Common mistakes in concrete floor slab construction can be avoided with proper base preparation, mix design, placement, finishing, and curing.
With their excellent performance, relative ease of construction, and economy, post-tensioned residential foundations are becoming a more standard foundation system for residential construction regardless of soils classification.
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Keeping water drained away from home foundations is important for three reasons.
Removable concrete forms can create a vertical concrete retaining wall with almost any shape desired. Large walls and special situations require design by a professional engineer. The typical installation procedure for a simple retaining wall less than 4 feet tall on good soil is described in this...
For commercial construction it's hard to beat the cost, quality, and versatility of tilt-up construction. Now, tilt-up contractors and designers are teaming up to produce unique residential structures.
It is important that the ground beneath pavers and flatwork be properly prepared to provide a stable base. Otherwise it may shift after the paving installation is complete, which can lead to cracking, movement, and uneven paving.
Custom-built homes are commonly gracing glossy magazine covers. That's because people in the U.S. have been in love with the idea of owning a large elegant home. For architects and designers, there is more opportunity to present interesting ideas and work with unusual concepts. But with the decline...
Reinforced concrete floor decks have become increasingly popular in homes over the last decade, and many of the floor systems used are adapted from commercial construction. However, some newer systems have been developed with lighter residential construction in mind. This has decreased costs and...
AAC is beginning to catch on in the United States, where there are now three AAC manufacturing plants with several more planned. This represents a serious commitment since the cost of a plant to produce AAC blocks and panels is high.
The most common window installation combines a window buck for the rough opening and a face-mounted flanged window.
Today's artisans find more ways to sculpt with concrete, and their work finds its way into gardens and living areas making concrete home building something of a fine art.
When it comes to compacting a subgrade for a residential application, consistency, quality, and good practice by the contractor are critical to prevent concrete cracking and sinking concerns for the homeowner.
Concrete is a diverse structural and design element for modern home building. In the past 10 years the Arts and Crafts movement has enjoyed a resurgence of popularity, and is being used in the design of concrete elements inside of homes. Contractors and architects have been able to take the comfort...
When brick veneer is used as an exterior finish for an insulating concrete form (ICF) home, a cavity wall is recommended to manage moisture penetration.
The world of decorative concrete keeps expanding, even into the realm of furniture. On first blush it doesn't seem that using concrete to make furniture is a good thing to do. It's brittle, it cracks, it has little tensile strength, and it's much heavier than wood. Even so, all around the country...
Regardless of the building system or materials used, there is no faster way to build a house than with tunnel form construction.
The bathroom is an intimate room, not a place for cold, hard edges. So why is concrete increasingly used in bathrooms?
New technology, new systems, and creativity are changing the look and life of integrally mixed or seeded exposed aggregate hardscapes.
The finishing and aesthetics of concrete sinks require precision and knowledge of concrete mixes, mold making, and integrating hardware.
Walls of any shape or size can be built with sprayed concrete techniques. One wall system that makes it easy to build walls with low velocity spraying techniques was invented by EVG in Austria in the early 1970s. In the United States it is sold as the Tridipanel System.