Tuesday, June 11, 2013

The Different Forms Of Building Defects

By Craig Nisbett


Buildings that satisfy the set standards of quality have to meet many qualities. They have to be located in the appropriate places where they are needed, have to effectively fit in with the surroundings and should be spacious enough. In addition, they need to be protected from not only extreme weather conditions but also undesirable external conditions. For the qualitative completion of a building in a way that it has no defects, it may take some time because they have to be certified by the relevant authorities. Building defects are numerous.

Buildings constructed in places that have moist conditions are likely to suffer from fungal stains as well as harmful growths. The thriving of fungal stains is encouraged by humid conditions and places that do not have adequate ventilation. Creeping plants and ivy plants are some of the examples of growths that are harmful. The surfaces on which they grow include gutters, walls and roofs. Their healthy growth is encouraged by dirt penetrating joints and small openings on walls.

When such joints and walls create suitable conditions, seeds tend to grow in them. The roots of crops are able to deeply penetrate into the existing holes, bringing about cracks and penetration of water. If not well controlled, this can be a major problem in a structure, leading to big cracks that pose a lot of danger.

Mortar joints getting eroded is yet another defect. The main purpose of mortar joints is to even out irregularities in building blocks or stones. The causes of erosion of mortar joints are salt crystallization, scouring action of wind and dampness that comes about through water penetration. In eradicating decayed mortar, there are several techniques that can be used. It can be done forcibly by the use of mechanical discs or they can also be raked manually using a knife.

Depending on the form of painting employed, different types of paint peel off with varying magnitudes. Painting remains one of the commonest structural defects. Of all the types of walls, plastered walls are more at risk when it comes to paint peeling. Buildings around the coast are also prone to accelerated peeling because of the acidic water around those places as well as the strong winds.

There may be poor installation of air conditioning systems. Buildings that may have been constructed without air conditioners may need such installations to deal with warm temperatures. Several factors have to be put into place in installation of air conditioners. The air produced by the conditioners is cooler and drier and may thus lead to shrinkage of building materials. It is also possible to have condensation on surfaces or within structures of the fabric. This may lead to mould build up.

The backbones of most buildings are their foundations. The foundation serves to support the various loads of the entire structure. Foundations may be weakened by damp conditions, something that may lead to the building collapsing. Before laying focus on other aspects of a building, the foundation has to be very durable.

Insect and termite attack are common building defects. The damage caused by termites and insects mat take time to be realized, at times only being noticed when the affected materials are collapsing. Such damage may be controlled by fumigation and other forms of spraying.




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