Metal Stud Framing in St. Louis: Gauges, Layout, Deflection and Coordination for Commercial Interiors
Metal stud framing sets the pace for every commercial interior in St. Louis. Once the demo is out and the slab is clean, framing is the trade that turns a floor plan into rooms, and every electrician, plumber, HVAC installer and low-voltage tech is waiting on it. Getting the framing right the first time is the cheapest way to keep a tenant improvement on schedule. This guide walks through what GCs, owners and architects should expect from a metal stud framing contractor on a St. Louis project.
Why Metal Studs for Commercial Interiors
Cold-formed steel studs are non-combustible, straight, consistent and fast to install. They do not twist or shrink the way wood does, they accept screws cleanly, and they are what most fire-rated UL wall assemblies are built around. In St. Louis County and City, commercial interiors above a certain occupancy and most rated corridors and tenant separations are steel framed by default. Wood shows up on some residential-over-retail and light commercial jobs, but steel is the standard for offices, medical, retail, hospitality and multifamily corridors.
Gauge and Spacing: What the Drawings Usually Call For
Most interior partitions in St. Louis commercial work are 25-gauge or 20-gauge studs at 16 inches on center for standard height walls. Taller walls, walls that carry heavy casework, and walls with large openings move to 20-gauge structural or 18-gauge. Anything above roughly 14 feet, or walls that go to deck in warehouse and high-bay spaces, should be checked against the manufacturer limiting-height tables and the deflection criteria the architect specifies.
3-5/8 inch studs are the workhorse for partitions and most rated walls.
6 inch studs show up for plumbing walls, chases, and taller runs.
2-1/2 inch studs are used for furring and tight-clearance conditions.
Equivalent-gauge (EQ) studs are common and fine for standard partitions, but should not be substituted where the drawings call for structural studs.
If the bid documents do not specify gauge, ask before pricing. Two contractors bidding the same TI with different gauge assumptions are not bidding the same job.
Deflection, Slip Track and Going to Deck
Walls that run to the underside of the deck have to handle deck movement. That is what slip track, deep-leg track and deflection clips are for. Rated walls to deck also need the head-of-wall fire-stopping detail to match the UL assembly. A framing contractor who has done this work knows to leave the correct gap at the top, keep screws out of the slip zone, and coordinate the head-of-wall with the fireproofing and fire-stopping subs before the drywall goes up.
On walls that stop at the ceiling, lateral bracing (kickers) back to structure is what keeps the wall from racking. It is one of the most common things missing in a low framing bid.
Door Frames, Headers and Openings
Hollow metal frames need double studs and a header assembly that ties back into the framing, plus anchoring per the frame manufacturer. Knock-down frames install after the drywall is up, so the rough opening has to be dead on. Sidelights, borrowed lites and large glazing openings need box headers built from track and stud, sized for the span and the weight of the glass. This is where coordination with the door and glazing subs pays off. We frame to the frame schedule and the glazing shop drawings, not to a guess.
Blocking and Backing
Every casework run, grab bar, TV mount, wall-hung toilet carrier, handrail, and heavy shelf needs backing in the wall. On a commercial interior, missing backing is the number one source of "small" change orders that add up. We build backing off the casework and equipment drawings, and we photograph it before the walls close so the GC has a record. Flat strap, 16-gauge plate, or wood blocking with the right fasteners, depending on what the load is and whether the wall is rated.
Sequencing: How Framing Drives the Schedule
A realistic framing sequence on a St. Louis TI looks like this: layout and top track, studs and door frames, one side of board on rated walls for inspection, MEP rough-in, in-wall inspection, close the second side, then ceilings. If the framing contractor also handles the drywall and ceilings, the hand-offs between those steps disappear. If they are separate subs, each hand-off is a day or two of float you are giving away.
Ceiling framing matters too. Hard-lid drywall ceilings and soffits hung from carrying channel and hat channel need to be coordinated with duct, sprinkler mains, and light fixture locations before they are built, or they get rebuilt.
What We Need to Bid Framing Accurately
Architectural plans with wall types and partition schedule.
Reflected ceiling plan.
Door and frame schedule, and glazing elevations.
Structural notes for anything going to deck or carrying load.
Casework and equipment drawings, for backing.
The spec section (typically 09 22 16) and any UL assemblies called out.
Bid date, project location, and whether the job is prevailing wage.
Send those and we can return a framing and drywall number that will not need re-scoping later. The full checklist is in What GCs Should Send With a Bid Invitation.
Where We Frame
St. Louis Drywall Pros frames commercial interiors throughout St. Louis City, St. Louis County, St. Charles County and the Metro East, including Clayton, Chesterfield, Creve Coeur, Maryland Heights, Kirkwood, Fenton, St. Peters, O'Fallon and the Illinois side. Office, medical, retail, restaurant, hospitality, education and multifamily corridor work, plus large residential framing packages for builders.
Send Us Your Plans
St. Louis Drywall Pros bids commercial drywall, metal stud framing and large residential drywall packages across the St. Louis metro. Send drawings, spec sections 09 22 16 / 09 29 00, the project location and your bid date to Stldrywallpros@gmail.com, or call (314) 691-2444. Office: 10781 Indian Head Industrial Blvd, Suite 1051, St. Louis, MO 63132.
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