OVE Wood-Framed Wall

System Scoping

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This page describes the scope of the system being analyzed: Optimal Value Engineered (OVE) wood-framed exterior walls. Please click on any of the links below to jump to that part of the page.

Functional Description
Overview of Product Range
Scope of Systems to Achieve Functional Equivalence
Major Manufacturers
Linkages to Other Systems
Application Environments

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OVE Wall Home

Functional Description

What is an Optimal Value Engineered (OVE) Wood-Framed wall? How does it work? What needs does it meet? This section provides a functional description of this special subset of light wood frame construction.

Light wood frame construction, in contrast to heavy timber frame construction, is one of the most prevalent types of residential construction methods in the United States (source). The typical light wood frame wall consists of dimensional lumber that serves as the structural components of the wall and are connected via a variety of different types of hardware, including primarily nails, but also various brackets, hangers, and straps depending on the specific code requirements of a given location. Figure 1 shows an example of a wood frame structure for a bay window to illustrate how 2x4s, 2x6s, 2x8s, and other dimensional lumber comprise part of the structure of a building.

Figure 1: Framing of Bay Window (AFPA 2001¹)

These framing elements act as the "bones" of the building and carry both the building's weight as well as the loads imposed by the environment and the building's occupants and their stuff. They are supplemented by external sheathing, bracing, or straps that provide shear resistance to prevent the walls from racking.

Besides the structural strength provided by the framing and bracing elements of the wall, it must also provide a range of functions primarily devoted to enclosing the inside of the building and separating it from outside threats and conditions². These include:

Air infiltration
Water penetration
Condensation on inner surfaces
Thermal transfer from radiation, convection, and conduction
Sound transmission
Protection from threats such as fire, blasts, and other possible intrusions based on the building use.

Light wall frames do this by filling the gaps between framing members with some type of insulating material, and by adding layers to the inside and outside surfaces to provide resistance to anything trying to pass through the wall itself. Figure 2 shows various types of insulation strategies for filling the gaps within the frame, as well as the use of insulation as one of the protective outside sheathing layers of the wall.

Figure 2: Types of Insulation in Light Frame Construction (http://content.managemyhome.com/Images/Insulation_and_ventilation/Insulation/1329_L.gif)

Overview of Product Range

The range of products and combinations of products within this category is considerable and varied. From different ways of configuring dimensional lumber into structural support and constructing on- or off-site, to different materials for wood, insulation, sheathing, and air/vapor barriers, to the use of different hardware such as tie-down straps or shear braces to meet special requirements, the wood-framed wall can take on many different configurations. The following links lead to pages that describe the range of variations in these three main categories: Range of Structural Member Configurations, Range of Material Types, and Range of Assembly Approaches.

Scope of Systems to Achieve Functional Equivalence

Major Manufacturers

Linkages to Other Systems

Application Environments

Link to OVE Framing

References

¹ AFPA - American Forest & Paper Association. (2001). Details for Conventional Wood Frame Construction. American Wood Council, Washington, DC. Available online at http://www.awc.org/Standards/wfcm.html.

² Whole Building Design Guide - Building Envelope Design Guidelines, Introduction. <http://www.wbdg.org/design/env_introduction.php>. Accessed on 12 February 2008.

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Last Modified 2008-02-12