Curtain wall attachment details in Turkey
You’ve probably seen a lot of curtain wall facades while looking at buildings, and you may be wondering how this facade is installed. In fact, any facade to install requires details that we may not realize. The curtain wall façade system is an exterior cladding for buildings whose exterior walls are not structural and is the only separator inside and outside the building in terms of temperature and weather conditions.
As a prelude, let’s take a brief look at the Curtain wall attachment details.
One of the main filler materials inside the aluminum frames of curtain wall façade is “glass” which can be installed as a single shell – 2 shells and 3 shells on the aluminum structure of curtain wall façade. Depending on the design model – dimensions of the structure – loads – height and width of the modulation – and the expectations of the architect and the employer of the designed glass façade can be made of glass with different properties such as colored glass – laminated security or multi-shelled in structures Used the “curtain wall façade”.
Curtain wall attachment details
In this section, we will only introduce and review the Curtain wall attachment details. The façade structure of the curtain wall, like other load-bearing structures, consists of beams and columns. Dead loads due to the weight of glass or other filler materials, as well as pressure or suction due to other external forces such as wind and earthquakes, are transmitted to the columns through the beams. Finally, the total load on the columns is transferred to the main structure of the building through anchors.
In a curtain wall façade system, columns are referred to as mullions and beams are referred to as transoms. In the following, we will explain the Curtain wall attachment details by explaining each section.
Mullion
A million is a vertical element that is responsible for separating the vertical units of a door, window or façade. In windows, this element is used based on the window design or with the aim of bearing and controlling the load of high modulus or the possibility of opening and installing opening fittings. A mullion acts as a structural member in the curtain wall and is responsible for withstanding the dead load or wind force and transferring it to the main structure. Mullion generally follows a general shape in terms of structure and design in different systems and brands.
Transom
In architecture, a transom refers to a horizontal beam or rod that separates a door from a top window. In the curtain wall system, horizontal elements that are responsible for carrying and transferring loads in mullion are also referred to as transoms. Like mullions, transoms, in terms of structure and design, generally follow a general shape in different systems and brands. Mullions and transoms are very similar in appearance, the only general difference being the water drainage chamber in mullions. This means that the mullion, as the vertical structure of the structure, must be able to conduct and drain rainwater. Depending on the user, it is also possible to change the appearance of both profiles. Therefore, in different systems, profiles are designed for different details.
In different systems and brands, the way of coding profiles and curtain wall attachment details is different, but in general, coding is based on two characteristics of profiles:
Profile series: One of the characteristics of systems is the system series. For example, series 52, or series 62 or 65. These coding are usually based on the cross-sectional width of the profile. For example, in Gastadello’s 50 EL series, all profiles are 50 mm wide, or in Akpay’s KR50 series, the profile width is 50 mm.
Profile depth: Now that the series of each system is specified, another characteristic that distinguishes the profiles from each other is the depth of the profile. The depth of the profile is the length of the end of the section to the back of the place where the glass rubber strip is installed.
Connection of transoms and mullion
These components are used as connectors of the transom to the mullion. It usually has different designs in different systems. And it varies according to the standard of each system and the amount of load available.
Bracket or anchor
The sum of the forces acting on the curtain wall system is transmitted to the main structure through the anchors. This means that the anchors act as a support for the curtain wall system. In designing and calculating the curtain wall view, one of the most influential factors is the distance between the anchors. Structurally, anchors are divided into three categories.
- Bottom Anchors
- Intermediate Anchors
- Top Anchors
In this article, we explained a brief part of the Curtain wall attachment details. You can also read the rest of this article by reading other articles on the Ecoarc site.
