Good Day Sir/Ma
I have the following questions please so I would be able to make informed decisions with the builders.

1. In Block Setting, most bricklayers suggest using 1 bag of cement to set 100 blocks. My question is, isn't 100 blocks much for 1 bag of cement ?
What number of blocks do you think is good enough to produce good results ?
We might be poor but don't want to be silly. Wouldn't mind setting 80-blocks per bag of cement even if that means the project taking much longer to complete. But knowing if 100 blocks is very OK would help us decide.

2. Building is 5 bedroom Bungalow and would be roofed (using Aluminium roofing) and some people don't bother using using pillar (reinforced iron rods beams) but we plan using them. My question is, for a bungalow, which iron rod size is recommended between 8mm, 10mm and 12mm ? Would have loved to use 12mm but the price I was told when I priced it made me seriously start having a rethink.

3. We mould our blocks ourselves using Sharp Sand & Stone dust. Question is,
there are at least 2 types of sharp sand - one using in moulding blocks and another used in decking. Is it more better to use the Sharp sand used in decking without stone dust or to continue mixing the normal ordinary sharp sand with stone dust ?
Also we remove 40 to 42 6-inch blocks per bag of cement. is 42 pcs of 6-inch blocks per bag too much ?
I know the recommended is 30pcs but how do you see 42pcs ?
We would have loved to use 9-inch blocks but economic situation isn't helping.

4. I see people doing partial lintel rather than all round lintel. Does that matter much ?

5. In foundation filling, is it better using the filling sand which is made of clay or we can use any type of sand e.g those soil scraped from the ground while they were grading the site. I think they call it caterpillar sand ?

6. In setting of blocks, under normal conditions with no issue with the land, it is 1-block inside the ground, 2-blocks above the ground making total of 3-blocks for foundation level.
Now for the rest of the house, most I see is 12-blocks high (i.e 4-blocks before window level, 5-blocks on window level + extra 2-blocks after lintel making a total of 11-blocks high or 14-blocks high if we include foundation blocks). My question is, is this enough or people are just trying to minimize costs ?

7. From readings on nairaland threads, I have learnt it's better to totally cement the foundation floor (i think they call it German floor) before continuing with rest of the house and one reason is to separate the foundation from the rest of the building. This among maybe other reasons is to avoid moisture like when it rains rising up the walls which is what causes paints to weaken over time. My question is, is there any other alternatives, like just cement those block holes or we must do the german floor so as not to have such issue.


Please do note we are not wealthy but just barely managing. but we equally understand building a house need be done right to avoid sad stories.

for instance, we manage to buy 10 bags of cement about every 2-months so you see, we are not even rich so please don't mistake us as being wealthy.

we are just trying to build something long lasting with the little money we are able to get.

Building is 5 bedroom Bungalow and would be roofed so no decking.

I know already we would dig soakaway and use the sand for filling but that already has been done and the sand used for our last unsupervised project which collapsed at lintel level. Now we stay on site anytime we are working else no work till we come.

1) Using 1 bag of cement to set 100 blocks is not so bad. Although, I wouldn't do that. But, since your building is a bungalow - no wahala as good plastering will make up for it.

2)12mm is your best bet for reinforcement for your pillars and lintel... 10mm can only be use for the rings.
It does not matter if you decide to use short lintels or rull range

3) the maximum number of blocks you should make out of a bag of cement should not exceed 40. The lesser, the better

4) partial or all round lintel, it does not matter... Just ensure the right mixture of granite, sand and cement while casting

5) Laterite or rubles from demolished buildings are better... But if you must use the sand from your site ground (depending on the type of soil if not loamy), ensure it is well compacted before you go ahead with your flooring.

6) German floor is preferable... E get why

All the best in your building my brother... I pray you get money for all the needed resources and may your effort be crowned with success

1. "Most bricklayers" are right

2. It is good to use them so that it bears the weight of the roof instead of the weight being distributed throughout the building (if you don't use pillars). And 12 is better. Above 40 is not good.

It surprised me how you want to save on block yet you want 1 bag of cement to 80 blocks setting (instead of 100)

3. Use sand for moulding block, it has some properties which enhance binds when dried, much stone hinders binding in blocks unless you use more cement .

4. If you have enough, do all round. It connects and bind all pillars, making the structure more resilient.

5. Use laterite, it compact better and when it compact, it is solid. If you are using normal soil, you may have to give it relatively longer time to compact before german floor.

6. It depends on the soil type, if you are building on a water prone area, put 2 in the ground.
And after lintel, use 3 coach not 2. It gives you more head clearance inside and enhances ventilation.

7. German flooring prevents moisture and most importantly ants will find it difficult digging through your doors.
However, if you are building on a dry land, you might not need to.
German floor alone can gulp money that can take your building to lintel.

Try and segment your building project if your pocket is not well oiled.
Do one part, take stock then go for next stage, that way you will not waste material if you run out of money

Eg
3500 to 4500 blocks
Foundation to DPC
DPC to lintel
Lintel to roof
Soakaway and filling (if you didn't do German floor)
Roofing
Flooring
Ceiling or pop
Plumbing
Conduit
Plaster
Doors and windows
Etc

dawnomike:
1) Using 1 bag of cement to set 100 blocks is not so bad. Although, I wouldn't do that. But, since your building is a bungalow - no wahala as good plastering will make up for it.

2)12mm is your best bet for reinforcement for your pillars and lintel... 10mm can only be use for the rings.
It does not matter if you decide to use short lintels or rull range

3) the maximum number of blocks you should make out of a bag of cement should not exceed 40. The lesser, the better

4) partial or all round lintel, it does not matter... Just ensure the right mixture of granite, sand and cement while casting

5) Laterite or rubles from demolished buildings are better... But if you must use the sand from your site ground (depending on the type of soil if not loamy), ensure it is well compacted before you go ahead with your flooring.

6) German floor is preferable... E get why

All the best in your building my brother... I pray you get money for all the needed resources and may your effort be crowned with success

Thanks for your response Sir. Really appreciate your time & effort

ITbomb:
1. "Most bricklayers" are right

2. It is good to use them so that it bears the weight of the roof instead of the weight being distributed throughout the building (if you don't use pillars). And 12 is better. Above 40 is not good.

It surprised me how you want to save on block yet you want 1 bag of cement to 80 blocks setting (instead of 100)

3. Use sand for moulding block, it has some properties which enhance binds when dried, much stone hinders binding in blocks unless you use more cement .

4. If you have enough, do all round. It connects and bind all pillars, making the structure more resilient.

5. Use laterite, it compact better and when it compact, it is solid. If you are using normal soil, you may have to give it relatively longer time to compact before german floor.

6. It depends on the soil type, if you are building on a water prone area, put 2 in the ground.
And after lintel, use 3 coach not 2. It gives you more head clearance inside and enhances ventilation.

7. German flooring prevents moisture and most importantly ants will find it difficult digging through your doors.
However, if you are building on a dry land, you might not need to.
German floor alone can gulp money that can take your building to lintel.

Try and segment your building project if your pocket is not well oiled.
Do one part, take stock then go for next stage, that way you will not waste material if you run out of money

Eg
3500 to 4500 blocks
Foundation to DPC
DPC to lintel
Lintel to roof
Soakaway and filling (if you didn't do German floor)
Roofing
Flooring
Ceiling or pop
Plumbing
Conduit
Plaster
Doors and windows
Etc

Thanks for your response Sir.

You see, before ariving at maximum number of blocks per bag, I asked a couple of people and some even told me if it's for personal house, moulding 50-blocks per bag was okay. So I was the person who decided to make 42pcs per bag rather than 50-pcs I was told.

Also this block moulders hardly even do as agreed. tell them 20pcs and watch them do +-15pcs so I just tell them something a bit higher so that when they decides to be smart, I still get what I wanted. So they never did the 42pcs I asked of them, rather they were doing 40pcs and sometimes a bit less despite me continually monitoring and arguing with them.


Although to be fair, when one of the block moulders got tired and asked I do 30pcs since its a personal house, I thought he was trying to make his own life easier since less numbers means more less work for him.

Anyway going forward, I plan a maximum of 40pcs though I would intensionally ignore them a bit so they do their usual 37pcs to 38pcs they often do though once in a while, i would remind them it ought be 40pcs.

seepanel:
Good Day Sir/Ma
I have the following questions please so I would be able to make informed decisions with the builders.

1. In Block Setting, most bricklayers suggest using 1 bag of cement to set 100 blocks. My question is, isn't 100 blocks much for 1 bag of cement ?
What number of blocks do you think is good enough to produce good results ?
We might be poor but don't want to be silly. Wouldn't mind setting 80-blocks per bag of cement even if that means the project taking much longer to complete. But knowing if 100 blocks is very OK would help us decide.

2. Building is 5 bedroom Bungalow and would be roofed (using Aluminium roofing) and some people don't bother using using pillar (reinforced iron rods beams) but we plan using them. My question is, for a bungalow, which iron rod size is recommended between 8mm, 10mm and 12mm ? Would have loved to use 12mm but the price I was told when I priced it made me seriously start having a rethink.

3. We mould our blocks ourselves using Sharp Sand & Stone dust. Question is,
there are at least 2 types of sharp sand - one using in moulding blocks and another used in decking. Is it more better to use the Sharp sand used in decking without stone dust or to continue mixing the normal ordinary sharp sand with stone dust ?
Also we remove 40 to 42 6-inch blocks per bag of cement. is 42 pcs of 6-inch blocks per bag too much ?
I know the recommended is 30pcs but how do you see 42pcs ?
We would have loved to use 9-inch blocks but economic situation isn't helping.

4. I see people doing partial lintel rather than all round lintel. Does that matter much ?

5. In foundation filling, is it better using the filling sand which is made of clay or we can use any type of sand e.g those soil scraped from the ground while they were grading the site. I think they call it caterpillar sand ?

6. In setting of blocks, under normal conditions with no issue with the land, it is 1-block inside the ground, 2-blocks above the ground making total of 3-blocks for foundation level.
Now for the rest of the house, most I see is 12-blocks high (i.e 4-blocks before window level, 5-blocks on window level + extra 2-blocks after lintel making a total of 11-blocks high or 14-blocks high if we include foundation blocks). My question is, is this enough or people are just trying to minimize costs ?

7. From readings on nairaland threads, I have learnt it's better to totally cement the foundation floor (i think they call it German floor) before continuing with rest of the house and one reason is to separate the foundation from the rest of the building. This among maybe other reasons is to avoid moisture like when it rains rising up the walls which is what causes paints to weaken over time. My question is, is there any other alternatives, like just cement those block holes or we must do the German floor so as not to have such issue.


Please do note we are not wealthy but just barely managing. but we equally understand building a house need be done right to avoid sad stories.

for instance, we manage to buy 10 bags of cement about every 2-months so you see, we are not even rich so please don't mistake us as being wealthy.

we are just trying to build something long lasting with the little money we are able to get.

Building is 5 bedroom Bungalow and would be roofed so no decking.

I know already we would dig soakaway and use the sand for filling but that already has been done and the sand used for our last unsupervised project which collapsed at lintel level. Now we stay on site anytime we are working else no work till we come.

Failure to put the DPM before casting of the damp proof floor (DPC) would allow rise of moisture through the foundation block work leading to damage of screeding and painting layers.

I want to ask, are those the only effect of doing German Floor without DPC & Damp proof membrane ?

Would the building structure get damaged also ?

Just asking because though I plan doing German floor, I may or may not do DPC hence my reason for asking.

1. Advice of using 3 Coaches after the lintel is well taken especially since that's what I wanted to do BUT choose asking since most even the Rich seems to be doing 2 coaches after Lintel.

2. For the reinforcement pillars, i would be using 12mm rods while I reserve 10mm for rings.

3. For the Lintel, I plan chaining (full range) some sides while using short lintels in some other places. Condition of my pocket would decide if I do Full Lintel all over or just some parts full while other short.

4. I intend changing the block mould to something much ticker as most we see are done for the markets. They are thin. Gladly enough, I've found one that's much thicker. Welder whom I paid to make me mould since over a year ago has disappeared including from his shop.


Also I plan buying Sands in minimum of 20 or 25 Tonnes since they appears cheaper than buying 15-Tones.

Also i would try building up at least 2,000 blocks before getting started again.

At the moment, we've done the Foundation walls, leaving spaces for the pillars.. Next is to order 20-tonnes sad for block Moulding & setting, hen order filling sand (lterite) and 12mm rods. Hopefully all these would notexceed fbuary / march.