Now that you know that you need a mezzanine floor, the first thing you want to find out is how much stuff you I put on the floor. In other words how much weight you can put onto it.

With competitive price and timely delivery, Maxrac sincerely hope to be your supplier and partner.

The maximum amount of weight you can put onto a mezzanine floor is controlled by the load rating, or Kpa rating, of the floor.

Mezzanine floors in general can support 1.5 kpa to 6 kpa. This means they will support from 150kg per square metre up to 600kg per square metre, evenly distributed.

Below is table listing different weight capacities and ratings for mezzanine floors

Mezzanine Floor Kpa Rating

Weight Capacity per Square Metre (Evenly Distributed)

1.5 Kpa

150kg

3 Kpa

300kg

3.5 Kpa

350kg

4 Kpa

400kg

5 Kpa

500kg

6 Kpa

600kg

As mentioned above the Kpa rating or weight capacity is based on an evenly or uniformly distributed load, which across the entire floor area. This is also called a uniformly distributed action.

There is also another factor called a concentrated action. This is based more on a point load. In other words, it is a load on the floor in a smaller or concentrated area. This is more derived from the actual specific use of the floor. ie. Where is it, and what is it being used for. For example, an office, a laboratory, for general areas etc.

Things that can help a floor&#;s load bearing capacity.

Joist spacing &#; this is the spacings between the centres of the flooe joists. It is usually measured in millimetres and is either 450mm or 600mm. The recommended spacing is 450mm as the closer distances are beneficial overall for strength.    

The strength of the steel &#; every piece of steel will have a grade or yield strength. The higher the grade, the stronger it is. Australian made C section steel is high tensile and typically is rated at 500mpa. By comparison, overseas made steel has been measured at only 235mpa, which could be considered mild steel. This makes a huge difference with how much weight the floor can hold.  

The connections &#; a well-designed connection helps to maintain the strength in the floor, but a bad connection will only weaken it.

The best way for you to buy a mezzanine floor that will work for you is to first work out what you are going to put on the floor. Is it for storage of goods etc, or is it to be used as an office. Once you know how you are going to use it, then the load rating or the load bearing capacity can be calculated when designing the floor.

The load bearing capacity of a mezzanine floor is calculated by using the known strength of the steel components as well as the maximum deflection, vibration and raking forces permitted by the standards. 

Strength of Steel &#; each different component has an mpa rating which the force required to make the steel fail.

Deflection &#; In simple terms, this is a maximum amount of how much a steel member will &#;sag&#;  when observed across the floor assembly.

Vibration &#; This is measure as a point load when 100kg of weight is applied to any steel member in the floor. It must be under the maximum amount stipulated by the Australian standards. This is a very important calculation and must be done for all mezzanine floors. If not done properly, problems such as excessive movement and bounce can occur.

Raking force &#; This is the force against the posts mainly that is stopping the floor from falling over and collapsing. It is the force needed to keep the floor upright.

As you can see, there are several factors that need to be calculated in the design of a mezzanine floor. If you need any advice on your mezzanine floor, please contact us.

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Mezzanine Weight Limit Clarification

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Mezzanine Weight Limit Clarification

Mezzanine Weight Limit Clarification

micsim

(Industrial)

(OP)

22 Sep 06 14:20

Hi,
I am working on a project to utilize an existing mezzanine 12'x40' for storage.  Safety regulations require Load Limits to be posted in total or psf.  The mezzanine is rated at 100psf.  My question is that what does this 100psf acctually mean all by itself?  Even if it was rated at 250psf, I would not be able to stand on the mezzanine carrying 50lbs, if it meant I can't have more than 250lbs on 1 square foot.  

What would be the proper way to use this value, 100psf or say even 350psf, to determine the maximum weight that I can safely store on a rack and isle configuration?  I am assuming that the psf rating is refering to the structures strength, but does not tell you anything about how the decking distributes concenctrated loads.  

Thanks for any and all help.

Replies continue below

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RE: Mezzanine Weight Limit Clarification

gotwood

(Structural)

22 Sep 06 14:45

According to IBC the floor has to be designed for:

Residential: 40 psf (yours is way over this)
Storage LIGHT : 125 psf (slightly higher)
Storage Heavy : 250 psf (more for large commercial storage with heavy equipment)

so you should post 100 psf on the sign.  If you have more than 100 psf, it doesnt mean its going to fail.  It just means it will deflect more than comfortable deflection.

Having one 300 lbs line backer in the middle is no where closed to 100 psf covering the whole floor.  100 psf is very high.

RE: Mezzanine Weight Limit Clarification

gotwood

(Structural)

22 Sep 06 14:51

I guess the total load u can have would be 100psf X 12' X 40' = lbs!!!!  Thats HUGE!!!  If I were you I would put 100 psf limit and put nothing over lbs (from IBC for concentrated load).

RE: Mezzanine Weight Limit Clarification

gotwood

(Structural)

22 Sep 06 14:56

put nothinng over lbs concentrated load I meant. So if you put a car in there, each wheel cannot be more than lbs.  Not that you are going to put a car in there.

RE: Mezzanine Weight Limit Clarification

micsim

(Industrial)

(OP)

22 Sep 06 15:35

Thank you for the help.

I plan on storing about lbs on the mezzanine, including the shelving.  I planed to have two rows of 3' deep shelves running on each side of the mezzanine for 24' with a 6' aisle down them middle.  This is only 55psf if the storage is evenly distibuted.  

What if someone load one of the shelving units to lbs, the shelves are 3'x6'.  This would be 222psf below the shelf, not factoring the shelves are only touching the deck on four legs. Say all the selves end up fully loaded, that would be lbs, still less than lbs of the mezzanine.  

If I post lbs it doesnt mean much because it would be bad to put consentrated load anywhere near that much, and if I post (/480) 100psf it doesnt tell me much either because if you just say, well load divided by area of the load, then you can even walk on it.  

Just looking for informaiton on how I might use the psf value or the total load limit to safetly design my storage racks and aisle.  

I read some where that I should use my aisle to calculate the load in psf. eg. 3'x6' with 3' aisle is lbs/36sf is 111psf.     

RE: Mezzanine Weight Limit Clarification

gotwood

(Structural)

22 Sep 06 15:49

Just to be easy to understand, do not store anthing more than lbs.  So if you store stuff on the shelf, dont go over lbs ( per leg).

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