Three-Story Prefabricated Panel Structure House

A three-story prefabricated panel structure house is a three-story building constructed primarily with prefabricated panels, characterized by low cost but with certain limitations in safety.

Safety

Prefabricated panel houses generally have weak earthquake resistance. All buildings have a service life and load-bearing limit. During long-term use, a three-story prefabricated panel structure house may suffer damage due to natural aging, renovation, overloading, and other factors, and may even collapse in severe cases. For example, on April 11, 2024, a three-story prefabricated panel house in Fengshouchang, Guanba Town, Zhong County, Chongqing City, collapsed due to excessive temporary load accumulation on the second-floor slab, exceeding the load-bearing capacity of the prefabricated panels, resulting in brittle fracture and dropping of the slab, causing 2 deaths and 3 injuries.

Construction and Usage Costs

Prefabricated panels are inexpensive. Building a three-story villa with prefabricated panels may cost only 30,000 to 50,000 yuan. Solid prefabricated panels cost about 110 yuan each, while four-hole hollow prefabricated panels cost 80 to 90 yuan each. Compared to hiring someone to make cement-reinforced floor slabs, the overall cost can be reduced by tens of thousands of yuan.

Demolition Policy

Since 2022, China has implemented a policy of renovating old buildings, focusing on repairing and renovating prefabricated panel houses and only demolishing those that meet the criteria for dangerous buildings. In coastal cities and earthquake-prone areas, to resist typhoons and earthquakes, most houses need to be reinforced with cast-in-place slabs, and prefabricated panel houses may be demolished. However, not all prefabricated panel houses need to be demolished. As long as the house does not have cracks or tilting, it can still be inhabited.

Other Disadvantages

Hollow prefabricated panels may leak water. If the holes are not sealed with cement mortar, water will seep into the interior. Therefore, the holes on both sides must be sealed with cement to prevent water seepage. To increase the adhesion between each prefabricated panel, cement mortar should also be filled into the gaps to enhance the overall firmness of the floor slab. When purchasing prefabricated panels, do not buy those with surface cracks or honeycombs to avoid affecting the quality and safety of the house.