Maintenance Technology for Building Fabric - Case Study Example

MAINTENANCE TECHNOLOGY FOR BUIDING FABRIC YOUR UNVERSITY INDEX INTRODUCTION 3 2. CRACKS ALL OVER THE BUILDING 4 3. WATER SUPPLY 5 4. WINDOWS 7 5. ELECTRICITY SUPPLY 8 6. BATHROOMS AND KITCHEN 9 7. DEFECTS IN SLOPES AND RETAINING WALLS 10 8. REFERNCE 13 9.APPENDIX.A 14 INTRODUCTION: One of the blessed creatures in the Universe is the Human being to have the knowledge of building ones own shelter so affectively that is capable of withstanding many natural calamities. Now, as a surveyor I am given a responsibility to suggest remedial actions to renovate an old building. The report I presented has various symptoms of the building being in worst condition to carry out any living in it. The photographs attached with report are more evident of the situation. The causes for this situation are presented after a lot of research being done. The best possible solutions are given which when followed with care will make the building a happy place to live in, especially sheltered workshop for handicaps. When surveillance is properly and strategically combined with inspection affective maintenance is achieved. Defects usually create hazards that lead to serious or sometimes fatal injuries. Most defects can be discovered at their early stages through visible and detectable symptoms. If they are not rectified promptly some minor defects can develop into serious ones causing sudden collapse that endangers life and becomes more costly to rectify. Some of the major building defects observed are usually due to The different varieties of building materials used which may not be in congruence with each other. Construction techniques would not have been detecting proof, sometimes even substandard workmanship. Using unsuitable construction nuances. Natural deterioration. Attacks by pollutants and many more. CRACKS ALL OVER THE BUILDING: The photographs attached give us a clear insight about the damp patches on the cornices and walls of the building. Let us look at some of the symptoms or rather phenomenon for these: Patterned cracking. Bulging falling of concrete patches with reinforcement exposed, often rusty. Falling off plaster tile. Surface with rust staining. Possible causes for these are defective concrete as a result of ageing that is commonly found in old buildings. Persistent water leakage might have affected the steel reinforcement. Weak concrete adds to the further vulnerability with the use of salty water in concrete mix. These defects can be cleared as follows. Damaged or defective concrete is to be hacked off down to sound substrate and patched up with mortars such as cementitious mortars and Resin-based (or epoxy resin mortar) mortars based on the requirement. The rusty reinforcement bars should be properly cleaned, and be primed with suitable cement or epoxy based primer especially manufactured for the purpose needs to be used otherwise the bonding strength between concrete and steel bars will be impeded. If any circumstance arises that the diameters of the reinforcement bars are found substantially less than their original sizes after the “rust shells” have been removed, addition or replacement of steel bars is to be made. If the defective concrete is extensive and penetrates beyond the steel bars, a partial or complete demolition and re-casting of the affected items needs to be done. WATER SUPPLY: The next important observation during the building inspection is a lot of random cracks and fungus growth on the external walls of the building. The major features are: Insufficient water pressure or force. Brownish water grit and deposit. Stoppage of supply. Water seepage. Sudden rise in consumption. Noisy water pumps and water inlets. The possible causes are: Blockage or leakage of components of supply system such as pipes and valves. Rusty pipes or dusty supply tanks. Pump failure, breakage of supply pipes. Missing water tank covers. Leakage in the system after water meters. Undue water pressure. Excessive movement of the building structure, unwanted ground settlement, weakness caused by corrosion of materials, poor design structure. The most possible remedial actions for these defects are: Leakage problem of the roof can be cured by replacing aged waterproofing construction. Some of the materials used for reconstruction should be liquid applied and membrane applied which require cement sand screeding. To locate source of the leakage the pipe should be exposed to visual inspection along with that pressure test should be carried out. If an overhaul of this system is considered one should consider relocating and exposing the pipes above the ground as far as possible. The other ways is to install the pipes in trenches or pipe ducts and made accessible by panels for inspection and repair. Pipes passing through walls and floors should be protected with sleeves. They can possibly become weak points in resisting the invasion of water if the gap around the sleeve and the pipe is not filled to their entire depth with water proof material which should be elastic and fireproof in nature. Good workmanship is the key for affective results. Some of the areas of concentration are, gradient of roof surfaces which should be laid to provide an adequate fall to avoid ponding must be laid properly. Care should be taken to avoid overlapping of the material at junctions; upturns of the material at parapets and walls, protruding pipes and ducts, sharp corners should to be avoided. Care should be taken to prevent excessive movement caused by equipment installed at the top floors. Flooding, ponding tests and thermal scanning tests should be carried after laying the materials or after renovation to verify its water proofing performance. The old buildings usually are made of galvanized G.I pipes for the fresh water supply. But, these are prone to corrosion over a period of time. So, these are to be immediately replaced with copper pipes or PVC lined G.I pipes. WINDOWS Next comes the ventilation part of the house. The building is properly ventilated but, the windows and other ventilating objects are to taken care of. Some major defects found regarding the windows are: Rusting of metal parts. Damage by fungus or vegetation growth. Water seepage through the features. Corrosion or loosening of the attachments. Before we find any further damage we shall do the following to provide a better shelter. As the deformed windows or frames cause water leakage, they are to be replaced. All sashes should be tightly fitted. As the leakage is at the junction between the sash and the frame, the gasket around the sash should be replaced. As the leakage is at the junction between members of the frame assembled together by rivets, the sealant for the junction gap should be reapplied. It is found that the leakage between the frame and the wall we could possibly do the following to ensure good performance: The packaging that is defective should be replaced with compacted waterproof cement sand grouting. The perimeter of the frame should be protected by applying mastic or silicon sealant so that the external junction between the frame and the packaging is further protected. To avoid ponding the window sill in the external wall should be graded to fall away from the window. To drip off the water carried from the external wall, a grove in the external wall finishes at the top of the window opening should also be formed. The cracks on the packing around the frame can be sealed by injecting material internally. The broken or cracked glass should be replaced once for all with the same type and thickness of glass. Steel windows which are prone to rusting should be repainted with a primer. Putty that holds glass panes should be taken care of, hinges are to be lubricated and replaced to avoid dislodgement of sashes. Locking devices of windows sashes should be replaced to avoid damage that results in typhoon. While replacing fixing components like screws and rivets, bi-metallic action that leads to corrosion should be avoided as the direct contact between to incompatible materials can cause further damage. ELECTRICITY SUPPLY: The fire accidents in the recent days in majority are due to Electric short circuits in old buildings. We shall take utmost care to avoid them in full sincerity. The observations over Electric disorders are: System suddenly gets breakdown. Circuit breaker cuts off. Switches and wires get heated up. Abrupt changes in power consumption. Sparks or shocks generated. The major causes for these are due to failure of fuse or circuit breaker, Earth is not properly provided which leads to leakage and overload and the phases are not distributed properly. The best remedial actions are as follows: All Electricity installations should be earthed properly. Mechanical protection should be provided for concealed electrical wiring of new installations. For heavy current Electrical appliances sufficient socket outlets should be installed. For socket outlets Earth leakage circuit breakers are to be installed. No socket outlets should be installed in bathroom except for Electric goods. Even if an Electric heater is installed inside the bathroom its switch should be arranged outside the bathroom. Sockets arranged outdoor should be of weather proof type. Electrical appliances with safe 3-pin plugs should be used. BATHROOMS, KITCHEN AND BALCONY FLOORS The bathrooms and kitchen has become a source of leakage and is to be repaired before all the other works. It is the loosening of the components in the drainage system such as bottle traps under the sink, basin and bathtubs. Simple fixing will stop the leak. The kitchen in the ground floor is completely out of shape which should be overhauled with a licensed plumber. The major reason of leakage is poor water proofing around the items said. Another reason is also of spilling of water over the floor so; it is advisable to reconstruct the entire water proofing layer instead of patch repair. Before reconstructing the water proofing layer of the floor, all the sanitary fitments and finishes should be removed to allow formation of continuous water roofing construction. DEFECTS IN SLOPES AND RETAINING WALLS: As the building is located at the bottom of a hill there is heavy risk regarding its dislocation of various walls and sometimes even the entire building construction in under threat. Some more problems that are to be faced are: Accumulation of debris in drainage channels. Vegetation causes cracking of slope surface cover and drainage surfaces. Missing of masonry retaining walls. Weep holes get blocked. Excessive flowing of water from weep holes takes place. Cement and concrete surfaces bulge that causes dislodge and soil erosion. Catch waters get broken, overflow from catch pit occurs. Seepage increases suddenly over an extensive area of slope and retaining wall. Further analysis, monitoring and formulation that are suggested by Geotechnical Engineers are to be followed for the remedial actions to take on. The detailed geotechnical guidelines published by the Government Timely repairs not only save life but also saves repair costs in the long run. The symptoms, their causes and the maximum possible remedial actions that are presented in this report are a result of research over the problems, how are such situations tackled by other professionals and personal opinions of some experts. As water overflow is one of the major causes in deterioration of building, its proper supply and remedial actions are more concentrated. The report on how to avoid any unpredictable mishaps due to poor quality of the building at present or rather its old age had helped personally to gain experience in various directions by which intricate nuances are brought out that are to be immediately taken care of. The guidelines suggested if followed the building would be a wonderful place to live in particularly carry out good deeds such as sheltered work shops for handicaps. REFERENCE: Buildings Department. Maintenance & Management (3). January 31, 2008 from http://www.bd.gov.hk/english/documents/code/bmg/ch-3.pdf. Buildings Department. Solutions (1-10). January 31, 2008 from http://www.bd.gov.hk/english/documents/code/bmg/ch-4.pdf. ANABAS. Facilities Management (1). February 2, 2008 from http://www.anabas.co.uk/services6.php Ramamrutham.A. (1999). Strength of Materials. February 2, 2008. Hindu Publishers. Atchut. M., Lingam. H. (2007). Best Building Solutions. Journal of Materials, 10(2). January 30, 2008. Hi-tech Publishers APPENDIX .A Photographs of the building to be renovated. Read More