Jagdamba Construction Practices

Land:

A square or a rectangular plot is ideal for construction.

Cement:

Use strong and superior quality Jagdamba Cement.

Aggregate:

For the columns, beams, foundation and slab use stone with 20mm thickness.

Sand:

It is best if you use clean, dirt-free sand.

Water:

Only use clean, pure water. Saline water not just weakens the cement but causes the iron used for construction to rust.

Iron:

Use BIS approved iron.

Foundation:

Keep in mind the nature of the land and soil where you’re building your house.

Plinth level:

The height of the current road level and any future changes to this level will help determine the optimum plinth level.

Concrete:

The ideal ratio of the concrete mixture should be 1:1½:3 (1 cement: 1½ sand: 3 aggregate).

• If you use PPC while preparing concrete, for every bag you need to use 24 litres of water.
• There should be no gaps in the shuttering. Using oil while shuttering will help.
• Always mix concrete using a machine.
• Avoid concrete work when the weather is too warm or too cold.
• Iron bars should be covered with concrete up to a height of 15mm.
• Do not put concrete higher than 5ft of the columns.
• It is advisable to use a vibrator.

Bricks and brick work:

• For a wall of 9 inches thickness, the mixture should be of the ratio 1:6 (1 cement:6 sand).
• Use the cement, sand and water mixture within 45 mins.
• The joint between the bricks should not be one above the other.
• If you have to end the length of the wall, do so at an angle of 45 degrees.

Some more tips:

•  Do not use black soil under the flooring.
• There should be some gap between the slab and the water tank.
• If you need to do plastering on the slab, it is best to do so right after putting the slab.
• Apply primer or tar behind the door frames.
• The height of a stair should not be more than 15 cms

Plastering:

• Start plastering only after you’ve watered the bricks completely.
• Mix cement and sand in the ratio of 1:6 (1 cement:6 sand) for inner plastering of bricks. And for outer plastering mix it in the ratio of 1:4.
• On a brick wall never do plastering of thickness more than 12 or 15mm.
• At one go, avoid plastering of more than 12mm thickness.
• On concrete do not do plastering of more than 6mm thickness.
• Do not plaster on concrete without hacking.
• Plastering on concrete should be in the ratio of 1:3.
• Use a mesh while plastering the electric and water pipes.

Curing:

For the cement to be strong, curing is very essential. You must do the curing for at least 14 days, continuously.
The more curing you do, the better it is.

•  Slow setting cement is always the best.
• The color of cement has nothing to do with the strength of the cement.
• If too much water is used, concrete loses its strength.