The most critical factor in increasing your building's strength, durability and safety is to have a strong foundation. Here are some useful points for a strong foundation:

• Ensure soil testing is done prior to designing the building foundation.
• The foundation should be done on firm soil and should have a minimum depth of 1.2m from the actual ground level.
• Transferring the load safely to the ground requires attention and planning, and forms a significant part of building construction.
• Before excavation, it's very important to mark the construction location and the foundation size as the area of foundation has a direct bearing on the load-carrying capacity of the soil.

Termite infestation can cause damage to the building structure and wooden materials. Here are some useful tips to keep your home termite-free:

• The soil around the foundation area should be treated with appropriate chemicals.
• The chemical application process should be complete and done continuously.
• The termite treatment should be done pre-, during and post-construction stages.
• It's important to ensure that the chemicals do not contaminate the domestic water sources.

While the concrete work is in progress, a temporary structure known as shuttering should be made to support the construction, and also to develop the required strength of concrete before releasing the concrete.

• The formwork design and construction should be very rigid during placing and compaction of concrete, and preferably it should be leak-proof to prevent loss of slurry from the concrete.
• Use of the releasing agent should have a smooth finish of the concrete.
• The formwork should be free of foreign matter before the casting.

Within 30 minutes of the preparation time, the concrete mix in the proper ratio needs to be used. For best results Mixer machines are required. Water ratio in the mix needs to be proper as using more water weakens the concrete and increases the chance of cracking. Compaction is to be done with the vertical vibrator. To avoid any separation of aggregates, the concrete mix should be poured within a height of 1.5 meters maximum. To avoid water accumulation on the roof, proper leveling and slope of the roof should be maintained during the placing of concrete.

The construction becomes safe when the walls are well-built, strong and sturdy. Here are some useful tips:

• As per the engineer's guidance, bricks/blocks should be put on a full bed of properly mixed mortar.
• The joint gaps should be fully filled with the same properly mixed mortar.
• The block work L/H ratio should be properly maintained and the RCC band with stool columns, etc need to be collected as per IS code.
• The brickwork should be well cured to add strength to the building.

Batching, Placing and Mixing:

For convenient batching, using wooden boxes of specific sizes will be helpful. It also helps to maintain a proper ratio of materials. For best results always use a mixer machine.

Place all the mix within 30 minutes of preparation before it starts to harden.

Use proper amounts of water to obtain the required workability. Excessive water weakens the concrete and enhances the chances of cracking.

For proper compaction, the vibrator should be used vertically; it must not be over vibrated.

Never add water during compacting.

To avoid any separation of aggregators, the concrete should be poured within a height of 1.5 meters maximum.

Proper leveling and roof slope should be maintained during the placement of concrete to avoid any accumulation of water on the roof.