Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Why cracks appear and what precautions should be taken?

As such, there can be many reasons for the development of cracks; here we’ve listed the top ones, which are:

Clay: 

Sand contains clay. And, if you do not wash and remove clay from the sand, it’ll end up absorbing water from the concrete mix, leaving lesser water for cement hydration. You shouldn’t let this happen.

That’s why you should always wash sand thoroughly and dry it before use. You should also not forget to sieve the sand.

Bricks (which are not property burnt or chipped at the edges):

Avoid using bricks, which are not properly burnt or chipped at the edges. These bricks absorb water from the mix. The best way out is to use high quality bricks, which should be soaked in water for nearly 24 hours; they should then be used in wet condition.

The curing process should be started as soon as concrete dries. If curing isn’t done, the mixture of construction materials faces water stress and causes cracks. So, you better start the curing process as soon as concrete dries.

One more thing: avoid concreting during hot times and cover concrete with plastic to avoid water evaporation.

You should always ensure that you use high quality cement for the construction. Puneet Dalmia led Dalmia Bharat Cement is a known producer of India’s top quality cement products, which not only meet the quality guidelines laid down by BIS (The Bureau of Indian Standards), but also surpass them to meet new technological advances.

Dalmia Bharat Cement has listed some of the best practices on cement, concrete & construction here.