Harmful Effects of Dampness Dampness is the presence of hygroscopic or gravitational moisture. Dampness gives rise to unhygienic conditions apart from reduction in strength of structural components of the building. Dampness causes the following harmful effects. Dampness is responsible for breeding of mosquitoes and creates unhealthy living conditions. Due to dampness, moisture travel through walls … Read more
Precast Concrete Piles – Advantages & Disadvantages Precast concrete piles are cast, cured and stored in a yard before they are installed in the field mostly by driving. Advantages of Precast Concrete Piles Reinforcement used in the pile is not liable to change its place or get disturbed The defects in pile can be easily … Read more
Different Ways To Clean Clay Paved Surface Clay paving provides a durable, hardwearing surface but, like any surfacing material, this may suffer from time to time from staining, due to general trafficking and contamination from other sources. Due to the nature of construction, there may also be some vegetation growing in the joints, or on … Read more
Quality Assurance for Cement Plastering Plastering is a process of applying one or more coats of mortar to a concrete surface, brickwork, stone masonry or lathing. It must be durable such that it resists the penetration of moisture and should be able to weather uniformly. It should also be pleasing in appearance. These properties depend … Read more
Basic Components of a Building A building consists of following basic components. 1. Foundation A foundation is necessary to evenly distribute the entire building load on the soil in such a manner that no damaging settlements take place. Hence, the foundations need to be constructed on good/solid ground. 2. Plinth A plinth is normally constructed … Read more
Guidelines to Follow While Constructing Pile under Water While placing concrete by tremie method, all tremie pipes should be cleaned before and after use. The diameter of tremie pipe should be preferably 200 mm for constructing piles of all diameters within 600 mm. For 25 mm down aggregate, tremie pipe should have a diameter not … Read more
Points to Consider Mixing of mineral admixtures with OPC at site should not normally be permitted. However for projects requiring use of blended cement from durability and strength considerations, which is not available from the cement manufacturer blending may be permitted through a specific facility created at site with complete automated process control to achieve … Read more
Finishing may be defined as the process of leveling, smoothing, compacting and otherwise treating surface of fresh concrete or recently placed concrete to produce desired appearance. Steps Involved for Finishing Concrete There are 3 different steps involved for finishing concrete, which are as given below. Screeding Floating Trowelling 1. Screeding (Step-1) This is the process … Read more
Removal of Forms Forms should not be removed until the concrete has sufficiently hardened in order that it can carry safely its own weight and any other live loads it is subjected to. The supporting period (period between placing of concrete in forms and removal of forms) differ according to the type of cement used … Read more
Careful supervision during concrete manufacture is necessary for all concreting operations such as batching, mixing, transporting, laying, compacting and curing. While inspecting concreting work following points should be remembered for effective quality control. Inspection during Concreting The concrete mix should be designed in the laboratory with the materials to be used in the field. Weight … Read more