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Civil Engineering/concrete 2 nd floor

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Expert: - 2/24/2010


Question

finca casa
i am building a house in the country without plans,the local contractor is very experienced,but as the site is running down on one corner i have decided to build a storage space with 1.3m head room under this corner,the house is 7m wide by 14m long the storage area is 3.5m wide by 7m long,i know i havent given you much info,some idea on a concrete slab floor to cover 3.5m by 7m for normal family use would be very helpful

Answer
Hi William,

Firstly, if you have not water-proofed the earth-retaining wall then your storage area will always be moist/damp- I trust you realise that. Also, that retaining wall needs to be strong enough to resist lateral pressure including over-burden.

As for the 7 x 3.5m slab, due to liability reasons I do not do actual designs, but just give advice. Based on what you have said, I would expect the floor slab to be about 150 to 175mm thick, of class 25 or class 30 concrete (30 N/mm2 at 28 days), with bottom rebar of T12 at 150mm spacing along the short span and T10 at 200mm spacing at bottom in other direction and also the same at top along all the edges.
    Questioner's Rating
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    Commentthank you arshad,as the space under is for storage i have decided to add a beam [with rebar] of 150mm wide by 250 deep running for 7m 1m from the earth retaining wall with 5 collums of 150mm by 250mm[this will have doors later] down to a foundation also 2 beams[with rebar] of 200 wide by 220 deep running from the first beam to the outer wall,i will then pour a slab of 125mm to 100mm with the rebar you recommended.and no heavy people allowed.


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Arshad Khan

Expertise

I can answer any questions to do with civil and structural engineering consultancy and construction industry in East Africa and the Middle East, and specifically with the analysis and design of reinforced concrete structures. My particular expertise is in the aseismic design and optimisation of tall buildings.

Experience

Employment history: 36 years in Construction and consultancy in the UK, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Eritrea, South Africa, Somalia, Zambia, Austria, Bahrain, Kuwait, Doha and the U.A.E.

Organizations
.Fellow of Institution of Structural Engineers (UK) .Fellow of Institution of Civil Engineers(UK) .Member of the Institution of Engineers, Kenya .Registered Engineer, ERB, Kenya .Member of the Architectural Association of Kenya (Engineers Chapter) .Chartered Engineer (UK)

Publications
•1984: International Conference on the Art and Practice of Structural Design, London •1994: 3rd Int. Kerensky Conference in Structural Engineering, Singapore •2008: International Conference on High-Rise Towers, Abu Dhabi

Education/Credentials
BSc, 1st Class Hons, in Building Engineering, University of Bath, UK MSc in Concrete Structures and Technology, University of London. Diploma of Imperial College, UK.

Awards and Honors
•Science Congress Special Award (for 2-seater Hovercraft - 1968) •Institution of Civil Engineers Award for outstanding performance at Bath University (1975) •Concrete Society Postgraduate study Bursary Award (1976) •Consular Representative for British High Commission, Nairobi. (1995 to 1998) •Examiner for Institution of Civil Engineers Professional Interviews, Nairobi. (1997 to 1998) •Branch Representative in Vienna for PI assessment for Inst. of Struct. Engrs. (1999 to date)

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