Support Methods for Prefabricated Panel Houses

There are mainly two types of support methods for prefabricated panel houses: slab-type and beam-slab type.

Slab-type support: This is a relatively simple and direct support method. The prefabricated panels are directly placed on load-bearing walls or brick walls. The loads borne by the floor, including the weight generated by human activities, furniture, and equipment, are directly transferred to the walls. In this support system, the walls play a crucial load-bearing role and need to have sufficient strength and stability to withstand the loads transmitted from the floor. Generally, load-bearing walls are constructed using high-strength materials such as bricks or concrete to ensure structural safety. The advantage of slab-type support lies in its relatively simple construction, which does not require additional beam components and can save a certain amount of construction time and cost. However, since the loads are directly transferred to the walls, high load-bearing capacity requirements are imposed on the walls. If the wall design or construction quality is poor, potential safety hazards such as wall cracking may occur. Moreover, this support method is relatively inflexible in terms of indoor space layout because the position of the walls basically determines the support positions of the floor, making it difficult to carry out large-scale indoor space renovations.

Beam-slab type support: Unlike slab-type support, in the beam-slab type support system, the prefabricated panels are first placed on beams, which can be reinforced concrete beams or steel beams, etc. As intermediate load-transmitting components, the beams further transfer the loads from the floor to columns or walls. In this way, the beams play a role in dispersing and transmitting the loads, reducing the direct load pressure on the walls or columns. The advantages of beam-slab type support are obvious. It enables a more reasonable distribution of structural forces, improving the overall stability and seismic performance of the building. At the same time, due to the presence of beams, the indoor space layout can be more flexible, allowing for partitioning and renovation according to needs without being restricted by the direct support of the floor on the walls. However, the construction of beam-slab type support is relatively complex, requiring the construction of beam components first and then the installation of prefabricated panels, with more construction procedures and relatively higher costs.