Basics of Construction for Owner Builders

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Standard Headroom | 3.15m

Headroom is the space that lies between the ceiling and floor of a building, allowing passage of a person standing upright.

Considering your floor and ceiling finish and installation of fixtures (chandelier, ceiling fan etc), 3.15m headroom should be considered as a standard height in residential project.

This height would give ample space between the floor and the ceiling for good air flow/circulation within the building.

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Standard Slab Thickness | 150mm or 6 inches

The thickness of a suspended concrete slab depends largely on the imposed load and size of the slab. In general, 6 inch (150mm) slab thickness is recommended for residential and commercial buildings requiring suspended slabs with reinforcement details as per design.

On the other hand, the recommended thickness for concrete floor slabs in residential construction is 4 inches. Five to six inches is recommended if the concrete will receive occasional heavy loads, such as motor homes or garbage trucks.

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Minimum Sizes of Reinforcement Required in:

Column - 12mm
Slabs (depending on its intended use) - 8mm

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Minimum Quantity of Reinforcement required in:

Square/Rectangular Columns - 4
Circular Columns - 6

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Methods of Curing Concrete

There are various methods to ensuring the appropriate curing of concrete. Below I share with you the different types of concrete curing methods we’ve adopted on our projects and how to select the option best suited to your project.

Sprinkling Water
Covering
In one of our projects, we made use of plastic sheeting which is an effective method in ensuring that recently placed concrete does not dry out too quickly by covering up the wet concrete mix. This curing method helps regulate surface moisture and is highly effective and recommended in windy and hot climates.

Ponding
This curing method is used to protect the concrete from losing moisture too quickly. Sharp sand or clay are used to create square and rectangular ponds that can be filled with water on the slab. The ponds are filled with water daily to keep the curing concrete continually wet.

This curing method is best recommended for concrete slabs.

Chemical Curing