Exterior Rated Wall a Fire Partition or Fire Barrier?

[Trivers]

When an exterior wall is required to be rated, not due to proximity to another structure or occupancy separation, is the rated wall considered a fire partition or a fire barrier? We are rating the walls to protect structural posts inside that support deck tie rods.

 

[walker.t]

When an exterior wall is required to be rated

For what reason is the rated wall required? What code provision are you referring to that makes you think it is required? When you say you’re protecting structural posts it sounds like you are adding a rating to achieve a particular construction type per 2021 IBC Table 601.

We are rating the walls to protect structural posts inside that support deck tie rods.

The way you mention a very particular part of the structure kind of makes it sound like you just want to add the rating but it’s not actually required.

 

[Sifu]

When an exterior wall is required to be rated, not due to proximity to another structure or occupancy separation, is the rated wall considered a fire partition or a fire barrier? We are rating the walls to protect structural posts inside that support deck tie rods.

I would say neither, it is required to follow the section for exterior walls.

 

[redeyedfly]

When an exterior wall is required to be rated, not due to proximity to another structure or occupancy separation, is the rated wall considered a fire partition or a fire barrier? We are rating the walls to protect structural posts inside that support deck tie rods

Exterior walls aren't fire barriers (707) or fire partitions (708), they're exterior walls (705) and also structural members (704) per your description supporting deck tie rods. If you don't need the walls to be fire rated for 705.5 reasons you can protect the columns within the membrane of a fire rated assembly per 704.4.1.

 

[Yankee Chronicler]

When an exterior wall is required to be rated, not due to proximity to another structure or occupancy separation, is the rated wall considered a fire partition or a fire barrier? We are rating the walls to protect structural posts inside that support deck tie rods.

It is neither a fire barrier nor a fire partition. It is an exterior wall that you have elected to make fire-resistant.

However:

We are rating the walls to protect structural posts inside that support deck tie rods.

That doesn't work. A rated wall provides a fire resistance rating from the outside of one side of the wall to the outside of the opposite side of the wall. It does NOT provide a fire-resistance rating for columns falling within the wall. Columns must be rated by listed assemblies for columns.

 

[steveray]

When an exterior wall is required to be rated, not due to proximity to another structure or occupancy separation, is the rated wall considered a fire partition or a fire barrier? We are rating the walls to protect structural posts inside that support deck tie rods.

Neither...It's a rated exterior wall....So you follow 705.5 and 705.8

 

[steveray]

We are rating the walls to protect structural posts inside that support deck tie rods.

Got a drawing?

 

[LR419]

We are rating the walls to protect structural posts inside that support deck tie rods.

704 requires "individual encasement protection" for structural members that are required to have a fire-resistance rating. It isn't clear how a wall could provide that.