Spiceweasel69
Fish Crazy
"and if somebody is killed in that failure its him that goes to prison..."
No it wouldnt. The BCO has immunity through the local authority, though could, in exceptional circumstances could be persued through the crown court under the corporate manslaughter act.
"the floor would be, as you put it, 'overspecified' as it would be designed to british standards which include a factor of safety. in my experience the majority of buildings are designed down to a factor of safety instead of simply specifying something which is way over the required strength. the closer you get to the FoS then the cheaper the build is (and when it comes to housing they are built as cheap as possible)"
Absolutely they will always be made as cheap as possible to maximise profit (Quantity Surveyor coming out in me now). You wont get contractors building over what has been specified in the first instance. The Factor of Safety takes into account is simply a conversion ratio, a multiplier, as the initial structural calculations take into consideration the huge number of variables. As i say, the imposed load is calculated at a set weight per m2, and is always rediculously high to factor in whatever may be placed on the floor, before the FoS.
Building Control Officers DO get tought how to make structural calculations, or at least they did when i took my QS degree 5 years ago which was 2 years of the same course and a differing final year. I took all the same exams as a BCO. They even have a programme in thier local authority (Beamcalc when i was learning) where they plug in their assumed loads for beams / trusses etc which will give them an idea wether or not they should be asking for a structural engineers calculations.
I agree that 7.5kN is a large weight over 1m2. However, when imposed on a wall where the floor is supported by that wall, you are not talking realistically about a torsional force that would normally need to be calculated. It would beed to be calculated trough the shear stress of the concrete, and i dont know of a traditional construction method on block and beam or concrete slab that wouldnt be able to take those forces.
In no way was i stating that he should go ahead without checking the subfloor - quite the opposite. The floor will need to checked for its method of construction and the current state of that floor. When i say dependant on the construction, i mean there are a few clear no nos and some where there wont be an issue. IF the floor in joisted, and running parallell to the tank, i wouldnt put a 4kN tank on i as it would only be resting on 2 joists. Get the carpet , chipboard and insulation up and see what you got underneath is the first step towards an answer.
No it wouldnt. The BCO has immunity through the local authority, though could, in exceptional circumstances could be persued through the crown court under the corporate manslaughter act.
"the floor would be, as you put it, 'overspecified' as it would be designed to british standards which include a factor of safety. in my experience the majority of buildings are designed down to a factor of safety instead of simply specifying something which is way over the required strength. the closer you get to the FoS then the cheaper the build is (and when it comes to housing they are built as cheap as possible)"
Absolutely they will always be made as cheap as possible to maximise profit (Quantity Surveyor coming out in me now). You wont get contractors building over what has been specified in the first instance. The Factor of Safety takes into account is simply a conversion ratio, a multiplier, as the initial structural calculations take into consideration the huge number of variables. As i say, the imposed load is calculated at a set weight per m2, and is always rediculously high to factor in whatever may be placed on the floor, before the FoS.
Building Control Officers DO get tought how to make structural calculations, or at least they did when i took my QS degree 5 years ago which was 2 years of the same course and a differing final year. I took all the same exams as a BCO. They even have a programme in thier local authority (Beamcalc when i was learning) where they plug in their assumed loads for beams / trusses etc which will give them an idea wether or not they should be asking for a structural engineers calculations.
I agree that 7.5kN is a large weight over 1m2. However, when imposed on a wall where the floor is supported by that wall, you are not talking realistically about a torsional force that would normally need to be calculated. It would beed to be calculated trough the shear stress of the concrete, and i dont know of a traditional construction method on block and beam or concrete slab that wouldnt be able to take those forces.
In no way was i stating that he should go ahead without checking the subfloor - quite the opposite. The floor will need to checked for its method of construction and the current state of that floor. When i say dependant on the construction, i mean there are a few clear no nos and some where there wont be an issue. IF the floor in joisted, and running parallell to the tank, i wouldnt put a 4kN tank on i as it would only be resting on 2 joists. Get the carpet , chipboard and insulation up and see what you got underneath is the first step towards an answer.
