One

Features of expanded clay concrete

Now, for the construction of buildings, brick, wood, concrete or blocks of various composition are used: cinder concrete or foam concrete. But let’s analyze in detail — expanded clay.

The construction of a house from expanded clay concrete blocks is gaining great popularity. For the construction of buildings, the technology is similar to brick or cinder block, but the best price / quality ratio has made expanded clay one of the leaders in sales. The peculiarity of its structure is given by excellent operational properties.

The composition of expanded clay is balls with a spongy structure, so the weight of the block is much lower than a brick. This not only reduces the cost of the entire structure, there is less pressure on the foundation. And labor productivity increases dramatically.

The porous structure perfectly protects against all noise, keeping warm. Easy installation allows you to build all kinds of options for external walls and indoors.

Advantages of expanded clay houses

• Environmentally friendly products without hazardous impurities, so it can be used for interior decoration.
• Moisture resistance.
• Strength and durability.
• Fire resistance, the material is not afraid of high temperatures, it is difficult to set fire to it.
• Low thermal conductivity. When compared with aerated concrete blocks, expanded clay is 1.5 times lower.
• Excellent soundproofing.
• Light weight and high labor productivity, which reduces the time for the construction of the building.

Disadvantages of expanded clay houses

Mandatory finishing (external and internal). If this is not done, then in a couple of years the strength of the material will decrease, this will have a bad effect on the rigidity of the entire building.

Expanded clay blocks (KBB) cannot be used to build the foundation of a house. Its porous structure will not withstand heavy loads.

How to calculate the amount of material?

The correct calculation of materials is an important point in construction. Unused materials will be difficult to sell, only at a large discount, which will require costs.

First, choose the projects of houses. Manufacturers produce standard sizes of expanded clay concrete:

• for external walls 190 * 190 * 360 mm;
• for internal partitions 190 * 90 (120) * 360 mm.

It is necessary to add up the area of ​​\u200b\u200ball the walls, taking into account the parameters of the masonry. Subtract the total area of ​​doorways and windows.

Common mistakes when counting building materials:

• When calculating, it is often forgotten to include gables.
• Internal walls should be taken into account when laying from KBB.
• When installing an armored belt, it must be subtracted from the height of the walls.
• With external brick cladding, expanded clay walls are built a little less than the outer wall.

Often the height of walls made of KBB is a multiple of the height of block elements with a seam (0.2 m). This means that without the armored belt, the height of the walls will be a multiple of (2.4, 2.6, 2.8).

Important! CBB does not always need whole ones, parts for inserts may be needed. Also, when unpacking, there may be damaged elements unsuitable for construction.

Calculation example

House size: 10×10 m, 2 windows 1.6 meters each, two doors 1 m each, the length of the partition inside is 9.2 meters.

House (1st floor) with II pediments and I partition inside the premises. The outer walls are 19 cm thick (this is the width of the I block), and the inner wall is 39 cm thick (this is the length of the I block element).

Important! If the cladding is made of brick, there is also insulation, which means that all walls are 15 cm smaller on each side (i.e., 0.3 m less).

With a total perimeter of the walls: 9.7 m x 4 m = 38.8 m.

The number of blocks in the I row along the entire perimeter: 38.8 m / 0.4 \u003d 97 pieces, where 0.4 is the length of the I element, taking into account the seam.

Then we multiply by the number of rows (i.e., the height of the walls):

• 2.6 m = 13 rows;
• 2.8 m = 14 rows.

In this example, the height was taken into account 2.8 meters (i.e. 14 masonry levels): 97 * 14 rows = 1358 pieces.

Subtract both windows (their dimensions are 1.6 * 1.4) = 56 pieces. Doors (height 2 m x width 1 m) = 25 pieces. Subtract the doors and both windows from the resulting total number of block elements: 1358 — 56 — 25 = 1277 pieces.

This number of block elements for external walls is also considered for the load-bearing wall inside the room. Its thickness should be 2 times greater (39 cm — the length of the 1st element).

Bearing wall (without door) — 594 pieces.

Add up: 1277 + 594 = 1871 pieces.

On both gables (with a height of 2 m and a length of 9.7 m) = 242.5 pcs.

It is correct to start laying from a whole row, only from II — they file the elements, add 2 rows: 242.5 + 48.5 = 291 pieces. Better than 300 pieces to take into account everything (marriage, cut, etc.). Total: 1871 + 300 = 2171 pieces.

Important! If you need an accurate calculation, you can separately calculate each wall: 24 elements + ¼ (per cut). Be sure to need a margin of about 8%. They sell pallets, so you should check with the manufacturer in advance, they will help with the calculations.

You should make sure the quality of the materials, check the certificates from the company.

For an I-story building, solid blocks can be purchased, and for a two-story building, multi-gap ones. It is valuable that they have docking grooves for connecting from the ends, the solution is not needed.

Building foundation

A house made of expanded clay concrete blocks requires a quality foundation. If there is a desire to create a gym, a boiler room in the basement, then concrete blocks will be needed. Without a basement, you can make a strip foundation, a trench up to 50 cm, and in width equal to the walls plus 1 m.

At the bottom there is a sand cushion, and from the boards (chipboard, OSB) a reinforcing lattice and formwork are prepared. It is poured with concrete, compacting each layer of 20 cm.

Sequence of work

The surface of the foundation is bent after shrinkage, it is leveled with a level. A layer of mastic is placed between the layers of the foundation, and roofing material for waterproofing is placed on the upper surface.

KBB laying must be started from the corner, for this they pull the rope (cord). It is important to constantly control the plumb line and level, first lay the 1st row around the entire perimeter, etc.

After the IV row, it is advised to reinforce the wall around the perimeter, cover with mortar and continue laying. If the walls are double, then two rows are laid at the same time.

For a two-story house, the thickness of the 1st floor is needed from 40 cm. Manufacturers produce large blocks of 590 x 400 x 200 mm.

When the 1st floor is completed, the top layer is reinforced with a reinforcing belt so that the load is distributed evenly. Often a brick belt or from reinforced concrete blocks, it is necessary to insulate it.

Finishes

To ensure good thermal insulation, it is necessary to finish expanded clay houses:

The facade can be insulated with polystyrene foam boards (up to 50 cm). For beauty, use colored plaster or decorative tiles.

«Ventilated» facades are popular, where aluminum foil is used (vapor barrier), then mineral wool is fixed. From above, waterproofing is installed, then covered with siding or other. A costly method, but it will last a long time, such layering will provide warmth in the house.

Variants of expanded clay houses are presented in the photo in the gallery.

Photo of claydite-concrete houses