It is not the beauty of a building you should look at; its the construction of the foundation that will stand the test of time.
Firstly, you need to finalize the area in which you want to live then start looking for the plot. Proper Soil Testing by the expert is very much required before you buy the plot, soil test help you to understand the bearing capacity of the soil and there is no chemical or physical condition which may damage your house. After finalizing the plot, you may consult professionals like Architect / Engineer for design and drawing, get specification, quantities of materials and cost estimate from the professionals who prepare the building plan. Construction cost is generally divided between Material Cost, Labor Cost & Other Expenses in the ratio of 60:30:10 respectively.
Contractor / Architect / Engineer selection is the most essential, which needs to be defined with proper market research, past work done and current reputation in the market. Make a legal agreement with contractor / engineer with
• Scope of work
• Bill of Quantities
• Specification of work
• Construction Schedule
• Payment terms
• Safety and Quality of workmanship
• Statutory Compliance
For constructing your dream house, it is merely important that you should use best quality building materials.
• Cement
• TMT Bars
• Sand (Fine aggregate)
• Stone Chips (Coarse Aggregate)
• Water
• Bricks/Blocks
• Doors and Windows Materials
• Plumbing & Sanitary Materials
• Flooring Materials
• Electrical Goods
• Finishing Materials (Putty, PoP, Paints etc.)
A strong foundation is the most important factor to increase the longevity and safety of your building structure.
• It is preferable to get the soil testing done before designing the foundation of the building.
• The foundation should rest on the firm soil and be taken to a minimum depth of 1.2m from the original ground level.
• The area of the foundation should be significant to transfer the load safely to the ground on which it rests.
• The area of the foundation depends on the load carrying capacity of the soil, it is important to mark the location and size of the foundation before excavation.
Termite infestation weakenS the building structure and damage wooden materials. Useful tips to keep your home free from termites:
• The soil around the foundation should be treated up to the plinth level with appropriate chemicals.
• The chemical barrier should be continuous and complete.
• Treatment can be done pre, during and post construction stages.
• Care should be taken to ensure that the chemicals should not contaminate the domestic water sources.
The concrete mix needs to be in the proper ratio and mixture needs to use within 30 minutes of the preparation time. Mixer machines are required for best results. Water ratio needs to be proper using more water weakens the concrete and enhances the cracking potential. Compaction is done with the vertical vibrator. The concrete mix poured within a height of 1.5 meters maximum to avoid any separation of aggregates. Proper leveling and slope of the roof should be maintained during placing of concrete to avoid accumulation of water on the roof.
It is the most vital component in Reinforced Cement Concrete. Useful tips are given below:
• Same grade and quality TMT bar is the best to use for the whole structure.
• Maintain bar bending schedule well in advance before cutting & bending of TMT bar to minimize the wastage.
• Use concrete cover blocks at regular intervals of same strength of concrete.
• Reinforcement bars to be positioned properly and tightly fixed.
• For the bars joining adequate lap, length need to be maintained and laps should be staggered.
Critical parameters to judge reinforcement bars:
• Required tensile strength
• The consistency of physical properties across the length of the bars
• Adequate ductility
• Lower impurities
• Easy to bend (during fabrication)
• Bond with concrete