Inner Walls on a Metal Building

[Da Hammer]

Hello all. I joined about three weeks ago and have been searching and reading to try not to repeat other questions that have been asked a million times.

I have a 25x40 metal building I have used for about 8 years and it serves me very well. However I have hit the point where I need to do some interior finish work on it.

Today I begin adding some interior walls starting with attaching framing to the girts. I have girts at 1"off the ground, 4' off the ground and 7' off the ground. I am going to attach framing to the girts and vertical steel poles. My concern is I plan on hanging cabinets from the framing which is really only supported by the girts. I am concerned as I add weight to the framing it will cause the girts to bend inward/break over time. Is this a legitimate concern or no? I don't want to add weight to the exterior skeleton of the building and cause damage to the building's support over time. Thanks in advance hope that question makes sense.

 

[sands35]

2x4 framing or 2x2?

If you tie the framing into the floor and the top plate, then it shouldn't be a problem. If you need to add a top plate to tie into the posts, then do that. The floor should probably be on pressure treated sole plate bolted / nailed to the concrete. Basically, you end up framing what would be a stick built wall.

If you are worried about even that (or have crazy heavy cabinets and contents), then you can use OSB or Ply for the interior surface. Side benefit is that you will get more space for insulation.

Outside is steel? The wall needs to dry to the inside (with steel exterior), so no poly on the inside. Just wall board and paint.

 

[Nighttrain]

Da Hammer. Check out my build thread. I framed my with 2x4 and have hung some pretty heavy cabinets on them without issue. Merry Christmas

 

[brownbagg]

i did 2x4 walls and plywood, yes because of the girts the walls are inside the steel. the 2x are just to hold insulation and plywood,its screwed to the girts, on inside not outside, it be quicker on outside but you would lose close to foot inside witdh

 

[Da Hammer]

Thanks you all that is along the lines of what I was thinking. I was on the fence on securing bottom plate to the floor. I have no plans for anything super heavy but I didn't want to exceed what the girts could safely hold and pull one down or bend it.

Night train I had seen a few assorted pictures of your build in a few threads on finishing metal buildings. I probably spent an hour looking at your build thread, you attention to detail makes a slob like me think there could be hope!

I have had a disorganized mess for about seven years I have finally decided it's time to get a bit more organized. Hopefully over the next 6 months I'll have time to complete, and I'm sure I'll be back with many questions.