Section through a Brick Veneer, Slab on ground Building Part 1

Summary

This video script offers a detailed walkthrough of constructing a brick veneer slab on ground, a common method in Sydney. It begins with site leveling and concrete slab formation, incorporating Waffle Pod for strength and less concrete usage. The process continues with reinforcement, slab pouring, and formwork removal. The script then describes wall construction, including bottom plates, studs, noggins, and lintels, followed by fascia and roofing. The focus is on the importance of the first tile's angle and preventing moisture issues with anti-ponding boards. The video promises to cover brickwork and interior fitting in the next installment.

Takeaways

• 🏗️ The video provides a step-by-step guide for building a brick veneer slab on ground.
• 🌍 This method is commonly used in Sydney, particularly for project homes.
• 🛠️ The process begins with leveling the site using a grader, bulldozer, and laser level.
• 🔨 Formwork is set up to pour the concrete slab, including forming a recess for the brickwork.
• 🧱 The Waffle Pod slab method is often used, involving foam blocks to create voids and reduce concrete usage.
• 🪨 Alternatively, compacted hardcore fill with a layer of blinding sand can be used before the membrane.
• 📄 A 200 micron polyethylene membrane (Forticon) is placed to prevent punctures and ensure smoothness.
• 🔗 Reinforcement, including trench mesh and concrete slab mesh, is installed as per structural engineer designs.
• 🧱 Once reinforcement is inspected and approved, the concrete slab is poured and cured for about a week.
• 🏠 The video covers the subsequent steps of constructing walls, installing windows and doors, and building the roof structure.

Q & A

What is the most common method of building a house in Sydney as described in the script?

The most common method of building a house in Sydney is through a brick veneer slab on ground, which relies on being built on a level block of ground.

Why is the site leveled before building the house?

The site is leveled to ensure a stable and even foundation for the house, using a grader, bulldozer, and laser level to achieve a perfectly level surface.

What is a Waffle Pod slab and how does it contribute to the construction process?

A Waffle Pod slab is a roughly one-meter by one-meter square block of foam that creates a void under the slab, reducing the amount of concrete used while still providing strength through the pattern that creates beams in between the slab.

What is the purpose of the membrane placed directly on the ground during the construction of the slab?

The membrane, commonly called Forticon, is placed to prevent moisture from seeping into the ground and to maintain a smooth surface, preventing rocks from puncturing holes in the membrane.

Why is compacted hardcore fill used in the construction process?

Compacted hardcore fill is used to provide a solid base for the slab and to create trenches for beams, ensuring structural integrity and support for the house.

What is the role of the reinforcement in the concrete slab?

The reinforcement, which includes bar chairs and a cage of Trench mesh, is designed to provide structural strength and stability to the concrete slab, as specified by the structural engineer's plans.

How long does it generally take to strip the formwork after pouring the concrete slab?

It generally takes about a week for the concrete slab to cure enough to safely strip the formwork.

What are the components of the wall in course in the construction process described?

The wall in course is made up of a bottom plate, common studs, noggins, a window sill, jamb stud, lintel, and a top plate, with a ribbon plate for the trusses to sit on.

Why is the fascia installed before the roof tiles?

The fascia is installed first to provide a finished edge for the roof and to support the roof structure, ensuring a solid base for the tiles.

What is the purpose of the Bellcast batten in the roofing process?

The Bellcast batten is used to kick the first tile, ensuring that the angle of the tile looks consistent and aesthetically pleasing, preventing the first tile from looking flat.

What is the function of the anti-ponding board in the roofing process?

The anti-ponding board, made of 4.5mm fibro, supports the sarking and prevents it from sagging near the gutter, ensuring that moisture runs off effectively into the gutter.

Outlines

00:00

🏗️ Building a Brick Veneer Slab on Ground

This paragraph outlines the process of constructing a brick veneer slab on ground, a common method in Sydney for project homes. It begins with site leveling using a grader, bulldozer, and laser level. The foundation involves forming up for the concrete slab, which includes creating a recess for the brickwork. Modern construction often utilizes a Waffle Pod slab to reduce concrete usage while maintaining strength through foam blocks that create beams. The process also includes laying a 200-micron Polyethylene membrane, known as Forticon, to prevent moisture issues. Reinforcement in the form of Trench mesh and bar chairs is essential and must be inspected before pouring the concrete slab. After the slab is poured and cured, formwork is stripped, and the next step is to start building the walls with bottom plates, studs, noggins, and lintels, followed by the installation of trusses for the roof.

05:04

🔨 Roofing and Fascia Installation for Brick Veneer

The second paragraph focuses on the roofing process for a brick veneer structure. It emphasizes the importance of quickly installing the fascia, whether made of timber or metal, to provide shelter for subsequent work. The fascia is followed by the installation of the first tile battens, including a Bellcast batten to give the initial roof tile the correct angle, preventing it from appearing flat. An anti-ponding board made of 4.5mm fibro is used to support the sarking and prevent sagging near the gutter, ensuring proper runoff into the gutter system. The paragraph concludes with the placement of additional tile battens to support the roof tiles, marking the first stage of the brick veneer construction process. The next video will continue with the brickwork and interior fitting.

Keywords

💡Brick Veneer

Brick veneer is a non-load bearing brick layer applied to the exterior of a building, typically used for aesthetic purposes and insulation. In the video, it is the primary construction method being discussed, with a focus on how it is applied to a 'slab on ground' foundation, which is a common practice in Sydney for project homes.

💡Level Block

A level block refers to a piece of land that has been leveled to ensure a flat and even surface, which is essential for constructing a building. In the script, leveling the site with a grader, bulldozer, and laser level is the first step before building the house, highlighting its importance in the construction process.

💡Concrete Slab

A concrete slab is a flat, horizontal surface made from concrete, used as a base for building structures. In the video, forming up for the concrete slab is a crucial step, where the recess for the brickwork is formed, and it's mentioned that a Waffle Pod slab is commonly used to reduce concrete usage while maintaining strength.

💡Waffle Pod

A Waffle Pod is a type of construction material that consists of a grid of interconnected voids, used to create a void under the concrete slab. It is mentioned in the script as a method to reduce the amount of concrete needed while still providing structural integrity through the formation of beams within the slab.

💡Reinforcement

Reinforcement in construction refers to the steel bars or mesh used to strengthen concrete structures. The script describes the placement of reinforcement in the footing and the concrete slab, emphasizing its importance as designed by a structural engineer to ensure the building's stability and strength.

💡Forticon

Forticon is a brand name for a 200-micron polyethylene membrane used in construction to prevent moisture penetration. In the video, it is placed over the leveled fill to protect the structure and is left intact for backfilling with landscaping and topsoil.

💡Wall In-Course

Wall in-course refers to the horizontal layers of a wall's structure, including the bottom plate, studs, noggins, and top plate. The script explains the components of the wall in-course, such as the sill for a window opening and the lintel that carries the weight of the opening, which are essential for the structural integrity of the walls.

💡Fascia

Fascia is a horizontal decorative element that covers the lower edge of the roof structure, often used to give a finished appearance to the eaves. The script mentions the installation of fascia, either made of timber or metal, as part of the construction process to protect the roof structure and enhance the building's appearance.

💡Bellcast Batten

A Bellcast batten is a type of roofing batten that is slightly angled to lift the first row of tiles at an angle, giving a more aesthetically pleasing appearance. The script describes its use to ensure that the first tile on the roof does not appear flat, contributing to the overall visual appeal of the roofline.

💡Anti Ponding Board

An anti-ponding board is a thin piece of material, such as fibro, placed across the top of the first two battens to support the sarking and prevent sagging near the gutter. The script explains its role in ensuring that moisture is directed into the gutter, preventing water damage to the building.

💡Sarking

Sarking is a material, often a type of felt or underlay, that is placed under the roof tiles to provide a weatherproof barrier and support for the tiles. In the script, sarking is mentioned as the next layer to be installed after the anti-ponding board, which helps in the proper installation of the roof tiles.

Highlights

Introduction to building a brick veneer slab on ground, a common method in Sydney.

The importance of leveling the site with a grader, bulldozer, and laser level before construction.

Forming up for the concrete slab, including the recess for the brickwork.

Use of Waffle Pod slab to reduce concrete usage and create strength through foam blocks.

Alternative method of using compacted hardcore fill before laying the membrane.

Laying a layer of blinding sand to level and smooth the top of the fill before membrane installation.

Installation of a 200-micron Polyethylene Membrane, commonly known as Forticon.

Placing bar chairs and reinforcement in the footing and slab as per structural engineer's plans.

Inspection of reinforcement by the council or private certifier before concrete slab pouring.

Pouring the concrete slab and allowing a week for curing before stripping the formwork.

Leaving the Forticon membrane intact for backfill against landscaping and topsoil.

Constructing the wall with bottom plate, studs, noggins, window sill, jamb stud, lintel, and top plate.

Use of ribbon plate and trusses for roof framing.

Installation of fascia, either timber or metal, to support the roof.

Quickly getting the roof on to provide a working space underneath.

Laying the first tile battens, including a Bellcast batten for aesthetic purposes.

Use of an anti-ponding board to support sarking and prevent moisture issues near the gutter.

Finalizing the roof with tile battens and roof tiles.

Upcoming video to cover brickwork and interior finishing.

Transcripts

G'day and welcome back to Buildsum and as you might be able to see we're back on the site

look at our piece of land here and today what I want to show you is a

step by step

build up of a

section through a brick veneer slab on ground

Building this is probably the most common method that they use in Sydney

currently with all the project homes that are being built

and it actually relies on being built on a level block of ground so a lot of jobs

first thing that'll happen is they come out and they level the site

with a grader,

bulldozer and grader and a laser level getting all nice

perfectly level and then they can start to build the house so first thing they have to do is

get the slab poured up, so they're going to

form up for the concrete slab

form up far so they can actually form the recess of this board here in

The slab to take the brickwork you'll see that as we build it up

then

Depending on how they do it most of them do a Waffle Pod

slab nowadays, so I'll put the membrane directly on the ground of course bringing it up the edge of the formwork

like such and

Then I'll put in their Waffle Pod. Which is just a roughly a metre by metre square block of foam and that

just fills in

or creates a void under the slab so we're not using as much concrete, but the

shape or the pattern that they're put in creates beams in between the slab which creates the strength and

they can champher the corners just to give you strength on the internal corner of the slab to then get the shear point

That's why method the other method is to

before you put the Membrane down put in

compacted hardcore fill

And what they normally do is just put this all the way through the site

And then they come back later and dig the beams in or the trenches in to this later on

Top of the fill because this has normally got some sharp rocks in it

I'll put a layer of blinding sand

Okay, so this helps you to get the top of the fill

down exactly level it also keeps it very smooth and it stops the

rocks from puncturing holes in the Membrane which we'll get our next

so your 200 micron

Polyethylene Membrane

Commonly called Forticon it goes across the top back down the end of the trench and back up on your formwork as well

Next step is the place your bar chairs and your reinforcement, so we have

reinforcements in the footing itself, so there's a cage there two layers of Trench mesh and

we also have a layer of mesh in the concrete slab okay all that will be designed

on your plans

by your structural engineer you won't have to worry about too much about what you actually put in there, but you have to have reinforcement

Once the reinforcement all been placed and inspected by the council or the private certifier

you can then pour your concrete slab and

there we go we've got our floor poured

After generally about a week is a good amount of time. You can strip the form work

of course you'll still have your

Moisture your Forticon, your membrane there you want to leave that

Intact as much as possible because eventually your backfill against here with with landscaping and topsoil

All right, so that's our floor down. So the next step then is to start our walls

So you put your wall in, course walls made up of your bottom plate

your

Common studs to go from top of the wall to the bottom of the wall

We have our noggins that go between our studs

This opening is a window. So we have a sill, a window sill and we have a Jamb stud directly against the window on

the other side

Here this one is similar to a common stud that it runs from top to bottom but again

It's associated with the window so it's referred to as a window stud and we have our lintel

Carrying the weight of the opening and our top plate

in most cases nowadays we would have then a ribbon plate and

Our trusses go on top of that

So we'll get our roof on or the frame up anyway

the next job then be to get your fascia on whether you use a timber Fascia or a metal fascia doesn't matter

Fascia goes in next and

The idea is to get the roof on as quick as possible

So you've got something to work under but then put our first couple of tile battens on

So the first pattern there you can see is a little bit bigger than the second one

It's called a Bellcast batten and what it does it kicks the first tile

So that the angle of the tile looks the same if you didn't kick the first tile

The first tile on the roof would look very flat, and it just wouldn't look right so you have a Bellcast batten

You should also have what I call an anti ponding board. This is just a piece of fibro

4.5mm fibro

Sits across the top of the first two battens and what that does it

supports

the sarking which goes on next and just

stops it from sagging near the gutter which means that any moisture that runs down here

Well, then once it gets to here will definitely run off

into the gutter

then our tile battens to take our Roof and

Our roof tiles go on there

So that's the first

stage of

the Brick veneer sub on ground

section in the next video. I'll take you through the actual bringing up the Brickwork and

finishing all that off and the how the insides fitted out