and there are
industry standards that stipulate how thick each gauge is. The higher
the gauge is, the thinner the steel is.
In the steel building construction
industry, contractors may use 28-gauge
or 26- gaugesteel for buildings. The former has an average
thickness of 0.0157 inches, while the latter averages 0.0217 inches
thick. A difference of 0.0060 inches might not seem like a lot, but
that's a 38.2 percent increase in average thickness.
To ease the load on your building's
furnace a little, upgrade to a 26-gauge building rather than a 28-
gauge one. The additional investment in your building will pay
dividends for the life span of the building, as the slight increase
in thickness will improve the insulation that steel does offer. This
won't address all the heating considerations that come with a steel
building, but it will help.
Invest in High-Grade Insulation
Insulation can greatly improve how well
your steel building retains heat, for the insulation that you would
use is much better at retaining heat than steel on its own does.
Moreover, the way steel walls are
constructed makes this an especially easy strategy to implement.
Whereas insulation installers must work around studs and between
layers of sheetrock in a framed building, they can simply put the
insulation directly against a flat steel wall in a steel building.
As you consider what type of insulation
to use in your steel building, there are many options to choose from.
Insulated panels, however, are an especially good high-grade choice.
They're effective at preventing heat loss, eliminate the need for
other kinds of insulation, are easy to install, and have a clean
appearance because there's a metal panel on either side of them.
If you want to build a steel
building, contact Cochran Construction Company.
