1) Building description
The building under study is located in ---------. The building consists of a ground floor only. The building is used as accommodation for workers. There is no setback for the building where all the buildings are attached to each other.
The structural system of the building is a bearing wall system that consists of blockwork walls supporting wood beams that carry plywood and corrugated sheets. Based on the applied trial pits, the blockwork walls are supported by rock strip footings, that transfer the loads to the founding strata. The blockwork walls are filled with cement mortar.
2) Visual
inspection
During the
physical observation, considerable areas were exposed and checked, and a
general assessment was conducted. Investigation for cracks’ patterns, signs of
excessive deflection, and distress were carried out.
The following observations were noted
during the inspection:
1.
Vertical and horizontal cracks were observed in
the building’s walls.
2.
Most of the wood beams are worn. Also, some of
the beams are highly stressed and deflected.
3.
Many beams are rotten with clear trails of
fungi.
4.
Roof plywood is deteriorated in many places and
removed in some areas.
5.
Several places have a sign of water leakage.
6.
Corrugated sheets are eroded in several spots.
7.
Humidity is obvious in all rooms.
8.
Walls paint peeling is clear in many places, as
well as the separation of the finishing layer.
9.
An unleveled floor is noticed in many places.
10. Many services
serious problems were observed.
3) Tests
Due to the
nature of the building and the uncertainty about the existence of reinforced
concrete elements, tapping the walls with a steel hammer was carried out to
locate concrete areas to inspect, but no concrete elements were found.
However, a
verification core was extracted from one area, and it was evident that the wall
was built from blockwork filled with cement mortar.
A trial pit had
been dug to inspect the type of footings. The trial pit was located at the
corner of some building and the excavation reached to the external wall
foundation.
4) Discussion
of the Visual Inspection
Based on the conducted visual inspection and
observations, and the experience with similar buildings, the structure had been
undergoing a normal deterioration due to the aging effect combined with the
influence of the temperature and humidity variation, and lack of proper and
continuous maintenance. Also, due to the footing nature, some places
experienced settlement due to the strata subsidence that led to diagonal
cracks.
The excessive deflection in some of the roof’s
beams leads to ponding that allows the rainwater to accumulate and deteriorate
the roofing system further.
Improper compaction and the Chloride content in
the flooring screeds had led to the subsidence in flooring cracks in some
areas.
5) Conclusion
From the preceding observation and
investigation, the structural condition of the building is considered bad, and
80% of the building’s structure requires extensive maintenance, retrofitting,
and robust.