Types of Sand Used in Construction

What is sand ?

Sand is a granular material composed of broken rocks and mineral particles and it is formed in a  longer period of time through a natural process where the rocks get broken into small parts. Having a nature of the textural class of soil, sand is finer than gravel and coarser than slits. Sand can be contained either silicon dioxide or calcium carbonate.


Why is sand required in construction?
Sand is the prime component in making the concrete along with the cement in construction. It adds extra strength and durability of  the concrete and gives better finishing.


River Sand
River sand is made due to the natural disintegration of rock which has been moved or placed by streams and glacial agencies or obtained from pits.It is the purest form of sand collected directly from the river banks.For example, Trichy river sand is very well- known and highly demanded in the southern states of India.


M - Sand
M - Sand is an  artificial sand used as a substitute for river sand. The non availability of river sand and ever increasing requirement of sand brought  the concept of M - Sand. M-Sand is the crushed aggregates  of granite stone which is washed and prepared in the cubic size.  It is prepared by using vertical shaft imp actor method. M- Sand is used for all kinds of concrete works ranging PCC and RCC works. The advantage of the M- Sand is that it contains no impurities and its cubicle particle shape and perfect gradation providea better advantage compared to river sand.

Different grades of sand
Generally, Sand particles range from 0.0625 mm to 2 mm. Sand grain particles range from 2mm to 64 mm.  Slit is smaller than 0.0625 to 0.004 mm.ISO 14688 grade sand has the characteristics of fine, medium and coarse with ranges 0.063 mm to 0.2 mm to 0.63 mm to 2.0 mm.  IS 2386 (part 2): 1963  makes sure that the clay,slit and dust in the sand should not exceed 5% by weight. There should not be any organic impurities accordance with IS 2386 

Buying Cement Online: New Trend

Buying cement online seems to be a new practice for some, but this is what is going to be the new revolution in the time to come. The reason is that the e-commerce has taken up all the sectors of the business. To buy cement online in Bangalore. materialtree.com is the best online platform. There is much demand for online business followed by the offline business since the technology has developed. Any kind of buying and selling and other transactions are carried out through online. Building materials are necessary for any kind of constructions and the demand for building materials are increasing day by day. At the same time, there is a shortage in the availability of them. So, getting quality building materials at the best price is not that easy.

We need to take a deep thought on the subject that we are dealing with. As infrastructure is getting improved time to time, the demand for building materials is increasing too. So, there is and increased requirement for construction materials such as cement, TMT steel bar and river sand. They are always demanding more in the metro cities since the fastest growing development taking place. As a result, the cost and quality differ since the demand is increasing. A Lot of business tries to make more money out of it by creating illegal hoarding and creating artificial scarcity.

As everyone looks for a quality building material. Most of the customers are either confused or have lack of knowledge in choosing a quality product. Sometimes, they are forced to pay more prices for a product than its actual price. In the other case, customers are brainwashed to buy more than what is really required. This happens customers do not have much knowledge about the quality product and the price ranges in the market. Most of these issues are going unnoticed.

When you purchase cement, you take a lot of trouble of finding out the shop and checking out the quality of the product and agreeing with the price offered by the seller. A lot of time, energy and money are wasted. Apart from these, some customers are cheated so badly by paying high prices for a poor quality product. Today, there are many companies in the production of cement and the range of quality and quantity offered varies. So, this competition to capture the market helps the customer to buy good cement at the best price in the market. Some cement is in superior in quality and price than other cements.

More interestingly, the world market has changed from geographical space in the digital space. Today digital marketing is a thriving industry and everything comes in this new digital marketplace. Building materials like cement, bricks and blocks, TMT steel bars sold and bought through online.
Materialtree.com is an e- commerce platform for building materials online. You can buy all the building materials online at the best price in the market. You can easily visit the respective site and inspect the entire details of online purchase of cement and other building materials. You can order for the product after inspecting the quality, quantity, brand and price of the cement by clicking on the website. Cash on delivery is the other important advantage that the customer enjoys. Nowhere high quality cement can be bought at the best price in the market with the choice of the customer. A Variety of brands and multiple price ranges offer a greater advantage to the customer when they go for online purchase of cement from materialtree.com. For buying, building material to build your dream house materialtree.com will be your best choice.

TMT Steel Bars Buying Guide

TMT Bar Grade

Fe-415, Fe-500 and Fe-550 are the grades available in the Indian market. Higher the grade number, higher the strength of the TMT Bars

Technology

TMT Bars should be manufactured using Cold Twisted Technology which increases its strength and flexibility.

Bend-ability

TMT bars are most preferred because of their flexible nature. A good quality TMT steel bar will not get traverse cracks after bending through 180 degrees.

Elongation
Elongation is the ductility of the steel. Higher the elongation rate, better savings and reduced transportation costs.

Transverse Ribs
Transverse ribs or lugs of the TMT bars should be sharp and well connected strips as it aid strong bonding with the cement

Company and Certification
The company should be ISI or ISO certified. Buy reputed brands in the market though they may cost you more. Buy from the company authorised dealers.

Weighing TMT Steel
The weight of the TMT Steel per meter should be in comparable range of the IS Standards. TMT Bars are weighed either in the shop or on a vehicle weigh scale (Steel Weight = Weight of Loaded Vehicle - Weight Unloaded Vehicle)

Price
Generally Sold in Tonnes i.e., 1000 Kgs. Steel prices are daily fluctuating and you should check prices at least from 3 to 4 outlets.

Naked Eye Test
Every meter length of the TMT bars should bear the company seal. TMT Bars should be free from Rust or Ferrous coating and look new. Ends of the each bundle should be of equal length. Each steel rod in a bundle should bear the company seal.


Check Updated TMT Steel Price List on Different Brands.

Tata Tiscon TMT

Sail TMT Bars

Vaizag TMT Bars

JSW TMT Steel 

Kamdhenu TMT

Sunvik TMT Bars

Meenakshi TMT Steel

Bhuwalka TMT Steel

VRKP TMT Bars

Indus TMT Steel

Jindal Panther TMT Steel

Clay Bricks

What is a Clay Brick?

A Clay brick is a type of building block or a single unit of a kneaded clay, fire hardened or air dried, used in masonry construction. Fired bricks are the most common type and are laid in courses and numerous patterns known as bonds like cement mortar, collectively known as brickwork, and may be laid in various kinds of mortar to hold the bricks together to make a durable structure.

Basic Advantages of Bricks

Aesthetic Appeal

Thermal & Acoustic Insulation

Zero Maintenance Cost

Fire Resistance

Flexible in Application

       Aesthetic Appeal

Brick possesses natural and pleasant colours of burnt clays. . Different clay compositions, firing temperatures, or kiln atmosphere can lead to different colours.  Its colour formation is achieved through a complicated physio-chemical reaction during the firing process in the kiln. In contrast to the colour of stained body, brick colour is permanent and will not fade during weathering process. By proper control of these factors, bricks can be made to exhibit endless variety of natural and attractive colours. Bricks' natural colours combined with the extreme flexibility in applications produce aesthetic results which are always personal and everlasting with a natural appeal.

       Thermal  Insulation

Thermal Insulation:  Brick absorbs and releases heat slowly because of which keeps the house cool during day-time and warm during night-time Brick generally demonstrates better thermal insulation property than other building materials like concrete. Perforation can improve the thermal insulation property of bricks to some extent. Besides, the Thermal Mass and moisture that the brick has absorbed can help to keep the temperature inside the house relatively constant.

    Acoustic Insulation:

As far as acoustic insulation is concerned, brick wall provides good sound insulation property due to its dense structure. The thickness and density of brick will stifle the noise transmission and will deflect noise from streets, neighbouring homes, and other external noises.

       Zero Maintenance Cost

Clay bricks do not require any maintenance and you need not worry about clay brick from rotting, denting, warping, rusting, splitting, peeling, fading, and termites.

      Fire Resistant

Clay Bricks are made from naturally available materials which are fire resistant which spares you from the worry of wall catching fire.

Flexible in Application

The high compressive strength of fired clay bricks is used to build structures ranging from single-storey houses to massive public buildings, bridges etc.. In particular, it can be used for load bearing structures which greatly simplify the construction process so as to save materials, time, and labour.

Besides, brick can be made into convenient shape and size to facilitate the construction work.

Types of Clay Bricks:

Table Mould Bricks

Wire Cut Bricks

Fly Ash Blocks

TMT Steel Bars

What is TMT ?

TMT(Thermo Mechanical Treatment) is a metallurgical process which hardens and a heat - treated in a single process. The outcome is a high strength steel bar from a low carbon steel.

The process is all about making a high strength steel bar from a low carbon steel. Steel billets 125 mm  are heated to approximately 1100 degree C in a reheat surface. These bars are later rolled out to reduce the billets  until it reaches the final size and shape of reinforcing bar. The heat process quenches  the surface layer of the steel bar and pressurizes the crystal structure of other layers in the bar. It gives more hardness and strength to the steel bars. These steel bars are often called TMT steel bars. TMT steel bars also called TMT Saria.

Why TMT  Steel bar is required ?

Concrete is generally a very strong in compression, but it is very weak in tension. This imbalance in concrete is tackled by inserting the steel bars along with concrete to carry the designloads.Steelbars workas a secondary reinforcement  by providing durability. It works as resistance to limit cracking, environmental changes and shrinkages.

Rebars are used to hold other steel bars in proper position to accommodate the loads.  So, TMT steel bars are highly used in concrete to give more strength and durability to the structures. TMT steel bars are used mainly for the RCC construction structures. It gives excellent corrosion resistant and high elongation.They assure a good quality with high yield strength,high tensile strength and good ribs for concrete bonding.These advantages is these steel bars need not be given cold twisting. It contains maximum chemical properties required according to the IS standards.

What are the different types of TMT Steel Bars?

TMT steel bars are available in three major grades Fe 500, Fe 500 D and  Fe 600. ‘500’ denotes the strength of the rebar andthe minimum yield stress in N/mm2 .‘D’ refers to ductility of the rebar.

What are the different sizes of TMT Steel Bars or TMT Saria?

TMT  steel bar sizes  are classified based on their steel rod diameter, so the sizes available are 6mm, 8mm, 10mm, 12mm, 16mm, 20mm, 25mm. Out of which 6mm & 32mm are Make to order or Customized orders based on the requirement of the customer demands. Single bars of size 20 feet or 12m are available.

Here is a basic calculating guide for your reference:

TMT Size (In bundle)	TMT Weight per bundle	TMT Rods per bundle
8mm	48 kg	10
10mm	48 kg	7
12mm	50 kg	5
16mm	53 kg	3
20mm	57 kg	2
25mm	44 kg	1
32mm	73 kg	1

Basic Details of Cement and its Requirement

What is Cement?

Cement is used a binder, a substance that can easily set and hardens when it dries out. It has the ability to react with carbon dioxide in the air and can bind other material along with it. The word cement originates from the Latin word ‘Opus Caementicium’ which is used to explain the mixture of crushed rock and burnt lime as a binder. Later in years, a mixture of the volcanic ash and brick additives along with burned lime were used to obtain a hydraulic binder often called as cementum. Now, it is called as cement.

Why cement is required?

Cement is a binder and used in constructionwork  inorder to bind all the material particles together. The presence  of the binder will make the structure strong and solid. Cement is an essential part of any construction work. There is no stronger binder as cement. Cement price in Bangalore varies once in a month.

What are the different types of cement ?

Ordinary Portland cement (OPC)

Ordinary Portland is  manufactured for the purpose of  dry- lean mixes, ready- mix purpose and also for the pre- cast and pre- stressed concrete.

OPC 33 grade indicates the 28 days of compressive strength which is not less than 33/N mm2 (Mpa). In the same way, OPC 43 and OPC 53 grade cement should have 28 days of compressive strength and should not be less than 43 and 53 mpa.These are introduced according to the Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS).

Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC):Portland Pozzolana Cement is nothing but Portland cement blended with  fly ash, burnt clays and siliciousearths.This type of cement is prepared by grinding Portland clinker,gypsum and pozzolanicmaterilas with water. It gives more strength and resistence to wet cracking and thermal cracking. It offers a high degree of cohesion and workability in case of concrete and mortar.

Portland Slag Cement (PSC):Furnace slag contains granulated blast-furnace slag, silicates and alumino-silicates of calcium. Having these particles in the cement, brings lighter colour, concrete workability, better finishability, high level of compressive strength,lower permeability and more resistance to chemical reactions. This cement is the mixture of clinker and blast furnace slag having glass content and gypsum along with optimum PSD (Particle Size Distribution).

Rapid Hardening Portland Cement: This type of cement contains higher level of tri- calcium silicates and finer grinding. It provides higher strength than OPC.

SulphateResisting Portland Cement (SRC):SRC contains tricalcium aluminates less than 5% and can be used for the purpose met byPortland Pozzolana Cement, Slag Cement and Ordinary Portland Cement

Low Heat Portland Cement: The heat evolution is slow in the low heat Portland cement in the initial level. But, after sometimes, setting and hardening become faster than OPC.

Hydrophobic Cement: It is obtained by grinding Portland cement clinker with oleic acid.It is also called waterproof cement since a water- repellent is added to it.