Restraint Straps
Galvanised steel restraint straps should be provided at floor, ceiling and roof levels. They are
used to tie the walls in with the structure and are spaced at 2 metre centres, fixed to the first three
joists or rafters (see figure 3).
figure 3
Timber framed structures and stud partitions should have insulation between timber supports to
meet the same thermal standards.
Alternatively, proprietary insulation may be fixed to the outside or inside of the wall, or an
increased thickness or thermal insulation blockwork could be used (see figure 5 for examples).
Cavity Tray
These are required when new extensions about an existing building, and over certain lintels or
airbricks. They need to be inserted in the cavity of the existing wall to divert any rain penetration
through the outer leaf, via weep holes, if a cavity tray is not used water will collect over openings
causing damp problems (see figure 6 for details).
Airborne
Impact or
Sound pollution is therefore one of the primary factors to be considered when constructing a party
wall. In the past, sound transmittance has been overcome using either dense concrete blocks,
absorbent quilts of cavity constructions.
Fire Protection
Party wall and lintels require fire protection for periods of up to an hour to give adequate stability.
Consideration or fire protection should also be given to exit routes from dwellings of three storeys
or more.
Masonry walls usually provide more than adequate fire protection. Stud partitions that need to
provide one hour's fire resistance should be constructed with 2 layers of 12.5mm plaster board
with staggered joints on each side. Half hour fire protection can be achieved using 12.5mm
plaster board with a plaster skim finish in each side of the stud work.
Fire can also travel from adjacent buildings. To minimize the risk of this, the table below shows
the area of doors, windows and other non first resisting construction (i.e. unprotected area)
allowed close to the boundary line.
Permitted unprotected areas in small residential buildings:
Distance from
boundary
1.0m
2.0m
3.0m
4.0m
5.0m
6.0m