I am going to build an outdoor kitchen (already purchased a SS drop-in charcoal bbq unit) that will be U-shaped and will include a sink and cabinet opening (or two) for storage.
Here’s my question: I am skilled in almost every trade EXCEPT masonry. I know a lot of outdoor kitchens are built with concrete blocks, but can anyone offer their input as to why I should not consider building this with steel studs, or pressure treated lumber? I can finish the project rather quickly if I build it with metal or wood. If I have to set blocks, I just know it’s going to take me forever.
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I also suck with masonry, I can mix and push a wheelbarrow but I wouldn't pay me to do much else. I might consider steel studs with exterior sheeathing and then finished with stucco,tile, siding, whatever. I shy from the PT/ACQ for stud walls because of their instability as they dry. Steel is affordable, straight and light. Just use low profile flat-panhead screws, I have also used pop rivets.
Yes, I did plan on wrapping the exterior with hardie-board and a stucco finish.The bbq unit and the concrete top will add a bit of weight. Any idea what guage (minimum) metal studs I should use? Thanks.
I would never use steel studs for an exterior application. Bottom line for me is that block will never rot or rust. If you use steel, you have to make sure no water can get into the structure, and any does get in can get out. Any liquid water, even condensed dew, will eventually rust the studs, starting where the screws pierce the galvanized coating.
Laying block isn't that hard, and if you're planning a stucco finish anyway, you can settle for something short of perfection.
If it gets cold where you live, water is a consideration even with block walls. If it freezes while the blocks are waterlogged, they will break.
Don't tell all the builders I've worked for about the rusting thing...their steel framed buildings with exterior gypsum board buildings are in jeopardy! Of course water getting is bad, with steel, wood, block or tamped earth. I could just as well make such a structure from wood. The original poster queried about steel vs. block stating that block wasn't his specialty. As such I advised going with what you know, assuming he was competent enough to water proof properly. For him, putting up a stud wall might be easier, faster and within his comfort zone. If he wanted to have a block wall put up and was set on it I imagine he would hire a pro but it seems to me that he wanted to tackle this project himself and so it was upon that asumption that I wrote.
>> ...their steel framed buildings with exterior gypsum board buildings are in jeopardy!IIRC, in the commercial buildings I've seen with steel studs in the exterior walls, the studs were just infill between a structural steel frame, to hold up the sheathing. If you're talking about using light gauge steel studs as the structure of the building, then I suspect those buildings really are in jeopardy, depending on climate, how much care was taken with the detailing, how long the buildings are intended to last, etc.If the climate is not too aggressive and the wall is properly designed and detailed, steel studs might be perfectly adequate for this project. I didn't mean to imply that your advice is wrong. But the idea of building an exterior wall with steel studs still makes me twitch.
For such a small structure mentioned, even if just a wall plus a small roof, I believe heavy gauge studs will do the job, 18 ga I think. A pro more versed would be more accurate. The jeopardy I mentioned referred to the water infiltration issue. Of course the buildings I spoke of were structural steel (similar to wooden post and beam) with steel stud partition walls. For the orginal poster's application partition gauge (I believe 22) might even serve. I would certainly encourage (and kinda assumed) he check manu's documentation. Calling in an engineer would be overboard but building such a structure as he mentioned may well be feasible with 2x6 steel, perhaps even 2x4.
Structual steel studs are 16 gauge and can work. Some commercial exterior walls (below or at 8 ft are done this way), but check out the "stack n bond" or dry layups of block with the parging coating on each side being the "spaecial mortar". Many building and concrete suppliers used to carry these systems. May be a cheaper solution for you. I used such a system in southern Ohio years ago for a basement when I couldn't get masons. Laid up dry with reinforcing into foundation and then grouted cores and covered with a special mortar for the dry laid blocks.
How about you just set two rows of block on a poured footing, and then stick-frame it with wood studs from there on up? Stucco or parge the block perimeter and you're good to go. Laying two rows of block shouldn't take even a never-ever that long.
You haven't filled in your profile, so I don't know where you're located. If you're in a cold area where frost-heave is an issue, you will need to deal with that no matter what kind of foundation you use for this structure.
Dinosaur
A day may come when the courage of men fails,when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship...
But it is not this day.
Thanks everyone for the input. I live in northern California, so I am not concerned with frost or salty air. I have determined that the slab I will be building the outdoor kitchen on is only 3.5" thick. I believe a 10"-12" footing would be best to support the weight of all those blocks, the bbq unit, and the 2" thick concrete tops. So, I am going to frame with studs (preferably metal). A good suggestion was made to set a layer of blocks and then build on top of that. I was already considering pouring a small stem wall to elevate the studs away from the patio surface, but perhaps even an inexperienced mason like myself could handle a single layer of blocks.
If you're willing to pour a stub wall, that'd be the way to go IMO. And I don't see any reason for using steel studs, honestly. Unless you work with them all the time, it'll be a lot more complicated for you to do it that way than just to frame it in wood.
Dinosaur
A day may come when the courage of men fails,when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship...
But it is not this day.
I guess the main reason why I would go with steel studs, is that I would prefer them around the rough opening for the drop-in bbq unit (for combustion purposes), even though I will wrap that opening with tile board. And if I will use steel around that area, it seemed to make sense to stay consistent. Think I should go ahead and use both materials (steel around the bbq unit and wood elsewhere)?
As for that, you'd better check the homologation sticker or the manufacturer's spec sheet on the BBQ unit to see how much clearance is required and from what materials. The important thing in preventing contact combustion from static heat sources like that is not just the material, but the presence of air-flow to remove heat as it is generated.
When I bought my first house, it had an old Franklin wood stove installed in a corner of the living room. The installation was done on a tiled wood platform and the two walls of the corner behind the stove were covered with decorative stick-on brick tile. All nice non-flammable materials, so I figured I had nothing to worry about....
One cold February night I kept tossing one log after another into that big old stove, and by the time I went to bed it had a 10" deep layer of coals in the grate. When I went into the bedroom, on the other side of the wall behind that stove, I inadvertantly leaned on the wall while standing on one foot to take off the other sock. The bloody wall was so hot I jumped!
I would imagine your barbeque insert was designed with some sort of heat-shield integral to it that includes the necessary air space. But you need to check before going any further.
Dinosaur
A day may come when the courage of men fails,when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship...
But it is not this day.