Tiny home builders have embraced steel stud use, but it's not a common skill in the DIY homeowner world. It's becoming more well known as outdoor kitchens are often built using them. Another area is DIY campers - a steel stud weighs less than a 2x, offers simply assembly, and has the advantage, like most materials, of becoming proportionally stronger as the size of the project grows smaller. Cold formed steel is galvanized, which lasts longer if techniques fail to prevent water ingress into the structure, and also does a great job supporting more weight - commonly, gypsum board - than most campers will ever see.
The RV conundrum comes up tho, a moving habitat sees a lot more dynamic stress than a stationary one, much like "destination" RV's aren't really suitable for hauling across America - they shake apart even faster than the more hardened ones. Living in a mobile domicile that has to experience hurricane force winds - yep, 75mph is that threshold - and also get shaken by Category earthquake rattling, such as the bypass around Amarillo TX. Bad concrete design led to curved road plates that rise at the ends, it's a huge washboard of thumping worse than highway 69 in Oklahoma, which is saying a lot.
Stick and tin get pounded as it is, it's arguable that a stiff structure of panels helps as it would transmit the forces rather than accommodate them, beating the interior furnishings, appliances, etc. Our off road campers tell us its the same on unpaved roads at speed, washboard and potholes will redistribute loose cargo in the beds of their trucks - and those have tuned suspensions with shock absorbers etc to minimize it. Of course, just slowing down is never an option . . .
PDF at link that discusses the techniques of steel stud framing for the interested DIY looking for a different method. I found it researching whether to double screw studs to each other, adding more reinforcement to the joint rather than a single screw that stationary construction gets away with. The opening paragraph caught my eye comparing steel stud to timberframing, and the PDF goes into lateral reinforcement, something stick and tin production builders have notoriously ignored over the years. Those welding up their own aluminum tubing framework might pull out information, too.
If we are going to DIY, being a knowledgeable builder helps to maintain structural integrity of the unit. As for where this fits into the panoply of techniques, it could be said it's making interconnected panels that create a floor, wall, or roof and how they meet a performance standard. There are few standards of construction in the RV industry and of late consumers have begun to notice.
Link auto connects to a .gov PDF for those who are appropriately wary. Your tax dollar at work.
The RV conundrum comes up tho, a moving habitat sees a lot more dynamic stress than a stationary one, much like "destination" RV's aren't really suitable for hauling across America - they shake apart even faster than the more hardened ones. Living in a mobile domicile that has to experience hurricane force winds - yep, 75mph is that threshold - and also get shaken by Category earthquake rattling, such as the bypass around Amarillo TX. Bad concrete design led to curved road plates that rise at the ends, it's a huge washboard of thumping worse than highway 69 in Oklahoma, which is saying a lot.
Stick and tin get pounded as it is, it's arguable that a stiff structure of panels helps as it would transmit the forces rather than accommodate them, beating the interior furnishings, appliances, etc. Our off road campers tell us its the same on unpaved roads at speed, washboard and potholes will redistribute loose cargo in the beds of their trucks - and those have tuned suspensions with shock absorbers etc to minimize it. Of course, just slowing down is never an option . . .
PDF at link that discusses the techniques of steel stud framing for the interested DIY looking for a different method. I found it researching whether to double screw studs to each other, adding more reinforcement to the joint rather than a single screw that stationary construction gets away with. The opening paragraph caught my eye comparing steel stud to timberframing, and the PDF goes into lateral reinforcement, something stick and tin production builders have notoriously ignored over the years. Those welding up their own aluminum tubing framework might pull out information, too.
If we are going to DIY, being a knowledgeable builder helps to maintain structural integrity of the unit. As for where this fits into the panoply of techniques, it could be said it's making interconnected panels that create a floor, wall, or roof and how they meet a performance standard. There are few standards of construction in the RV industry and of late consumers have begun to notice.
Link auto connects to a .gov PDF for those who are appropriately wary. Your tax dollar at work.
