With the concept of living changing over the decades, underground construction jobs are up to cater to the growing demand of new age home builders. People have become all the more environment conscious and want to live in a greener environment these days. If you have no problems working underground, there are plenty of jobs available. You can apply to underground construction agencies to look for openings at places near you.
Concrete blocks
Underground construction jobs involve a technique where forms are built and rebar placed into them for pouring concrete. Once the concrete cures, the forms are take away and all plumbing and electrical material are installed beforehand as you cannot do it once the concrete is poured into the forms. For one storied building underground, you will have to make 12 inch thick walls. To avoid using forms, you can go for concrete blocks.
Check insulation and safety
Instead of the concrete blocks, you can also use styrofoam blocks which will help insulate both inside and outside of the building. Underground construction agencies aim at reinforcing the roof of the houses, which is a primary requirement for underground home jobs. Safety is of primary importance and usage of pre stressed concrete panels or steel bars with two inch concrete is common.
When you are doing underground construction jobs, structural safety should be undertaken as a very first step. The construction has to withstand earthquakes as well. Roof loads are greater even if the earth cover is only a foot. According to experts in underground building jobs, a foot of earth is equivalent to more than 20 feet of snow and water level of two feet.
The ideal land under which a construction is done could have something like 40 feet of sand and you should factor in 40 inches of rainfall in wet seasons.
Use design software
Sand is also a good insulating material when it is dry, but concrete is opted for by those doing underground construction jobs. It is also great for supporting the overhead earth mass and keep the walls in place.
There are different types of design software which can come in handy during underground construction jobs. Green homes are in vogue these days and getting a reinforced construction in place is what the underground construction agencies look for.
But if you want to build underground in humid conditions like Honolulu where temperatures can reach boiling point in some weeks during scorchers, try the cut and cover method.
Earth is a better insulator than concrete and walls which do not get too hot or cool quickly. Mold growth can be experienced in humid conditions where heavy concrete walls can become damp fairly quickly. Your best bet would be to try your hand out initially and gain some experience at the large number of underground home jobs that are available these days.
Aveng (Africa) Limited is a multi-discipline construction and engineering group anchored in South Africa and focused on infrastructure, energy and mining opportunities in Africa.