Rushil Magan

207067333

CTD 110

HOUSE CONSTRUCTION PROJECT 2007

Contents:

1.

Introduction

2.

Site

3.

Substructure

4.

Superstructure

10

5.

Others

15

6.

Services

25

7.

Finishes

27

8.

Materials

28

9.

Diagrams

32

1.

Introduction:

Before any construction can take place on any site, someone must have a deed to the site, in other words, ownership of the land onto which they would like to build. They would have to have hired an architect to design the building that they would like to occupy. The architect and his or her firm will draw up plans which will go through a number of stages including where they have to pass council submission requirements which certify that the building to be constructed is safe for human inhabitants.

After the plans are approved and a building contractor is chosen, construction will begin in an organised fashion from preparing the site, excavation, to laying a foundation, building of walls, setting in windows, putting up the roof and finally adding finishes to the newly constructed building.

We will be looking mostly at the single storey dwellings built at Fishermans Village in Muizenburg.

2.

Site

Before any construction may take place, the site must be prepared to take the building that is going to be constructed on it.

2.1

Services:

The municipality will supply electricity, water and sewerage connections to the site. The water and electricity connections run in the road whilst the sewer connections are usually located and the lowest end of the site where the natural fall of gravity will move the waste off the site.

The roads off the site boundary have storm water channels along side them, they are connected to the city waste removal system, and since they are lower the ground level of the site, thus they can serve the drainage of the site onto then to remove storm water.

2.2

Preparation:

When the owners sign over the site to the contractors, the contractors then take full responsibility of all persons on the site at any time.

Usually a container is used as a site office.

2.3

Clearing:

The section of the site to be built on, usually the building plan and about 2 meters working space all around is to be cleared of trees, shrubs, rocks and large stones.

The topsoil layer, about 150mm deep, is removed over the whole building area and kept to be used as garden soil fill after the building work is completed.

2.4

Setting Out:

The builders then accurately set out the building using the site boundaries. On flat sites, the walls can be set out using a measuring tape and can be marked with pegs and lines, or dry cement or lime. For sloping sites, profiles are erected on the corners of the building in a level plane.

3.
3.1 3.1.1

Substructure:
Excavations: Soil: Since all buildings rest on soil, it is important that the nature of the soil is known, it influences building design and structure. Since most soils in South Africa have good weight bearing capacity, thus for either single or double storey dwellings a strip foundation can be used.

3.1.2 Sloping Site: They are levelled by cutting and filling an area minimum 1m larger than the buildings footprints.

Buildings can be designed to follow the slope.

3.1.2 Excavations: Trenches for strip foundations are dug to at least 300mm but rarely go to a depth more than 500mm except when on rock. The trenches being dug must be cut square and have clean vertical sides and horizontal bottoms. They are roots, loose rocks, ants nets or usually 200mm diameter and are clean of tree any other form of waste or debris.

3.2

Strip Foundations:

These are continuous widenings of the wall. They must be 200mm thick, 400mm wide under non-structural walls and 600mm wide under structural walls. Concrete floors may also serve as strip foundations.

3.2.1. Concrete Strip Foundation: The concrete used for the strip foundations is 10MPa mass concrete and is not reinforced. Concrete is cast in trenches and compacted with a space or a stick.

3.3

Foundation Walls:

After the foundations are cast, the foundation walls are set accurately from the profiles and the corners must be tested for square-ness. They are built in the middle of the strip foundation. These walls bring the foundation out of the ground to floor level.

The compacted ground fill is retained under the floors by the external foundation walls, which are also known as Retaining Walls. Heights for retaining walls are restricted to 750mm for 190mm wide walls, and up to 1000mm for 220mm wide walls. Internal foundation walls are mostly non-retaining walls and may not be higher than 1500mm.

3.4

Ground Fill:

To prevent the infestation of termites, the soiled that is going to be used for filling is poisoned with Chlordane in termite infested areas.

Moist soil without excessive clay is normally used. Soil dug up from the foundation trenches is also used. It is compacted to 150mm to a minimum density 90%, taken up evenly on both sides of non-structural internal walls.

It is taken up to 75mm from the top of the foundation wall.

3.5

Damp-proof Membranes:

Since the fact that soil under builders is normally moist, this moisture migrates into porous walls and floors in contact with the soil, causing unsightly stains and unhealthy fungal growth in rooms. 7

A thin sheet of plastic: 0,25mm Polyolefin (SABS 952 type C, green), which is also known as a Damp-proof Membrane or DPM, which is laid over the soil filling and taken up against the foundation wall. The DPM is laid in large sheets, with joints lapped 150mm. Where a difference in floor level occurs, a vertical DPM is used in between the two leaves of the retaining wall.

3.6

Services:

The conduits for electricity are cast into the floor. The PVC pipes are laid on top of the DPM before the floor is cast.

3.7

Floors:

Floors at ground level on the filling are normally impervious brick or stone 40mm thick, or a concrete slab about 75mm thick. The concrete floors on the filling can be used as foundations for non-structural walls, the thickening would be 200mm thick (which includes the slab) and 400mm wide.

Concrete floors are cast in room-sized panels usually in between the foundation walls, keeping panels small enough to dry without cracking. In larger areas, panels are kept to 3 x 4m or reinforced with a suitable steel mesh.

The concrete floors are cast level with the top of the foundation wall, levelled with a straight-edge, or with a pipe which is rolled over the foundation walls.

The concrete floors must be cured for a minimum of three days.

The concrete floors will be finished roughly until almost all the building work is complete to prevent damage to the finished floor surface. Concrete finished in this

manner is known as Surface Beds and must be of 10MPa strength concrete, after which they are finished with a screed.

4.

Superstructure:

This is the part of the building from the ground floor level up to the roof.

4.1

Damp-proof Courses:

In the prevention of dampness from rising in walls, an impervious layer is laid over the full foundation wall width at floor level. A 0,375mm thick polyolefin course (SABS 952 type B, black) is laid on the foundation wall. Joints are lapped by 200mm minimum.

Damp-proof Courses (or DPC) for cavity walls are stepped and then fully supported over the cavity to prevent them from being damaged. DPC will be used in areas where the cavity is bridged, as well as around windows and doors. In places where the windows and doors are not protected from rain-where the roof overhang does not prevent it, the DPC is especially important to protect the dampness from rising.

4.2

Masonry Walls:

These walls are normally not reinforced; they are strong in compression and weak in tension. The building design is normally chosen to reduce tension in the walls, if tension does occur, the walls are then strengthened.

The walls can be Structural or Non-structural. The external walls are normally structural as they hold up the roof. The internal walls are usually non-structural, and in the case of a trussed structure, they stop at the ceiling.

4.2.1

Restrictions: The restrictions are to the experimental design of the masonry structural walls, which are restricted to: 2 storeys Span width 10m for roof trusses / beams 10

6m span for reinforced concrete slab 170mm max. thickness Roof covering material dead load: 0,8kn/m

4.2.2

Stability: Achieved by curving, intersecting, or support by piers or buttresses. Maximum unsupported straight length of 230mm structural wall with a height of 4m is 9m, for 110mm non-structural wall of height 3,3m is 7m.

Walls must intersect within an inclusive angle of 60 - 120, be 80% of the height of supported wall, half the wall thickness or min. 90mm thick, and either and one-eighth or one-fifth of its height in length.

Piers: 3 x Wall thickness Wide and 2 x Wall thickness in length. Number, size and position of openings should not weaken the stability of the wall. Chasings in walls for conduits may not exceed 1/3 of wall thickness if chasings are vertical and 1/6 if chasings horizontal.

Parapet walls may not exceed 6 times their thickness.

4.2.3

Requirements: Structural Walls: 1 Impact resistant 2 Rodent resistant 3 Thermally insulated 4 Acoustically insulated 5 Adequately water resistant to ingress of water

NBR require that a single-leafed block wall of min. 140mm thick, be plastered on the outside; single-leafed bricked wall at least 190mm thick; a masonry cavity wall; doubled-leafed wall of which outside faade of the internal leaf is bagged and coated with a sealant.

Stone walls are normally thicker (more than 450mm) and perform better than brick/block walls. 11

4.2.4

Solid Walls: Usually in inland areas, the external walls can be single or double-leafed whilst internal walls are always single-leafed.

4.2.5

Cavity Walls: In wets regions along the coast and in winter rainfall areas, should have cavity walls.

They are walls with two leaves and a cavity in between to prevent water moving from a wet outer region to the dry inner leaf. The cavities are normally 50 100mm

wide. They provide a degree of insulation. Leaves are joined by 3,15mm diameter metal ties, and are spread at 2,5 ties/m for a wall area for cavities less than 75mm and 3 ties/m for cavities more than 75mm.

Perpends must be left open at the lower level, of a stepped DPC at about 1/m to allow water to drain out of the inside face of the external leaf. Cavities must be cleared of mortar droppings forming possible bridges between the two leaves. While still in the construction phase, the cavities.

12

4.2.6

Lintels: This is a horizontal beam or stone spanning a window or door opening. The size and amount of reinforcing required (masonry or concrete) depends on the span, the closeness of other openings and exposure to rain.

Cast-in-situ concrete lintels are shuttered and diameter steel rods at the

reinforced with 10-20mm

bottom and concrete with a 2MPa strength.

4.2.7

Fireplaces: Normally built of fireproof masonry on smoke flues, throats and chimneys. New ones are mainly factory made steel units, built into the wall or installed free standing, and they burn solid or gas fuel.

A solid burning fire place must have a non-combustible other hearth or apron t hat extends 500mm in front and 300mm at the sides of the grating.

Chimneys must be placed so that the smoke and harmful gases are safely conducted away from the building. The chimneys must be non-combustible and no combustible materials be built closer than 200mm from the side of the chimney. Chimneys must extend at least 1m past the highest contact point with the roof, or 600mm above the ridge if closer than 600mm to the ridge, be 1m above any openable window closer than 2,3m or id the chimney does not pass through the roof, 1,5m above the eaves or 600mm above the highest point of the gable.

13

4.2.8

Building in: Windows and door frames are set up in position as the walls are being built up. They are temporarily supported and the lugs provided with the frame are bent out and built into the masonry wall.

Roof anchors prevent the roof structure from blowing off. They consist of 4mm diameter galvanised double twisted steel wire, built in between the two leaves of brick walls, into the core of hollow block walls, or in joints of stonework with a short length of steel rod through the end to prevent pulling out. Anchors are built in at least 600mm deep, in line with the trusses or beam.

14

5.
5.1

Others:
Windows:

Windows are there to light up and air rooms naturally, also, they provide a view from the inside to the outside.

Each habitable room, bath/shower room or toilet must have a window that is at least 10% (minimum) of the floor area of the room, unless the rooms are mechanically ventilated, the opening must be 5% (minimum) of the floor area.

Window and door openings are to be placed so that rooms are ventilated efficiently, also known as Cross Ventilation where they are as far as possible away from each other. Windows may be situated in external walls or in the roof. Doors with glass panels also serve as Windows.

Windows must have a space zone on the outside to ensure that adequate light and air reaches the windows, also they must be in comfortable reach for opening or cleaning.

5.1.1

Thermal Performance: Windows can be glazed for heat insulation. Windows must be designed in such a way that they are protected from sun and rain and be too large.

5.1.2

Frames: They can be ordered from catalogues with standard sizes or be made of aluminium and are Made-to-order and of custom sizes.

15

5.1.3

Glazing: Frames or glazed with panes of 3-4mm thick glass, panes in doors larger than 1m and glass in places where people can bump into, must be minimum 6mm thick safety glass.

5.2

Doors:

They serve as an access point to a room, and can be lockable for security or privacy. They must be large enough to allow the people and furniture through.

Standard door size: 813 x 2032 x 40mm

External doors must be protected against sun and rain by an overhang or recess.

5.2.1

Door Types:

5.2.1.1 Flush Doors: Flush faces, hollow or solid core construction, sheathed both sides with hardboard or plywood. Hollow core doors suitable for interior use only.

5.2.1.2 Panel Doors: Framework filled in with glass, wood or louver panels.

5.2.1.3 Batten Doors: Solid wood construction intended for exterior use. Normally framed and braced, tongue and groove cladding on outside and flush plywood panel to hide frame on inside.

5.2.1.4 Hand: Doors described as left or right handed. Refers to the side on the door where the hinges are located when the door opens towards you. 16

5.2.2

Ironmongery: Doors are normally hung with a pair of butt hinges. They are also fitted with an upright mortice lock with latch and deadlock.

5.2.3

Frames: Doors usually hung in a fixed frame. Frames consist of 2 styles and a top rail but can also have a bottom rail. Frame styles and rails are rebated for the door to stop against, and keep light and dust out.

5.2.3.1 Steel Frames: Pressed from flat mild steel plate 1,2mm or 1,6mm thick. Corners mitred and welded. Profiles are made for all wall widths, with single or double rebate. Hinges and lock striking plates provided with frame, steel frames are factory primed.

5.2.3.2 Timber Frames: Made of hardwood, 114 x 50mm timber that is rebated, supplied with horns, anchor pins and lugs for building in. Back of frames treated and painted before building in. Frame-to-wall junction finished with quarter rounds or architraves.

5.2.3.3 Building in: Frames in external walls must be protected against rain and are thus placed flush with the inside wall face. External doors preferably open inwards.

Frames are set up in position and temporarily supported. Frames are built into the wall with lugs and the space between the frame and wall is filled with mortar to prevent denting.

5.2.4

Thresholds: External door thresholds should be stepped to prevent rainwater from entering or being blown under the door and are normally provided with a weather bar to shed off excess rain water. 17

Should be durable and slip-proof, difference in floor level should be under door, with edge rounded off by metal or plastic strip to prevent chipping.

Normally cast-in-situ or precast concrete thresholds are used or finished with tiles.

5.2.5

Sliding Doors: Used to achieve large openings onto outside areas and normally made of timber or aluminium frames with a safety glass infill.

5.2.6

Security Gates: A basic security need and should be planned for. Allow opening of door for ventilation purposes whilst still keeping intruders out.

5.3

Roofs:

A capping element to a structure that can be flat or pitched. At Fishermans Village a Pitch Roof with a Gable is used.

5.3.1

Wall Plates: Not a necessity, but trussed or beamed structure usually laid on timber wall plate. The plate provides a level and even surface on which truss rests.

Typically 114 x 38mm or 76 x 38mm grade S5 softwood. Laid in long lengths and lie loose until they are held in place by the trusses or beams.

Trusses or beams are sometimes laid in openings provided in the walls, on timber wedges to line them up or fixed up with a patent steel hanger, the beams can also extend to the outside for an overhang, the wall can be finished off around the beam or truss and the wall extended as a full-with parapet wall.

5.3.2

Roof Structure: Pitched roofs are normally constructed of timber.

18

5.3.2.1 Design: Designed rationally or to comply with deemed-to-satisfy-rules of the NBR.

Howe-type gables: Max. span 10m supported at heel joints only, max. bay section 1,5m Max. span 6.5m for rafter construction. Roof pitch: Class: A: B: C: 15 - 30 17 - 35 15 - 30

Spacing:

Class A: B: C:

1400mm max. 750mm max. 1050mm max.

Designed by first choosing roof covering and pitch, then batten/purlin sizes and beam size.

5.3.2.2 Precautions against blowing off: Trusses are anchored to the wall with 30 x 1,2mm galvanised steel hoops or 4mm diameter galvanized double twisted steel wire roof anchors, built 600mm deep into masonry. Crossing purlins on battens are fixed with a wire or patent storm clamp.

5.3.2.3 Formation of the roof: Gable walls may not be used to support trusses. Permanent cross bracing and gang planks must be installed as soon as possible. When purlins or battens are in position, roof anchors can be twisted around the rafters and nailed.

5.3.2.4 Roof Coverings: Roof Sheets: Metal profiled sheets with mass 6 11kg/m and are manufactured from 0,6mm thick flat galvanised or pre-painted galvanized steel sheets which are rolled to a required profile of various suppliers.

19

IBR-profile (Inverted Box Ribs) sheets have 5 ribs per sheet width (686mm), rib depth of 37mm and rib spacing of 171,5mm.

Roof sheets laid of 50 x 76mm softwood at 1100mm max. spacing. Fixed from above with galvanized drive screws or hexagon head screws with neoprene washers and galvanized cap washers at every sheet lap and every second and fourth rib of IBR sheet. Side laps are stitched at every 900mm with 6mm galvanised self-tapping screw. Side laps should face away from prevailing winds and holes should be drilled not punched.

Ridge must be covered with a galvanized ridge plate of 450mm girth, with or without roll-top, and shaped to suit the IBR-profile.

5.3.3

Gutters and Downpipes: Manufactured out of galvanized and/or pre-painted steel sheets, or of aluminium sheets, plastic or fibre-cement. Sizes determined by NBR R3. Cross sectional area of a gutter in a summer rainfall area should be al least 140mm/m of the roof area, and in all-year rainfall areas 115mm/m and in winter rainfall areas 80mm/m. The size of the downpipe must be 100mm/m of the roof area, or at least 4400mm.

Galvanized / Pre-painted Steel sheets: Gutters made of 0,6mm thick sheets. Standard house gutter 100 x 75mm or 125mm halfround. Gutters come in lengths up to 6m, joined by lap joints and stop-ends and outlets where necessary. The galvanized sheets are soldered together whilst the pre-painted sheets are pop riveted and sealed with silicone.

20

Downpipes are supplied with offsets and shoes. Standard sizes are 75mm diameter or 100 x 75mm. Gutters are laid in 25 x 3mm galvanized gutter brackets, nailed or screwed at 2m spacings to the top of the eaves battens before the roof covering is laid. Gutters are fixed to the brackets with 6mm diameter galvanised gutter bolts.

Downpipes are fixed at least twice to walls with holderbats of the same material.

Plastic: Made of PVC and are patent systems. Components are joined with spigot socket joints and glued together. Gutter brackets must be provided at 1m max. spacing.

5.3.4

Fascias and Barge Boards: Finish off the roof edge and protect the rafters and beams. Made of fibre cement or timber. Holes to be drilled and countersunk at 750mm max. spacing to eaves battens or purlin or gable batten with 5mm diameter x 50mm cadmium-plated steel or brass screw. End joints covered with galvanized steel H-profile cover strips.

Timber fascias and barge boards also serviceable but require regular painting. Roof finishes should end of the barge boards to prevent rotting of fixing batten.

21

5.3.5

Overhangs, Parapet Walls: Roof overhangs accomplished by extending the rafter or room beam. Rafters size 38 x 114mm can cantilever about 500mm, and rafters size 38 x 152mm to about 700mm. Larger overhangs to be supported.

Parapet walls stretch above the roof line, are exposed to weather and must be designed to cast off water efficiently. The wall-to-roof covering joint is to be made waterproof by flashings. Flashings are normally made of galvanized steel sheets. Also concealed gutters against the parapet wall also form a good waterproof finish.

5.3.6

Pergolas: Can be an extension of the house roof, be stand-alone or a structure over garden path. Pergolas are made of timber or steel; poles are planted into the ground and tied at the top with beams. Laths or wire is laid on top of the beams.

22

5.4

Ceilings:

Hides the ceiling construction and services, carries the lighting armatures, reflect lights, acts acoustically, carries insulation and can be decorative.

Minimum floor-to-ceiling height 2,4m for habitable rooms and 2.1 for other rooms. Ceilings must be non-combustible, except solid timber.

5.4.1

Timber Ceiling Battens: Battens of sawn softwood or saligna, 38 x 38mm for spacing up to 1000mm, 38 x 50mm up to 1200mm, 50 x 50mm up to 1400. Timber battens are nailed at right angles to trusses at 400mm spacings with 80 100mm nails. Battens along walls must be 40mm away from the wall for fixing of gypsum. Longitudinal joints in battens must occur on trusses or beams and must be staggered. Battens must be levelled by means of wedges; each intersection must be skew nailed in addition to the normal nail to prevent pulling out.

5.4.2

Gypsum Ceiling Boards: Boards are 6,4mm thick, arranged symmetrically between, at right angles to the battens. Ceiling board are nailed to the battens with 38mm galvanized clout nails 150mm centres. Boards are joined with H-profile metal cover strips.

The whole ceiling can be plastered by covering the joints with 60mm wide scrim, fixed with nails or staples and plastering the whole ceiling with gypsum plaster to 3 4mm thickness.

23

5.4.3

Cornices Covers cover the gap between the ceiling and wall, and allow movement between the two. Gypsum cornices come in lengths of 2,7 4,8m in 300mm increments.

They are nailed to the ceiling batten and glued or nailed to the wall. Corners are mitre sawn. Cornices can also be of wood, nailed or screwed to the wall.

5.4.4

Ceiling Hatches: Allow for access into the ceiling spaces for inspection or maintenance. The are positioned between the trusses, and preferably near the geyser.

Ceiling hatches are normally 700 x 700mm. The hatch is made of gypsum ceiling board on a 38 x 38mm timber frame. The ceiling hatch lies loose in a hardwood cover strip all around the hatch opening.

Ceiling hatches can also be pressed steel, complete with frame and hinges.

5.4.5: Ceiling Insulation: A blanket 40 80mm thick glass fibre is laid snugly between the trusses over the ceiling and ceiling battens, to act as thermal insulation.

24

6.1
6.1.1

Services:
Electricity: Distributed by overhead or underground cables in the road reserves. Connections are made to a meter on the erf boundary, and from there to a distribution box in the house with switches and circuit breakers.

Conduits for electrical, telephone and television cables for domestic buildings are PVC, usually 20mm in diameter. Conduits and outlet boxes are cast or built in during building work. Only later are the necessary cables drawn through them.

6.1.2

Telecommunications: Provided by overhead or underground cables in the road reserves. Connections are made by the service provided through overhead cables to a point on the nearest wall or roof. Conduits should be provided from this point to required user endpoints.

Television cables from the TV set to the aerial should be provided for by a means of conduits.

6.1.3

Water: Branches to erven are usually 20mm in diameter, leading to a meter and stopcock in a box on the erf boundary, and from there to a stopcock, strainer and pressure reducing valve in a box on the nearest house wall. From there water supply pipes are usually 15 to 20mm in diameter, of galvanised mild steel, copper or polypropylene. Geysers should be positioned close to the hot water taps in order to minimise wasteful run-off of cold water in the pipe, which is a waste of hot water and energy.

25

6.1.4

Waste Water: Also known as Grey Water, which is used water from basins, baths and showers, does not contain Soil Water. Waste Water is removed by gravity, usually together with Soil Water, collectively known as Sewage.

Waste Water can be collected separately and used for irrigation, although it is regarded as foul.

Water discharge pipes are usually 40 or 50mm in diameter, of galvanised mild steel or PVC.

6.1.5

Sewage: Contains Waste and Soil Water, Soil Water discharges from WCs and contains excreta. Sewage is removed by gravity to a sewer connection on the erf boundary, supplied by the local authority. From there the sewage runs via the city sewer system to the local sewer works.

Domestic sewer pipes are usually 100mm in diameter of PVC or Cast Iron.

6.1.6

Building in: Pipes are usually 20mm in diameter and are usually cast into surface beds, built into walls or chased into walls and then plastered over. Pipes in roof spaces are fixed to roof timber with saddles. Pipes up to 50mm diameter may be cast into the floor. They are too large to be chased into walls and therefore usually fixed to the wall surface with saddles or holderbats. Pipes larger than 50mm diameter must always be surfaced fixed with saddles or holderbats.

Pipes should be grouped as far as possible in ducts that are easily accessible for inspection or cleaning. Pipes on external walls to be concealed.

26

7.1
7.1.1

Finishes:
Screeds: 25mm screed floor finish above concrete floor slab. Surface slab must be rough or chipped to provide good key. Divided into bays of 3 - 4m to control cracking. Tiles laid on top of screed as floor finish.

7.1.2: Walls: Finished in Plaster or Creed Stone and then painted. Mixture of cement, lime, sand and water. Also applied to ceilings.

27

8.1
8.1.1

Materials:
Concrete: Mixture of Coarse and fine aggregate of stone, sand and cement.

Aggregates: Sand and stone: 70% of volume of concrete. Normally 20mm stone used in mass and reinforced concrete. Sand, or fine aggregate, less than 5mm in size, can be crusher, river, pit, dune or sea sand.

Water: Water for making concrete must be potable.

Mix: Ratio 1:4:5 (1 cement : 4 parts sand : 5 parts stone) with only enough water to make the mix workable, produces concrete with a compressive strength of 10MPa after 28 days, mix suitable for un-reinforced strip foundation and strip surface beds. Mixed my hand or mechanical mixer.

Lower the water : cement ratio, stronger the cement. Only enough water should be used to make the concrete workable.

Placing: Cast, compacted with a stick or spade to drive out air, and struck off to a desired level with a straight-edge. Also known as cast-in-situ concrete.

Finishing: Surfaces finished in 3 ways: ordinary non-slip finish is achieved with a wood float; hard-and-smooth finish achieved by steel-troweling the ordinary non-slip finish, by hand in small areas and with a power-trowel in large areas.

Curing: 28

It is a process of keeping the concrete moist whilst setting. Ensures that cement hydrates. Kept moist by spraying or covering with plastic sheets.

8.1.2

Sand-cement Mixes: Mortar: Provides a bed for laying of masonry units, bonds units together to give strength to a wall and seals joints against rain penetration. Mix proportions are standardized as: 1:4 - class 1; 10MPa (Below ground work) 1 : 0,25 : 3 1:6 - class 2; 5MPa (General work) 1:1:6

1:9 - class 3; 1,5MPa (Non-structural work) 1 : 2 : 9 Plaster: Applied to a thickness of 10 15mm to masonry walls and concrete slab soffits to provide a smooth finish or to protect exposed faces against weathering. Consists of ordinary cement and plastersand. Mix proportions are same as mortar. Workability of mix improved with lime, or my use of masonry cement.

Screeds: Light-duty smooth flat finish to rough concrete surface beds. Used to receive carpet or tile finish. Mix proportion 1 : 3.

8.1.3

Masonry: Stone, brick or blockwork. Assembly of masonry units usually joined with mortar, but can be set dry.

Bricks: Made of clay and in rectangular shape which are then fired in kilns. Size: Weight: Density: Water absorption: 220 x 110 x 75mm (add 10mm to each for mortar) 2,3 3,4kg 1350 2000kg/m 6 14%

29

Blocks: Made of concrete and pressed into a mould and are hollow or solid blocks. Size: Concrete: Density: 300 x 130 x 120mm 5-21MPa solid core ; 3-14MPa hollow core 1800 2200kg/m

8.1.4

Masonry Walling: Tools: Trowels, levels, lines, pins or blocks and profiles.

Arrangement: Laid in courses, though bricks can be arranged differently to each other. Common bond used is a Stretcher Bond. Walls must be drawn up evenly and different types of masonry units should not be mixed in the same wall.

Laying: Laid on a full bed of mortar, all vertical joints filled up to prevent ingress of water.

Joints: Influence appearance of a wall, can be flush or recessed or 9 other lesser used variations.

Cavity Walls: Butterfly, modified PWD or single wire ties to be used.

Movement Joints: Provided at every 10 15m to reduce stresses.

30

Services: Should be planned so as to be built into the cores.

8.1.5

Construction Timber: Types: Pinus: Eucalyptus: Softwood - Evergreen or Coniferous timber Hardwood - Deciduous, broad leaved)

Grading: Construction timber normally stress-graded sawn structural softwood.

Timber must be treated against rotting and can also be fire-retardant treated.

Sizes: Rough sawn: 38, 50, 78 x 38, 50, 76, 114, 152, 190, 228, 304mm Regularised (Machined): 35, 47, 73, x 71, 111, 149, 186, 224, 300mm

8.1.6

Fibre Cement: Made from cement and mineral fibres and fillers. The mix is rolled or formed to the desired thickness and profile and then allowed to bind. It is strong, durable, non-combustible and waterproof.

8.1.7

Gypsum Board: Consists of 2 layers of sturdy paper with core of aerated gypsum. It is relatively cheap, dimensionally stable, non-combustible, rodent-proof and easily worked. Sizes: 900 1200mm wide x 2,4 6m long in 300mm increments. Sheet thickness is 6,4 ; 9,5 ; 12,5 or 15mm. Not waterproof and only suitable for interior use.

31

9.

Diagrams:

32