A rock is aggregate of mineral constituents, which forms the earth’s crust. Rocks are also one of the important building materials. The classification of rocks based on different factors with examples is discussed in this article. Classification of Rocks Rocks are classified based on three major factors as follows. Geological classification Physical classification Chemical classification […]
The post Classification of Rocks with Examples appeared first on The Constructor.
Quick sand condition is the floatation of particles of cohesionless soil, like fine gravel and sand, due to vertical upward seepage flow. As sand boiling occurs, bearing capacity and shear strength of the cohesionless soil would be lost and agitations of soil particles are visible. Therefore, quick sand condition is not a type of soil […]
The post Quick Sand Condition- Occurrence Mechanism, and Prevention Measures appeared first on The Constructor.
A variety of bathroom floor tiles are available in the market of which the most common ones are vinyl, ceramic and porcelain. Selection of best floor tile for the bathroom is dependent on certain factors like, budget, the overall architecture of the building and the expected wear and tear. Above all, understanding the pros and […]
The post Top 7 Bathroom Floor Tile Options appeared first on The Constructor.
Total weight of steel bars can be determined by knowing the unit weight of each bar. Once the steel quantity is estimated, the next step is to determine the weight of steels in tonnes or in Kg after which the material is ordered to the manufacturer. So initially unit weight of the steel is calculated […]
The post How to Calculate Weight of Steel Bars? appeared first on The Constructor.
Tide gauge is an instrument used to measure the changes in water level with respect to a vertical datum. The variations in sea level during high tides and low tides are measured by using tide gauge. It is mainly used for hydrographic surveying purposes. It is also called as marigraph or sea-level recorder. Types of […]
The post Types of Tide Gauges appeared first on The Constructor.
Sand or fine aggregate is one of the most important construction materials at any construction site. Its selection should be done very carefully as it contributes to the strength of various important mixtures like concrete, plasters and mortar. Sand should be tested for the presence of clay, silt, moisture and other deleterious materials (salts, coal, […]
The post Test for Silt Content in Sand appeared first on The Constructor.
The uniformity coefficient (Cu), curvature coefficient (Cc) and the effective size (D10) are the grading characteristics of the soil. These are the geometric properties of a grading curve that describe a particular type of soil. The features and determination of uniformity coefficient, curvature coefficient and the effective size is described in the below article. Grade […]
The post Uniformity Coefficient(Cu) and Coefficient of Curvature(Cc) of Soil appeared first on The Constructor.
Isolated or single footings are structural elements which are designed to transmit and distribute loads of single columns to the soil without exceeding its bearing capacity, in addition to prevent excessive settlement, and provide adequate safety against sliding and overturning. ACI 318-14 provides guidelines regarding the design of isolated footing. For instance, minimum effective depth […]
The post Isolated Footing Design Guidelines Based on ACI 318-14 appeared first on The Constructor.
There are various types of isolated footings such as spread footing, stepped footing, sloped footing. They are usually square, rectangular or circular in section. Each type of footing is selected based on the soil condition and configuration of imposed loads. Isolated footing is one of the most economical types of footings and is used when […]
The post Types of Isolated Footings appeared first on The Constructor.
The basic components of a building substructure are the foundation and plinth beam. These components safely transfer the load from the superstructure to the ground. Also Read: Superstructure and Substructure of a Building More features of foundation and plinth beam are described below. Foundation The foundation is the structure below the ground level that has […]
The post Components of Building Substructure appeared first on The Constructor.
A slope is an inclined boundary surface between air and the body of an earthwork such as highways, cut or fill, railway cut or fill, earth dams, levees and river training works. The slope stability analysis is considerably crucial in engineering practice to ensure stability of structures and prevent loss of human life and money. […]
The post Slope Stability- Causes of Instability, Analysis Methods, and Assumptions appeared first on The Constructor.
A Bioswale or biofiltration swale is a narrow strip of a vegetated area that redirects and filters stormwater. A typical bioswale is long, linear and shallow and is used to collect runoff water from non-porous surfaces such as roads, parking lots, rooftops etc. Besides treatment of stormwater, a bioswale helps in mitigating flooding potential and […]
The post Bioswale – Design, Applications and Advantages appeared first on The Constructor.
When an elastic body is stressed, the strain will be produced. The amount of strain produced is directly proportional to the amount of stress applied. Hence, the ratio of the type of stress applied to the type of strain produced will always be constant which is known as elastic constant. Elastic constants represent the elastic […]
The post Elastic Constants and Their Relationships appeared first on The Constructor.
Plastic analysis is the method through which the actual failure load of a structure is calculated. This failure load can be significantly greater than the elastic load capacity. In plastic analysis and design of a structure, the ultimate load of the structure as a whole is regarded as the design criterion. The term plastic has […]
The post What are the Bases of Plastic Analysis of Beams and Portal Frames? appeared first on The Constructor.
Earthquake is the most dangerous natural phenomenon that generate sizable destruction in structures. It is reported that, two sources of mistakes which would seriously endanger structures are ignoring the ways the earthquake affects buildings and inadequate construction process. That is why understanding seismic effects on structure is considerably important, and designers and contractors should consider […]
The post What are the Earthquake Effects on Structures? appeared first on The Constructor.
There are various types of materials which are used for the repair of concrete structures. For instance, unmodified Portland cement mortar or grout, latex modified Portland cement mortar or concrete, quick setting non-shrink mortar, and polymer concrete. The choice of such materials is based on their performance and cost. In addition to repair material compatibility […]
The post Materials for Repair of Concrete Structures- Types and Selection Criteria appeared first on The Constructor.
In fluid mechanics, Dimensionless numbers or non-dimensional numbers are those which are useful to determine the flow characteristics of the fluid. Inertia force always exists if there is any mass in motion. When this inertia force is divided with any of the forces such as viscous force or gravity force or surface tension or elastic […]
The post Dimensionless Numbers and Their Importance in Fluid Mechanics appeared first on The Constructor.
Stress- strain curve describes the behavior of steel bars under loads. It is created by testing of steel specimen. The steel specimen is gradually pulled in a testing machine until it breaks, and stress and corresponding strains are recorded. Then, stresses are plotted along the vertical axis and as a result of these stresses, corresponding […]
The post Stress- strain Curve for Steel Bars appeared first on The Constructor.
The construction industry has been actively looking out for more and more eco-friendly construction materials. Hempcrete or hemp concrete being a carbon-negative (carbon consuming) material is a great alternative for contractors to use in construction works. Hempcrete is prepared by mixing hemp shives (the inner woody core of hemp plant), water, and lime as the […]
The post Hempcrete Blocks for Construction appeared first on The Constructor.
Wall footings are pad or spread and strip footings which are used to support structural or nonstructural walls, and to transmit and distribute their loads to the soil in such a manner that the load bearing capacity of the soil is not surpassed. In addition to avoid excessive settlement and rotation and maintain sufficient safety […]
The post Construction of Wall Footings- Materials, and Dimensions appeared first on The Constructor.
Different types of defects occur in plastering such as blistering, cracks, efflorescence, flaking, peeling, popping, softness and uneven surfaces. These defects in plastering need to be repaired as soon as they are observed. Types of Defects in Plastering 1. Blistering of Plastered Surface Blistering of plastered surface occur when small patches swell out beyond the […]
The post 9 Types of Defects Observed in Plastering appeared first on The Constructor.
Concrete pavements for car parking are constructed as slab-on-grade structures which are not subjected to heavy traffic and movement as compared to highway concrete pavements. They provide access to both heavy and light delivery vehicles. Concrete pavements as car parking slots offer superior performance when compared with other pavement types The main features and design […]
The post Concrete Pavements for Car Parking – Features and Design Considerations appeared first on The Constructor.
Ceramic tiles are commonly used flooring material for all types of buildings such as residential, commercial or public buildings. Ceramic tiles provide different properties and benefits which makes it mostly used flooring material of different buildings. Ceramic tiles are available in various designs, color, finishes which can be used to create unique wall and floor […]
The post 11 Properties of Ceramic Tiles Flooring for use in Buildings appeared first on The Constructor.
There are various types of flooring used in building construction, but these 5 special types of flooring are different from commonly used types. They are linoleum flooring, rubber flooring, parquet wooden flooring, false flooring and PVC flooring or vinyl flooring. These special flooring are used for different purposes which are discussed below. 5 Special Types […]
The post 5 Special Types of Flooring used in Building Construction appeared first on The Constructor.
A waffle slab foundation is also called as ribbed slab foundation whose structure is plain at top and has a grid-like system, called the ribs in the bottom surface. The ribs are formed by pouring concrete over a set of plastic waffles arranged in series on the ground. This type of foundation is more rigid […]
The post Waffle Slab Foundation-Features and Construction Details appeared first on The Constructor.
The basic components of a building are divided into two, namely substructure and superstructure. The substructure is the component of the building above the ground level. The component of the building below the ground level is called as superstructure. The basic components of a substructure and superstructure are enlisted and briefly described in the below […]
The post What are the basic components of a Building Structure? appeared first on The Constructor.
The application of Civil engineering in the construction of Smart infrastructure is the foundation for all the other key elements in a Smart city like Smart property, Smart economy, Smart living, Smart governance and Smart environment. The underlying principle behind most of these elements is that they are well linked and that they generate data, […]
The post Civil Engineering Aspects of Smart City appeared first on The Constructor.
Cross wall construction is a building construction technique in which the precast load-bearing walls are placed perpendicular to the lateral axis of the building. In this type of construction, the floors, roofs and the beams are supported by the load-bearing walls. Cross wall construction develops structurally efficient and economic buildings. Read More: Load bearing construction […]
The post What is Cross Wall Construction? Features and Benefits appeared first on The Constructor.
A sextant is an instrument used for measuring the angle between two visible objects. Both horizontal and vertical angles can be measured using a sextant. It contains two mirrors which are arranged in such a way that the observer can sight both the objects at the same time. It is mainly used for navigational purposes […]
The post Sextant – Types and Uses appeared first on The Constructor.
