Building Construction Flashcards
What converts DC to AC current in a building from PV roof panels
an Inverter
What is it that ultimately puts out the fire?
GPM Delivered
Easily disintegrated construction elements for blast protection are called
Friable
The key to patient safety in hospitals is to move the patient ____ not ______
Horizontally
Vertically
What is the main source of fuel in a well-involved room
fire?
Content
Top and Bottom chords are parallel and used for roofs and floors
Parallel-chord truss
________ construction is sustainable construction
Green
At what nozzle pressure is the constant-gallonage usually
designed to deliver a specified gallonage?
100psi
Stairwell support operations firefighters should be staged
Every 2 floors to shuttle equipment
Wind load is an example of a _____ force
Flexural
Rapid oxidation reaction that produces heat and visible light
Fire
What is the key determinant of whether a compartment reaches flashover
Heat Release Rate
What specifies the load design for specific types of buildings
Building code
Corridors in hospitals and nursing homes are a minimum of
8 feet wide to accommodate width of rolling hospital beds
Pallet storage systems provide as much as ____ times the surface area as boxes stacked solid
36
Hospitals and nursing homes have what in common
They are both home to numerous non ambulatory people
Fire Safety issues are dealt with by ______ building and fire codes
Local
Structural steel is made of
Iron and carbon
A structural member that transmits a compressive force along a straight path in the direction of the member
Column
Made of wood, frames for poured concrete
Falsework/formwork
Unprotected steel rods and cables fail at _____
800 degrees
On average how many FF are killed annually in the line of duty
100
Most fire codes require a _________ and _________ at a factory
Hazardous materials management plan (HMMP, explains how the materials are to be safely used and stored)
Hazardous Materials inventory statement (HMIS, lists the materials present)
Fire Dept’s should regularly drill on
Evacuating a structure for collapse
Impact loads are
Loads delivered in a short time
All walls are inherently ______
Unstable
If a wall is being breached and is found to be stronger than normal:
Choose another spot, you’re probably under a concentrated load
Winds over _____ must be considered from a tactical standpoint
10-20mph
2 x 10 exposed solid wood joists last ____ minutes under fire
18
Who stated to take no risk for what is already lost?
Alan brunacini
Top and bottom members of a truss are called
Chords
What is the concentrated load rating given to all roof
surfaces subject to maintenance workers in the Building
Construction and Safety Code?
300 pounds
Prevents passengers from opening an elevator door between floors, activates _____ inches above or below the landing area
Door restrictor, 18 inches
As a rule of thumb, how many lengths of hose should be
stretched for each floor above or below the level that the
fire is on to avoid stretching short?
One
Wind on a highrise with a broken window on the leeward side can cause a
Suction effect
What is a beam that spans an opening in a masonry wall?
Lintel
Elevator operators should stop how many floors to check conditions
Every 5 floors
What makes a load-bearing wall more stable than a
non-load-bearing wall?
Super imposed load
At what ppm will CO be potentially fatal with one breath
12,500ppm
What does Chief Alan Brunacini say is the hardest thing to
do?
Put a firefighter in reverse
What are signs of a metal deck roof fire
Dripping tar
Blue Flames
What is Branniganism
Undress the building when analyzing how and where the fire will spread in the building
NFPA 5000
Building construction and safety code
Usual height limit of a garden style apartment is
3 stories, although 4 is becoming more common place
In the typical downtown business or commercial building, the side walls are typically the ______ walls whereas the front and back walls are typically _______
Load Bearing, non load-bearing
Diaphragm floors are
Designed to stiffen the highrise building against wind and lateral loads such as earthquakes
In which fire stage are most of the elements needed for a
successful indirect attack present?
Third
Warmer interior air to a cold exterior, smoke travels upwards through vertical shafts until it hits the neutral zone then travels out onto floors and pressurizes, spreading downward
Winter stack effect
How often are Fire Codes and building codes updated by NFPA and ICC
Every 3 years
Limits the size of any building based on the type of construction and occupancy group type
Building codes
What are the 2 types of elevators
Hydraulic piston and electric cable
Shear is
Occurs within a building member when opposing forces pull the member in opposite directions such as wind loads
Timber is _____ or more inches of nominal thickness
5
In international building code, building classifications are given ____ instead of names
Numbers
Taxpayers are
Early strip malls
How long is the ceiling-level attack performed during a
combination attack on a fire in the free-burning stage?
5-10 seconds
What are the 2 ways to carry the wall above an opening
Arches and beams (lintels)
Thermoplastics can produce
Flaming, dripping plastic which can produce secondary fires
_____ transfer dictates how a fire spreads
Heat transfer
Where should work be performed from when asked to clear
pooled water from a roof?
Ground ladder
3 most common gases in smoke
CO, hydrogen cyanide, carbon dioxide
Relates the hazards of the building and the type of occupants
Occupancy classification
What are 2 liquid particulates found in smoke
Acrolein and halogen acids
Where are the connections made when a suspended load is
being used?
Overhead area
What length frontage can a 75-foot (23-meter) elevated
platform cover if it is able to operate in front of the
building?
100 feet
What is the most prevalent of smoke gases
CO
Transfer loads from the structural element to another
Connections
Steel rebar added to concrete at points where tensile stresses develops creates
Composite material
What is a beam that supports other beams?
Girder
In a collapse, most of the victims will be where at a concrete construction site
On top of the false work
Overhanging beam projects beyond its support but not as far as a _____
Cantilever
Traditional sprinkler systems have an inability to respond and control a fire more than ______ feet below the sprinkler
150
Correct language not only conveys the characteristics of the building but also the ______
Hazards
By code definition, ordinary construction buildings are:
Non-fire resistive, they have no designed resistance to collapse in a fire
Closely spaced high-rise buildings can create a ______ effect, increasing wind velocity as it squeezes through the narrow opening
Canyon effect
Places engineered stresses in architectural and structural concrete to offset the stresses that occur in the concrete when it is under load
Pre-stressing
Of the three types of collapse in wood frame buildings, which is the most dangerous
Inward/outward collapse because it gives no warning and can result in simultaneous collapse of 2or more sides
ASTM E-119 is
Fire resistance tests
When filtered through to ______ natural gas can lose its artificial odorant
Soil/ground
Compressive connecting members of a truss are called
Struts
Core construction is
Internally braced high rises
Rigid frames can stan up to
100 feet
Top and bottoms of an I beam are called ______ and the stem is called
Flanges, web
A group of PV modules is known as an
Array
Regardless of exterior construction, the interior construction of a garden-style apartment is almost totally
Constructed of wood
Torque is
A turning force
What building classification is the most resistant to collapse and its contents do not contribute to fire
Fire-Resistive
If steel is restrained at its ends when its elongating at 1000 degrees what happens
It will buckle or overturn
Building code regulations concerning schools have been shaped by one particular fire:
The Our Lady of Angels Fire in Chicago, 1958
Modern bunker gear can withstand temperatures above _____
220 degrees
What is the recommended flow rate for most commercial
occupancies today?
0.35 gpm per sq foot
Produced by a chemical reaction of Portland cement (primarily limestone) and water to which in turn materials called aggregates are added
Concrete
school hall widths are larger than normal, typically
6 feet wide
What happens to the load carrying capacity when a column
is braced at the midpoint?
4 times more than initially
Building codes specify _______ systems are to be installed and standards specify _______ the system is to be designed and installed
Where, how
Thermosets are
Plastics that char and burn but do not flow
In tilt-slab construction what holds the concrete wall panels in place
Roof
How many firefighters died in Worcester cold storage warehouse fire in 1999
6
Which organization/agency provides information on firefighter deaths and how they occurred
NIOSH
Like hospitals, jails are considered
Institutional occupancies
What type of fog pattern should be directed into a small
opening in a window when utilizing an indirect attack?
30 percent
If not evacuating completely out of the building occupants should be moved where
5 floors below the fire and sheltered in place
When do steel members fail completely
1300 degrees
Heavy volumes of boiling smoke that persists even after the visible fire is well controlled means
Fire in a void
Ammonia can burn in concentrations as low as
16%
When a layer of air in a highrise is warmer than the air below it the condition is caused
Pause
Heat impinging on the roof components create a self-sustaining fire from the gasses given off by the tar
Metal deck roof fire
What standpipe system is typically at a covered mall
Class 1 system at the entrance to each corridor and exit passageway
Structural walls that are common to two buildings
Party wall
Maximum height of noncombustible structures
12 stories
ASTM stands for
American Society for testing and materials
Dead load is
Weight of the building itself and whatever is permanently attached
Idle Pallet storage is
Pallets without the product on them
Think of ventilation holes as
Exit holes
A Load is
An external force that acts on a structure
Where fire separations exist in ordinary construction, in the attic spaces they are often _____ or _______
Imperfect or nonexistent
Correct language not only conveys the characteristics of the building, but also the _____
Hazards
What regulates the level and amount of fire protection in a new structure
Building Code
Fire growth and spread are greatly influenced by:
Building construction
What is the chief virtue of concrete
Its high compressive strength and low cost
Wall that projects above the roof line
Parapet wall
Regulates the actual design and construction of new buildings
Building code
Last stone placed in an arch center top
Keystone
Aluminum front store door as with glass panels needs what method of entry
Through the lock
What is the most important metal used in building construction
Steel
Which consideration will probably have the greatest effect
on the fire when putting a line into operation?
Ultimate destination
On a metal deck roof fire, only what will prevent the tar from generating gas
Continuous application of water on the underside of the roof
What is the distance between the top of one window and the bottom of the one above called
Spandrel space
Which method of fire attack serves to not disturb the
thermal balance in the room too severely?
Combination
How many gallons per minute for every 100 square feet of
space is required for a fire in a high-fire-load-area?
60
What type of wall is very dependent on the roof for stability
Precast concrete
What may be a clue to a wooden parallel-chord truss roof with attic space
Dormer Windows
Nominal Thickness is
The thickness of the lumber prior to drying in a kiln at the lumber mill
Fireproofing is applied to meet the standards of
The local building code
Hurricane bracing is
Strategically place metal straps to hold roofs in place and bolts to hold the frame to the foundation
In a modern office building, what percent or more of the floor volume is located in the ceiling void above the drop ceiling
25 percent
Building owners are sometimes less interested in the material of construction than in
Speed and cost of construction
Atria that are _____ feet tall do not require sprinklers at the highest level
55
What should the objective of the first hoseline placed at
a heavy fire in a one-story strip mall be?
Cut off/ confine the fire
One of the fire protection advantages of concrete construction is its lack of inherent
Voids
PV roof panels generate what type of current
Direct Current
What are shear walls for
Resist lateral loads from wind and earthquakes
Structural steel fails at
1000-1100 degrees
What became a serious competitor to steel as a construction material in the post WW2 era
Reinforced concrete
What is an inherent part of ordinary construction
Void spaces
What does water weigh
8.34 pounds
The inversion layer of a highrise is
The layer of air that acts as a roof to rising smoke
Old water soluble mortar used in between bricks until Portland cement mortar was invented
Sand-Lime Mortar
2 basic types of fire resistive construction:
Reinforced concrete buildings
Structural Steel buildings
In modern high-rise fires, fire operations usually are on what floors
Fire floor, floor above, and 2 floors below (staging)
Steel heated to 1,000 degrees elongates ______ per 100 feet
9.5 inches
Roughly what percent of fire deaths occur in residential
buildings?
75%
Axial vs eccentric load
Both are perpendicular to the plane of the section but axial is centered, eccentric is not centered
A continuous beam is supported
At 3 or more points
Used above openings and windows to support the downward force of the wall above them
Lintels
What type of load is represented by a rolling bridge crane
in an industrial plant?
Repeated
Non load-bearing enclosing walls on framed buildings
Panel (1 story) or curtain walls (curtain are more than 1 story)
Passageway, usually vertical, cut into a masonry wall for a pipe or conduit, can create a plane of weakness in the wall and assist in failure or fire spread
Chase
Fire is always looking for the path of _____ ______
Least resistance
Underground stilts for buildings built on weak soil
Piles and caissons
Vertical shaft with windows that provides light and ventilation to enclosed rooms
Light well
When are the forces in a truss reversed
When its cantilevered
Ignition temperature of carbon monoxide is
1,128 degrees
Void spaces need to be checked immediately after the fire is extinguished to stop or minimize
Structural involvement
What is the first tactic that should be attempted when you
suspect that a backdraft explosion is possible?
Ventilate the affected area
Prefabricated sections are combined to build a structure
Modular construction
There is a radically different situation from a fire that involves the ______ and that involves the _______.
Structure, Content
Top chord of a truss is under
Compression
When there is a temperature difference between the outside and the inside temperatures
Stack effect
What is the minimum number of points that the continuous
beam is supported?
3
What is the minimum amount of hose that even relatively
small commercial buildings can require?
300
Large vertical voids that pass through multiple floors
Atria
An exterior collapse will usually cause
An interior collapse
Generation of carbon monoxide can be ______ times greater in a void space
50 times
When the end of the joist is cut off at an angle to permit the joist to fall out of the wall without damaging the wall under fire conditions
Fire cut
One of the results in reducing the amount of concrete in high-rise buildings is a loss of valuable
Heat sink
A truss is a type of beam that consists of a _____ or group of _______ arranged in a single plane
Triangle, triangles
Principal life safety question in any building is not its height but the _______ it takes occupants to reach a _________ environment
Time
Safe
Stairways in modern high rises are typically what type
Scissor stairs (2 stairways in the same shaft)
Fire service access elevators are found in buildings
More than 120 feet in height
A wall column is designed
To stiffen the wall and support the concentrated load above it
Bowstring truss thrust is ______
Outward
A firefighter stepping onto a roof as lightly as possible still imposes a momentary load on the roof at least _______ his or her resting weight
Twice
Gravity Resistance System is
All the structural elements and the connections that support and transfer the loads
When fresh air is drawn into the fire from the doorway is drawn into the fire itself
Entrainment
Without a ______, FF are reduced to reacting to a fire rather than being prepared for it
Prefire plan
On ordinary construction what is necessary to prevent the a structure from becoming involved
Rapid deployment of an interior line to the seat of the fire
How should firefighters move when advancing the hoseline
into the fire area?
Duckwalk
With regards to pre-stressing, _____________ is done at the concrete plant, ________ is done at the job site
Pre-tensioning, post-tensioning
Tube Construction is
Externally bracing a high rise building for wind and lateral loads
When formwork busts its usually at
The bottom
Combustible multiple dwellings such as modern row houses and townhouses and similar structures are called
Garden style apartments
Brick height is limited because the walls _____ in thickness as the ______ increases
Increase, height
Most common example of the ordinary construction
One story strip mall
Strip mall with steel bar joists and a built up roof can be subject to what type of fire
Metal deck roof fire
A 1,000 gpm master stream will potentially add how much weight over what timeline
4 tons in 1 minute
Why type of collapse is a particular hazard in the construction of concrete frame especially following a lateral impact load
Progressive Collapse
Concrete is
A mix of Portland cement, water, and aggregates
Bottom chord of a truss is under
Tension
Tensile connecting members of a truss are called
Ties
Fire walls are example of what type of fire protection
Passive
Bowstring truss roofs get their name from
The curved shape of the top chord
CO may be hazardous at a 10 minute exposure to what level CO
3500 ppm
What often provides the first warning of fires
Smoke
A simple beam is supported
At 2 points near its ends
Row of bricks turned end on end across the wall and tie it together
Headers
How many gallons of steam does each gallon of water
convert to when fully vaporized during an indirect attack?
1500-2000
Large expanse area detector with a single light beam to detect smoke at the top of an atrium
Projected Beam Detectors
Cold smoke that falls downward due to cold interior and a hot exterior
Summer stack effect
Carbon monoxide flammability range
12.5-74 %
In what does a large part of the problem rest when a fire
is allowed to extend beyond the structure of origin?
Failure to conduct an ongoing size up
Fire codes call for firefighter access doors every ____ feet in high-piled stock warehouses
100
What is wood that’s 2 inches or less of nominal thickness
Board
Modern design often emphasizes an uncluttered _______, with everything packed to the ______
Exterior, core
Which operating mode tends to be the best choice in
situations where there is a possibility of BLEVE?
No attack
What building feature can be used to find the fire room
when there is a blackout condition in an apartment
building?
Doors
What can be identified by the direction of the trusses on steel frames
The direction the steel will elongate and highest risk of wall collapse in that direction
Regulates the use of existing buildings
Fire code
Steel is a good _______ ________, can transmit via conduction through walls to combustible materials
Thermal conductor
Dimensional lumber is _______ nominal thickness
2-4inches
Steels ____ strength is equal to its tensile strength but shear strength is _____ of its tensile strength
Compressive, 3/4
