Building on quality sand: 5 tips

Building on sand can be quite tricky. If done wrong your whole project can collapse  - causing not only major financial loss but a serious blow to your ego. In case you’re new to all of this and are thinking of either building on sand or using sand in your construction process, here are a few tips to keep in mind to ensure your building stays put:

1. Choose a good grade:

This is a vital step in the construction process to ensure your foundation is right. Quality sand has less than 4% silt quality and should have natural and crushed stone sand. Choose a fine sand for construction which has greater sustainability.

As the top sand supplier in Gauteng, Sand Shifters supplies high-grade plaster and river sand for all of your intricate construction needs. For more information: visit Sand Shifters

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2. Avoid sea sand:

Sea sand contains salt which absorbs water – something you want to avoid since it creates stickiness. The high levels of chloride ions also cause corrosion in your building materials. Even though you want to implement a fine sand, and since sea sand is finer than river sand, it is unusable in construction.

3. Build on flat sand:

Sand is very erodible, which is why it’s important to ensure you build on flat sand and have retaining walls on the side of the premises to prevent the sand from eroding down the side of the premises.

4. Do a professional soil test:

Having a soil test done is important to calculate the strength and capacity of the soil as well as the composition of the soils found underneath.

5. Implement more cohesive soil:

Anchor your home more securely by making use of the more cohesive soil underneath the top layer. By doing the professional soil test, you can calculate the strength of this particular soil to maximise the strength of your foundation.

You may also be interested in: How To Cut Construction Costs

Sources: https//www.piertech.com/blog/tips/building-a-strong-foundation.html

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