Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 1

Energy Efficiency of Light Steel Frames:

Dr Stephen Hicks
New Zealand Heavy Engineering Research Association (HERA),
General Manager Structural Systems
Forms of light steel frame construction
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 2

Warm frame construction Hybrid construction

 New Zealand Building Code Requirements
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 3

• NZBC, Clause H1 deals with energy efficiency requirements of

buildings. Acceptable methods for determining the R-values of
building elements are given in NZS 4214 and the BRANZ House
Insulation Guide. NZS 4218 outlines the following three approaches
that may be utilised to demonstrate compliance:
1. The Scheduling Method involves selecting the required level of insulation from a tabulated set of
minimum requirements. To enable this method to be utilized, the area of glazing should be 30% or
less than the total wall area.

2. The Calculation Method uses a simple calculation of heat retention that can be no worse than
that of a reference building. It allows the use of components with different thermal resistance
values. To enable this method to be utilized, the area of glazing should be 40% or less than the
total wall area.

3. The Modelling Method uses a computer modelling technique where the building design under
consideration should not use more energy than a reference building design.

• The most common method of compliance for volume housing is the

Scheduling Method. Tabulated minimum wall R-values for each of the
three climate zones in New Zealand are as follows:
• Climate Zone 1 and 2 = 1.9 m2K/W (North Island).

• Climate Zone 3 = 2.0 m2K/W (South Island and Central Plateau).

Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 4

Sheet Cladding and Weatherboard Cladding with unventilated

cavity
 Calculation methods of R-values for LSF
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 5

• Simplified method (amenable to hand

calculations)
• NZS4214 or ISO6946 (appropriate for thermally homogeneous
layers and inhomogeneous layers but NOT appropriate when
insulation is ‘bridged by metal’ => cold frame and hybrid frame)

• Finite element analysis (used in HERA

study)
• Reference made to ISO6946 and NZS4214 only for input values
for the thermal conductivity of the layers/elements
 Assumptions used in study
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 6

• Thermal breaks
• 70mm x 12mm EPS on stud and nogs outside building wrap (15 mm
wider than stud each side).
• 70mm x 10mm XPS on stud and nogs outside building wrap (15 mm
wider than stud each side.)
• 10mm XPS sheet over whole wall inside building wrap.

• Cavity taken as unventilated

• Ambient temperature of 20°C and -5°C internally

and externally, respectively
 Thermal conductivity  [W/mK]
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 7

From Green Being report:

EPS-S-grade = 0.038

XPS = 0.026

Gib = 0.22

90 mm thick insulation (R2.2) = 0.0409091

90 mm thick insulation (R2.4) = 0.0375

90 mm thick insulation (R2.6) = 0.0346154

90 mm thick insulation (R2.8) = 0.0321429

Fibre cement board = 0.25

Cement plaster = 0.8

From New Zealand Steel from BCA, Section J (cf. 54 W/mK in EN 1993-1-2)

Axxis® Steel = 47.5

ISO 6946 Table 2.  = t/R (thicknesses not specifically given in NZS4214, but similar)

Unventilated air 10mm = 0.0666666

Unventilated air 12mm = 0.07595

 Steel frame arrangement
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 8

From NZ Steel, thermal

conductivity of Axxis® steel
framing taken to be 47.5 W/mK
from BCA, Section J

• 90 × 40 × 0.75 mm AS1397-G550 studs @

600 mm c/c
• 90 × 40 × 0.75 mm AS1397-G550 nogs @
1200 mm c/c in orthogonal direction
 70 × 12 mm thick EPS covering steel face (15 mm
wider from flange tips)
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 9
 EPS thermal break strips and unventilated (still) air
layer
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 10
 Typical results from FEA showing temperature
distributions (sheet cladding)
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 11
 R- values from FEA
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 12

Fibre cement sheet Weatherboard cladding

cladding
Thermal 90 mm thick insulation Thermal 90 mm thick insulation
Break Detail Break Detail
R2.2 R2.4 R2.6 R2.8 R2.2 R2.4 R2.6 R2.8
12mm EPS (70 12mm EPS
x 12) 1.75 1.83 1.91 1.98 (70 x 12) 1.87 1.95 2.03 2.11
10mm XPS (70 10mm XPS
x 10) 1.80 1.89 1.97 2.05 (70 x 10) 1.92 2.01 2.10 2.18
10mm XPS 10mm XPS
SHEET SHEET
(10mm) 1.93 2.01 2.09 2.16 (10mm) 2.06 2.14 2.22 2.30

Timber frame 1.91 2.02 2.12 2.21

Suitable for Climate Zone 1 and 2 = 1.9m2K/W (North Island)

Suitable for Climate Zone 3 = 2.0m²K/W (South Island and Central Plateau)
 Temperature variation (ghosting) from FEA
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 13

Fibre cement sheet

• Thermal bridging through the Thermal
Break 90 mm thick insulation
studs can cause local cool Detail
spots in the vicinity of the stud, R2.2 R2.4 R2.6 R2.8
12mm EPS 16.94°C 16.97°C 16.99°C 17.00°C
leading to “ghosting” where (70 x 12)
17.23C 17.25°C 17.28°C 17.30°C
local condensation causes 10mm XPS
(70 x 10)
staining of the wall surface 10mm XPS 17.34°C 17.35°C 17.37°C 17.38°C
SHEET
along the lines of the studs. (10mm)
Timber 18.56°C 18.57°C 18.57°C 18.57°C

• To avoid surface condensation

and ghosting, the Building Weatherboard cladding
Research Establishment (BRE) Thermal
Break 90 mm thick insulation
in the UK suggests that internal Detail
surface temperatures should R2.2 R2.4 R2.6 R2.8
12mm EPS 17.36°C 17.38°C 17.39°C 17.41°C
not fall below 15.5ºC when the (70 x 12)
internal air temperature is 21ºC 10mm XPS 17.59°C 17.61°C 17.63°C 17.65°C
(70 x 10)
10mm XPS 17.68°C 17.69°C 17.71°C 17.72°C
SHEET
(10mm)
 Conclusions
Steel Innovations Conference 2013, Christchurch, New Zealand, 21-22 February 2013 14

• In most cases, LSF walls easily satisfy the minimum

R-values for Climate Zone 1, 2 and 3 according to
the Scheduling Method given in NZS4218.
• For sheet cladding, a 10 mm XPS sheet over the
whole of the wall inside the building wrap produced
R-values that were similar in magnitude as a timber
framed wall with direct fix sheet cladding.
• All surface temperatures exceeded BRE limit of
15.5ºC when the internal air temperature is 21ºC,
which indicates that the probability of surface
condensation and ghosting on typical LSF walls is
low.