If metal studs are used to build walls in a basement in front of the concrete walls, does horizontal fireblocking (material run vertically from floor to ceiling every 10 feet to close the gap between the studs and the concrete wall) still need to be installed?
Does it make a difference if XPS sheets are attached to the concrete, or if spray foam is going to be used instead?
Thank you
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Replies
If the studs are installed using tracks, they don't get attached to the masonry wall and there will be a gap between the studs and masonry wall. Therefore fireblocking serves no effective purpose to block the path of fire.
Your ceiling height is over 10'?
Ceiling height is 8' 6". I would use tracks, I wouldn't attach the studs to the masonry wall.
Thank you
Glad this came up. I am in the middle of a basement remodel and have a 12 ft stud wall inset a few inches from the block wall.
I get the impression that the fireblock is required to stop the spread of flames and of air which could feed combustion.
you can use drywall for the vertical fireblock, and screw it to the side of a stud, extending to the wall. (or to the foam on the wall, i think. anyway, this is what I will do.) you will want to plug the punched pass-throughs in the steel studs to provide an effective barrier to fire and fire-feeding air.
The issue is not that the wall support might burn, but that a fire can have access to other occupied spaces of the house.
If you install the fireblock before the insulation, some plastic J channel along the cement wall will keep any moisture from creeping up the drywall.
Yes
No