Why does concrete crack?
Unlocking the mysteries of a critical building resource
Concrete has been the main stay of building construction for generations. Today, traditional reinforced concrete is an integral and important component of building structures. It usually takes the form of footings in ground, slabs on ground, columns and suspended slabs.
Concrete however, is not the perfect substance. As such it can suffer from defects. These defects can have a huge impact on the appearance, capital expenditure, maintenance costs, safety and effective life of the total structure.
What then are the typical forms of concrete defects? Some of the more common defects can be categorised as follows:-
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Structural design inadequacies – distortion, bending cracks, deflection, shear cracks, impact damage temperature change cracks, abrasion, torsion cracks and erosion.
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Environmental causes – weathering/staining, biological growth, bacteriological attack, efflorescence (lime leaching), freeze-thaw damage and fire damage
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Aggregate properties – aggregate swelling/shrinkage/softening, alkali-silica reaction and sulphide staining/spalling.
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Chemical attack – sulphates, chlorides, acids and salt weathering.
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Reinforcement corrosion – cracking, spalling and de-lamination
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Concrete Cancer – cracking of the concrete caused by the corrosion of steel reinforcement in concrete structures
What will you do in your summer holidays?
Summer time is a great time to take stock of your business and a great time to think about and diarise some property housekeeping issues that quite often get overlooked in the bustle of normal day to day business.
However if you consider this now, you can plan to carry out some crucial housekeeping duties in January when business is traditionally quieter.
Some of the not so sexy but absolutely essential items to consider to maximise your return and minimise your cost and risk are as follows:
Property Replacement Insurance: given the sizeable increases in construction costs in recent times, have you considered whether your properties are correctly insured? Do you know what you are insuring: base building and / or fit out?
Capital Expenditure Planning: what items have you planned over the next calendar year? How will they be managed?
Maintenance: are your maintenance contracts up to date and appropriate? Are there any routine maintenance items that can be efficiently attended to in this quiet time?
Tax and asset updates: Is your base schedule correct? Have you carried out any upgrade works during the financial year to date for which you can claim either a tax write off or a future tax deduction?
Condition Audits: Do you need to create or update any condition surveys of your tenanted properties?
Tenancy Make Good: Do you have a schedule of lease expiries that will occur during the year? Are there any “repairing and make good” obligations that need to be planned with the tenant?
N&B can assist with all of the above to help you really enjoy your summer holiday.
