BUILDING TIPS

Tips on Building construction to civil engineers. This section consists of practical guide and other relevant information on building materials and construction which every civil engineers should know

How to make a building green

What is a Green Building? The concept of a green building was developed in the 1970s in response to the energy crisis and people's growing concerns about the environment. A Green Building, also known as a sustainable building, is a structure that is designed, built, renovated, operated, or...

PROTECTION OF BUILDINGS AGAINST DAMPNESS

PROTECTION OF BUILDINGS AGAINST DAMPNESS One of the requirements of the building is that it should be dry. Dampness in a building may occur due to bad design, faulty construction and use of poor quality of materials. Dampness not only affects the life of the building but also creates unhygienic...

ANALYSIS OF RATES FOR BUILDING WORKS

Analysis of rates for building works is the process of separation of works into components/elements (Viz. Labour, materials, machinery,transport, overheads and profit) of work and pricing them. Analysis of rates is required for:Insertion in a tender (i.e.) as a lump sum, item rates To check reasonability of rates inserted by tenderers To...

BUILDING ORIENTATION FOR HOT & DRY CLIMATE

Orientation of building should be done for the climatic zone in which the building is situated. The purpose of orientation is to provide residents a comfortable living space throughout the year even under severe undesirable weather conditions. Here we will discuss about orientation of building for maximum comfort under...

REPAIR OF POST CONCRETING DEFECTS IN STRUCTURES

The four essential features of a successful repair are: 1. Expediency: The longer the repair is left, the more work has to be done, and the less likely that the repair will blend in. 2. Cleanliness: when repairing concrete, care must be taken to remove...

FIELD CONDITION SURVEY OF BUILDING

Field condition survey of a building is to research its present condition and performance. The plans, specifications and any other pertinent construction documents describes how a building was constructed, the strengths of materials used and the intended purpose of individual building components. This information combined with information on previous...

FIRE PROTECTION OF HIGH RISE BUILDINGS

High-rise buildings have unique challenges related to fire protection such as longer egress times and distance, evacuation strategies, fire department accessibility, smoke movement and fire control. The numbers of persons living on high-rise buildings are high compared to low-rise buildings, and only evacuation method in case of fire is...

TYPES OF CRACK IN CONCRETE STRUCTURES

Types of cracks  Structural cracks. Non Structural Cracks.Structural Cracks Structural cracks are those which result from incorrect design, faulty construction or overloading and these may endanger the safety of a building and their inmates. Non Structural Cracks. Non Structural cracks occur mostly due to internally induced stresses in building materials. These cracks normally do...

BUILDING CRACKS- CAUSES & REMEDIES

Causes of Cracks in concrete structures:The principal causes of occurrence of cracks in a building are as follows: 1. Permeability of concrete. As deterioration process in concrete begins with penetration of various aggressive agents, low permeability is the key to its durability. Concrete permeability is controlled by factors like water-cement ratio,...

OPEN SPACE REQUIREMENTS FOR BUILDINGS

OPEN SPACE REQUIREMENTS (Table 3)Open air space for ventilation. Every room intended for human habitation should abut an interior or exterior opening air space of the width r dimensions specified below.Where height of building above plinth adjoining the open air space does not exceed Minimum width of open air space...

DEFINITION OF TERMS IN BRICK MASONRY

Definitions of terms brick masonry 1. Course: A course is a horizontal layer of bricks or stones.2. Bed: it is the surface of stone perpendicular to the line of pressure. It indicates the lower surface of bricks or stones in each course.3. Back: the inner surface of a wall which...

SUSTAINABILITY IN BRICK MASONRY

Sustainability in brick masonry is required in todays construction to protect environment and save cost. sustainability in brick masonry materials, manufacturing, construction and buildings are required.

IMPROVING EARTHQUAKE RESISTANCE OF SMALL BUILDINGS

The earthquake resistance of small buildings may be increased by taking some precautions and measures in site selections, building planning and constructions as explained below: 1. Site Selection for small buildings: The building constructions should be avoided on (a) Near unstable embankments (b) On sloping...

FIRE RESISTANT BUILDINGS REQUIREMENTS

It is reported that in USA fire kills more people each year than all other natural disasters combined including floods, cyclones and earthquake. The fire load in a building should be kept to the minimum possible. The term fire load indicates the amount of heat liberated in kilo joules