Many things cane be fixed after they’re broken, depending on level of damage. But many other things go un-repaired due to its complexity unless you’re looking for a massive change; which tends to be the case with buildings. So when it comes to building safety, you can’t just leave issues unattended. In this case, it’s much better to do a quality check now and then or before you get your hands on the place. Let us walk you through how to go about doing such an construction quality test. We’ve taken the advice of our experts for this one.
first, Look AT THE STRUCTURE
Trust your gut and look through the basics. Does this apartment building look okay to you? Is it built maintaining the proper regulations? Some significant regulations are
- Town Clarence Plan
- No Objection Clearance
- Receipt of required Government fee
- Average road benchmark elevation
- Land use within 250-meter radius
Make sure proper space is kept for ventilation to ensure some level of building safety. You can easily understand that by looking at the space leftover between surrounding buildings. To verify this, of course, look at the RAJUK approved plan of your building.
CRACKS, DAMP zones AND MOLD
When an apartment is poorly built, either because of the plan or construction material, it may develop cracks over time. As the structure fails to maintain itself under pressure, cracks start to develop. Start checking for these as soon as you enter the building. Look at the lobby, staircases, and inside the apartment. Also, check whether the walls have damp areas and mold. Usually, poor plaster or inferior plumbing materials cause issues like these. This is a great construction quality test in the assurance of building safety.
ARE THE MAIN pillars ALIGNED?
If the apartment building is relatively new, it probably won’t have cracks or mold as these take time to develop. But another thing important to check for in building safety is the alignment of the main pillars. You want to keep your eyes on whether they are all in a single line or even if they look a little out of shape. These are strong signs of expected trouble and get poor marks in a construction quality test.
fOUNDATION OF THE BUILDING
This is the backbone of the whole building and your apartment. Therefore, you should understand and check the foundation plan thoroughly. Know about the diameter, depth and the thickness of the pillars used in the foundation. The depth of the foundation varies with the gross bearing capacity of the soil, angle of repose of the soil and density of the soil. In this circumstance, it’s wiser to have an expert on your side.
ASK THE DEVELOPERS to ensure quality of an apartment
Lastly, ask the developers straight questions and speak your mind. Since you will not be able to perform a complete construction quality test, ask about the construction materials used, developers become your only source. You will get a rough idea of the quality of the materials and, hence, so the quality of the apartment. If you are not buying from developers, the most recent owners are your go-to choice. The things you might want to ask about:
- Grade of Steel Bars
- Concrete Mix
- Stone And Brick Chips Used
Safety first is safety always for a quality apartment
Let’s look at Bangladesh: in recent times, we have faced hazards like earthquakes, fires, and frequent thunderstorms that have caused substantial building damage. The type of soil and geographical position of our country makes us susceptible to earthquakes. Therefore, you should inquire about the risks associated with your the building you’re looking into. You might want to inspect the following things:
- Combustion engines, open fire, hot surfaces, welding sputters
- Short circuits, electric arcs, electromagnetic radiation, lightning, electrostatic, heat developed by currents
- Friction, ultrasound, compression, sparks from tools, grinding
- Spontaneous heating or igniting, catalytic reactions, accelerating exothermic reactions
- Structural integrity
It’s a lot of information to gather and perhaps you don’t have the expertise or knowledge to handle or even understand all of it. However, you should keep in mind the severity of the potential issues not to mention the fact that this will be a long term investment of yours. Go to experts for guidance or a full inspection of building safety. We at Bproperty already run quality checks before recommending a property to you. When running a construction quality test, it’s best to make sure you’re well prepared. Failure here may cost you much more than just your money.
