Framing and Storefront Systems
What this domain tests
Framing and Storefront Systems tests layout, anchorage, movement accommodation, and water management for aluminum storefronts and curtain walls. Questions often hinge on what separates storefront from curtain wall and how frames are set, shimmed, and sealed.
Core rules
- Storefront systems usually fill an opening between a floor and a header and are not designed for major interstory drift. Curtain walls span multiple floors, carry wind load, and accommodate building movement.
- Verify the rough opening at multiple points, check diagonals for square, and establish a level sill elevation before setting frames. Shim at anchor locations; do not distort the frame.
- Isolate aluminum from concrete and dissimilar metals with appropriate separation tape or coatings to limit galvanic corrosion.
- Keep the water path in mind: sill flashing with end dams, weep holes, baffles, and drained glazing pockets. Sealant is not a substitute for a drainage system.
- Anchor types include embedded plates, expansion anchors, and power-actuated fasteners; follow the approved submittal and structural calculations.
Worked example
An opening measures 120 in. wide at the sill but 119 5/8 in. at the head, and the diagonals differ by 3/8 in. Do not force the frame. Report the out-of-square condition, correct the opening or adjust the anchor layout per the approved shop drawings, then set the frame level and plumb with shims at each anchor.
Traps that cost marks
Measuring only the center of the opening, sealing weep holes, over-shimming one jamb, and mixing storefront and curtain-wall movement assumptions are common. Also, do not assume all aluminum frames are thermally broken.