Why Concrete Material Comes Out On Top in the Construction Industry
Posted on: 10 April 2017
In the construction world, concrete material is best known for its tremendous strength and excellent durability. It is perhaps because of this reason that many building owners tend to easily overlook several other essential perks that concrete structures actually provide. Today, we are going to look at some of the most understated yet important benefits of concrete when used as a construction material.
Concrete provides excellent thermal insulation
As the costs of energy continue to spiral by the day, it is important to make sure that our homes are as energy-efficient as possible. As part of our plan to keep energy costs down, we should make sure that there is minimal transfer of heat out of the home.
Concrete material has incredible heat-retaining properties. Thanks to its superior thermal mass, concrete will not let the warm air inside your home to escape through the walls and floors. Instead, it will keep the warm air locked inside your home so that your heating equipment does not have a hard time keeping you warmed up, especially during the cold winter days when you need to keep yourself warm. This way, you will get efficient service from your heating equipment, thus preventing high energy expenses.
Concrete is a flexible choice of building material
Concrete construction products come in various designs, so that building owners and builders can always find something that suits their particular construction project. Some of the most common designs include concrete blocks, beams, columns, wall panels, et cetera, et cetera. If you think that the versatility in design stops at that then you are wrong.
Concrete blocks, for instance, can come in various shapes, such as W- and S-shaped blocks, as well as an almost limitless selection of colours. With all these design possibilities, you can build virtually any type of structures, from those with the simplest designs to those with the most intricate designs.
Concrete is a recyclable material
Not many people think about the recyclability of a particular construction material when they are at the design stage of their construction project. However, it does matter a great deal because all structures have a limited lifespan. So what happens to a structure that has reached the end of its lifespan?
Concrete provides the opportunity to recycle the old material. Concrete from a demolished building can be taken to a concrete recycling facility where it will be crushed and reused in other projects. Crushed concrete can be used as aggregate for new driveway installations, thus reducing the need to mine for new gravel, for example.
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