Blockwork and Partition Walls

Abstract

The essential purpose of partition walls is to divide buildings into suitably sized rooms, halls, etc. but they may also be required to support floor and ceiling joists. They can thus be described as loadbearing or non-loadbearing, and this factor may decide the type and thickness of the materials used for construction. For example, non-loadbearing walls may be erected using aerated concrete blocks only 60 mm thick, depending on the length and height whereas, if loads are to to superimposed, the minimum thickness for this type of block is 75 mm.