[Aroy]

Originally Posted by dsuman

........................

1. Lift Pit Size is 5.9 Feet square Block. Lift entrance will be on a raised platform.
2. 24 Pillars in total all using 16mm Iron Bars. There will be concealed beams of 16mm bars for additional stability.
3. There will be 2 Water Sumps towards NW corner. Site is a North East facing once.

7 feet X 20 Pits have been dug up for Pillar/Foundation and the Pillars have been installed with concrete till 2 feet. The remaining 5Feet spacr in the pits have been covered by the same soil that was dug up.

What precautions/options do I take at this stage. The Ground Floor Bed will be built early next week. Anything specific to remember?

I will need time to go through the pages of this post so need immediate suggestions.

. Two feet of foundation depth seems to quite shallow. Normally it is at least 1m deep, unless you join all the columns with beams.
Attachment 2324686



. As mentioned, building foundation over unconsolidated soil is a recipe for disaster. You should have got the contractor to compact each foundation pit mechanically. Otherwise there are chances of the building cracking due to differential settlement.
. So as suggested flood the site with water. This has to be done a couple of times. As rains are due, just leave the columns as they are and let rain do its work.

. Have you taken into account floods? If your land is low lying, it would be wiser to raise the plinth to at least 1m above the surrounding ground/road.
. I would not suggest building up the ground floor bed before the whole area has settled. At the most spread soil and compact it. It will settle after rains, then compact it again and then use concrete to make the bed.

. Another thing that most miss out is the elevator access to the terrace. Please ensure that the lift goes all the way to the terrace.

[suzuki san]

Hi,

I agree with Aroy about the 1m or more depth for the foundation.
Please make sure you do proper plinth protection.
Our building in Bombay has recently been attached by large rats.
They have eaten though concrete sewage pipes, steel fresh water lines and finally into the building itself.
It has cost a large amount of money to repair this damage and as a deterrent the contractor has now mixed pieces of glass from old broken bottles ( about 2 inches x 3 inches size )into the cement mixture. We have also done the pest control 3 times and thrown in rat poison biscuits still in their wrapping all along the edge of the building in case they try again.
Do NOT underestimate the damage these guys can cause.
Our repair bill has already breached the 25L mark!

Regards,
SS

[dsuman]

Originally Posted by keroo1099

The first thing to do is flood your site with water so that the filled soil settles. You might need several tanker loads over a few days. Don't rely on the contractor saying he will compact manually.

If you have a termite problem, do pest control before the contractor lays the PCC bed for your car park.

That is what I am doing for the last 3 days. Flooding the Pits with water three times a day and I can see the soil settling down. I plan to water the soil for 2 more days. In fact my contractor insists on watering for atleast 4 days.

Termite problem exists so we will be using Termite Medicines in the foundation. Thanks for your advice

Originally Posted by Aroy

. Two feet of foundation depth seems to quite shallow.
. So as suggested flood the site with water. This has to be done a couple of times. As rains are due, just leave the columns as they are and let rain do its work.

. Have you taken into account floods? If your land is low lying, it would be wiser to raise the plinth to at least 1m above the surrounding ground/road.

. Another thing that most miss out is the elevator access to the terrace. Please ensure that the lift goes all the way to the terrace.

The site used to be a Agricultural Field before it was converted to a Residential Plot and sold to us. The Soil is a Black soil which is heavy and Gluey and binds hard when it is dried.

The pits which were dug are
Corner Pits : 7 feet deep and 4 feet wide.
Center Pits : 7 Feet Deep and 8 Feet Wide.

I believe 7 Feet means slightly above 2 meters. Here are the pictures of the foundation Pillars.





]

Unfortunately there is a cloud cover for the last 5 days but rains have eluded my area.

My area is not in a flood zone. Nearest River is 40kms away and the nearest seacoast is 70kms away. We are anyway raising the foundation by 5 feet from the ground.

Offcourse Lift will go to the Terrace. Lift Machine room is being built 1 floor above the Terrace.

I am making provisions for a 10KV Solar Power Plant as well.

Originally Posted by suzuki san

Hi,

I agree with Aroy about the 1m or more depth for the foundation.
Please make sure you do proper plinth protection.
Our building in Bombay has recently been attached by large rats.
They have eaten though concrete sewage pipes, steel fresh water lines and finally into the building itself.
It has cost a large amount of money to repair this damage and as a deterrent the contractor has now mixed pieces of glass from old broken bottles ( about 2 inches x 3 inches size )into the cement mixture. We have also done the pest control 3 times and thrown in rat poison biscuits still in their wrapping all along the edge of the building in case they try again.
Do NOT underestimate the damage these guys can cause.
Our repair bill has already breached the 25L mark!

Regards,
SS

Point noted my Friend.

Few more Questions

- How much watering is required for concrete and cement work. Is there a limit after which it stops absorbing water.

- Which is the best Fast Drying Cement. So far I have used Ultratech 53grade OPC Cement.

[keroo1099]

Originally Posted by dsuman

How much watering is required for concrete and cement work. Is there a limit after which it stops absorbing water.

Concrete reaches 65% strength in 7 days, and 90% in 14 days

Minimum period for curing is 21 days, more you do the better it is for the concrete.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by dsuman

....................

- How much watering is required for concrete and cement work. Is there a limit after which it stops absorbing water.

- Which is the best Fast Drying Cement. So far I have used Ultratech 53grade OPC Cement.

Watering is NOT for absorption by concrete. RATHER it is to cool the concrete while setting. Concrete heats up while curing, hence requirement to cool it. Once the surface hardens (it is not washed away) then any amount of water helps in cooling the concrete, hence preventing micro cracks

Regarding fast drying, just ignore it. The longer the cement cures the stronger it becomes. Fast drying cements are used in specialized cases - airport runways, military structures etc where you need the structure fast. Where ever you can wait, use normal cement it will be cheaper and stronger in the long run.

[sagarpadaki]

Originally Posted by Aroy

Regarding fast drying, just ignore it. The longer the cement cures the stronger it becomes. Fast drying cements are used in specialized cases - airport runways, military structures etc where you need the structure fast. Where ever you can wait, use normal cement it will be cheaper and stronger in the long run.

Which grade cement do you recommend? 43 grade or 53 grade cement?

Our neighbor built his house entirely with 43 grade cement(Zuari) including foundations, roof and columns. I thought 53 grade provides more strength. The building is 3 storey tall with 1200 sqft each floor. So total 3600 sqft. My thinking is the 53 grade would have provided more strength

[locusjag]

Do builders these days discourage us from drawing up an agreement as that would attract GST on all payments that we make to them? I am hearing that this is how many builders are playing it...personally speaking, a 18% GST on top of construction costs would put my dream home beyond my abilities and on the other hand, a lack of an agreement sounds risky.

Any thoughts?

[condor]

Originally Posted by Aroy

Watering is NOT for absorption by concrete. RATHER it is to cool the concrete while setting.

Correct - and thanks for pointing that out.

Here's something interesting: check the relevant part about curing

https://delzottoproducts.com/2017/03...the%20concrete.

[Sran]

Originally Posted by sagarpadaki

Which grade cement do you recommend? 43 grade or 53 grade cement?

Our neighbor built his house entirely with 43 grade cement(Zuari) including foundations, roof and columns. I thought 53 grade provides more strength. The building is 3 storey tall with 1200 sqft each floor. So total 3600 sqft. My thinking is the 53 grade would have provided more strength

There is nothing wrong in constructing with 43 grade. Just remember to water everything, roof for atleast 21 days. I would recommend to slow down the pace if its going too fast. House should be constructed in a slow manner, the ground floor atleast over a year. Let the foundations settle in. Water bricks for 2 days before using. Then a week of watering on masonry. Water on plasters, water on pillars, water on floor after filling, to let the mud/sand settle. Buy jute bag rolls used in construction, wrap it around pillar, it helps water retention.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by Sran

There is nothing wrong in constructing with 43 grade. Just remember to water everything, roof for atleast 21 days. I would recommend to slow down the pace if its going too fast. House should be constructed in a slow manner, the ground floor atleast over a year. Let the foundations settle in. Water bricks for 2 days before using. Then a week of watering on masonry. Water on plasters, water on pillars, water on floor after filling, to let the mud/sand settle. Buy jute bag rolls used in construction, wrap it around pillar, it helps water retention.

Cement both in mortar and in concrete keeps gaining strength over its life time, it is just that 90% of its strength is developed in just 20 days or so. In quick setting cement the 90% strength can develop in just two days.

That said, it is best to let the building come up slowly, so that the mortar/concrete get stronger as well as giving time for the heat dissipate completely. Extra watering is harmless but too little is disastrous.

[nidhikapoor]

Originally Posted by Sran

There is nothing wrong in constructing with 43 grade. Just remember to water everything, roof for atleast 21 days. I would recommend to slow down the pace if its going too fast. House should be constructed in a slow manner, the ground floor atleast over a year. Let the foundations settle in. Water bricks for 2 days before using. Then a week of watering on masonry. Water on plasters, water on pillars, water on floor after filling, to let the mud/sand settle. Buy jute bag rolls used in construction, wrap it around pillar, it helps water retention.

One year for the ground floor? Most houses in Bangalore seem to be finished in 14-18 months for a 3 story structure. Is that all wrong?

[TorqueyTechie]

Originally Posted by nidhikapoor

One year for the ground floor? Most houses in Bangalore seem to be finished in 14-18 months for a 3 story structure. Is that all wrong?

I don't know if its wrong but I would be skeptical for sure of the build quality. Back in '04 when we constructed our house (a duplex) it took around 15-16 months with almost 3-4 months left aside (for each floor) for curing itself. I was told that it helps in proper setting of the cement.

My FIL recently constructed a 3 floor building and it was completed in 1.5 years. I did ask the contractor and he mentioned that due to cement blocks and fast curing cement used wherever necessary construction time is reduced now. I did not accept his reasoning and going by how the quality of the construction, I feel my skepticism was right but nothing much could be done by then.

I would definitely recommend to budget time for allowing curing of the cement after each level in the overall timeframe.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by nidhikapoor

One year for the ground floor? Most houses in Bangalore seem to be finished in 14-18 months for a 3 story structure. Is that all wrong?

Cement mortar keeps gaining strength over time. The 28 day period is to let it attain 90% strength, which is fine if you have catered to it. In general civil designs are over engineered to accommodate shoddy workmanship and at time sub par materials - if calculations require a 6"x 8" column, it will normally be designed as a 10" x 12" column, that is known as safety factor.

With proper materials and workmanship high rise buildings abroad are erected at 10-15 days per storey for in situ concrete and at 2-3 days interval for prefabricated ones. The fastest I have read is one day per storey in China.

[atulsian]

Originally Posted by dsuman

What precautions/options do I take at this stage. The Ground Floor Bed will be built early next week. Anything specific to remember?

I will need time to go through the pages of this post so need immediate suggestions.

1) Do make sure that you are using waterproofing liquid (Dr fixit LwPlus) during concrete work and plastering.

2) If your contractor is aware of handling, installing AAC blocks, go with them. If otherwise, stick to Red bricks with sand plastering.

3) You can also look at micro reinforcement in plastering (Recron 3s) along with the waterproofing chemical. Also, during brick work ask your contractor to use fiber mesh( instead of steel mesh) at joints and after installing electric conduit and installing bond beam after 1200mm height.

4) For slab, you can go with dust or sand and there is Macro reinforcement along with the steel to increase strength and water permeability.

5) For pest, pre and post construction you can go with Bayer Products.

6) For curing, we have stick to 12 days for slab and 7 days each for brick and plastering.

[nidhikapoor]

Hi Guys,

Can someone please shed some light on pros/cons of a Sintex sump versus a RCC sump? Would really appreciate it.

Thanks