Types Of Building Materials: The Definitive Guide

This is a comprehensive guide on different types of building materials.

In this guide, you’re going to learn about:

  • Different types of building materials
  • Their properties, and
  • Various uses of them.

So if you want to choose:

  • The right material for the right task
  • The relatively low-cost materials depending on the task’s requirements

Then you’ll love this guide.

So, first, let’s see…

What Are Building Materials?

Simply saying, any materials that are used for construction purposes are building materials.

So whatever you use to build a building, a house, a bridge or, any other civil structures are building materials.

And, in constructions, we use…

Different Types Of Building Materials

And, there are huge numbers of them.

If you want to categorize them, you’ll get two main types of building materials:

1. Natural, and

2. Man-made

Let’s see what kind of materials are under each category.

1. Natural Building Materials:

You can collect this type of material from nature directly and use them with little modification.

The most common materials of this type used in the construction industry are:

  • Sand
  • Stone or Rock
  • Wood
  • Mud and Clay
  • Thatch

2. Man-Made Building Materials:

You can’t get this type of building materials directly from nature.

To use, you have to modify them.

Some building materials of this type are:

  • Bricks and blocks
  • Concrete
  • Cement
  • Metal
  • Plastics
  • Glass
  • Ceramics
  • Foam
  • Fabric, and

…Many more

Different Types Of Building Materials

With these, now let’s discuss the types, properties, and uses of all these building materials one after another.

SAND:

In this section, you’ll learn:

  • About SAND as a building materal.
  • Different types of sand.
  • Properties of good quality sand, and
  • Uses of sand as a building material.

First, let’s get to know about sand a little bit…

Sand is consisting of particulate matter. Such as rock, coral, shells.

And,

It’s typically coarser than silt but finer than gravel.

Sand As A Building Material

Types Of Sand

There are various types of sand:

Depending on particle size:

  • Fine sand (0.06-0.2 mm)
  • Medium sand (0.2-0.6 mm)
  • Coarse sand (0.6-2 mm)

Depending on particle shape:

  • Angular
  • Sub-angular
  • Rounded
  • Flat
  • Elongated

Depending on texture:

  • Rough
  • Smooth, or Polished

Depending on composite soil types:

  • Gravelly sand
  • Plastic or cohesive
  • Non-plastic or low-plasticity

Regardless of the sand type, let’s see some…

Properties of good quality Sand

  • Sand should be clean and free from organic matters.
  • Sand used for mix design is known as standard sand (IS: 650).
  • It should be quartz, light grey or whitish variety, and free from silt.
  • Sand should pass (100%) through 2mm IS sieve and retain (100%) on 90-micron IS sieve.
  • For plastering purposes, sand must not have a modulus less than 1.5 and white silts are preferred not less than 4%.
  • For brickwork, it must not have a modulus less than 1.2 and the silt preferred is generally 4%.
  • Concreting works require coarse sand with a modulus of 2.5 to 3.5 and the silt content must not be less than 4%.

Uses Of Sand

In construction, there are many ways you can use sand. Such as-

  • For plaster, mortar, and concrete.
  • Filtering water.
  • Giving a grip to painting or wall art by combining 2 cups of paint with a ¾ cup of sand.
  • To make sandpaper.
  • Adds texture and aesthetic appeal to space.
  • Sand is also used for earth filling work

Stone:

In this section, you’ll find:

  • A little discussion about stone.
  • Their types.
  • Properties, and
  • Their uses.

Stone is the most important building material and it is derived from rocks.

Due to its availability in abundance, stone has been considered one of the popular building materials from the older days.

Types of stone:

There are various types of stone used in construction. Such as:

  • Granite
  • Limestone
  • Marble
  • Basalt
  • Slate
  • Sandstone
  • Travertine
  • Quartzite

Read More: 10 Types Of Stone Used In Construction

Properties Of Good Building Stones

  • The crushing strength should be greater than l000 kg/cm2.
  • Should be a uniform color.
  • A good building stone should be durable.
  • Its fracture should be sharp, even, and clear.
  • The percentage-wear should be equal to or less than 3%.
  • The stone should be resistant to fire.
  • The specific gravity should be greater than 8.7.
  • Should have compact fine crystalline structures.
  • The water absorption percentage should not exceed 0.60 by weight after 24 hours.

Uses Of Stone

  • For constructing residential and public buildings.
  • Construction of walls, columns, dams, abutments, and bridges.
  • For architectural and ornamental works.
  • Used as aggregate for concrete.
  • As the form of facing for decoration.
  • Used for roofing purposes. Normally, slate is used because it is weather-resistive and durable.
  • Used in gabion walls and retaining walls to control landslides and floods respectively.
  • In the pavement for making sub-base and base course.
  • Used in the preparation of cement, sand, etc.
  • For making stone arts, statues, etc.
  • Can be used as DPC (Damp Proof Course).
  • Used for constructing fireproof structures.

Wood:

In this section, you’ll get to know:

  • About wood as a building material.
  • Types of wood.
  • Properties of wood, and
  • Its uses

About Wood

Being second only to stone in terms of its rich and storied history in the world of construction, wood has been used as a building material for thousands of years.

With an adequate fire retardant treatment, wood can be a reliable construction material with long service life.

Perhaps one of the biggest advantages of using wood as a construction material is that it is a natural resource, making it readily available and economically feasible.

More than that, it’s highly machinable and can be fabricated into all kinds of shapes and sizes to fit practically any construction need.

If you are working with wood, you’ll find some common terms. Such as Timber, Lumber, Beam, Engineered wood, etc.

They are often used interchangeably to refer to wood.

But there is a little difference…

  • Timber: Pieces of wood over 5 inches wide by 5 inches thick regardless of length are referred to as timber.
  • Lumber: Pieces of wood that are smaller than 5 inches wide by 5 inches thick regardless of length are called Lumber.
  • Beam: Any timber that exceeds 8″ wide by 8″ thick are referred to as beams.
  • Engineered Wood: Engineered wood is the product of a more intricate fabrication process in which various wood strands, fibers, veneers, or other forms of wood are glued together to form a type of composite material that is used for specific construction applications.
    Common examples of engineered wood include plywood, glued laminated timber (Glulam), fiberboard, oriented strand board, and particleboard.

Types Of Wood

Woods are mainly two types:

  • Softwood, and
  • Hardwood

Examples of commonly used softwoods are pine, birch, hickory, ash, and cedar.

And, examples of the most popular hardwoods are mahogany, oak, maple, cherry, walnut, and teak.

Read More: Types Of Wood Used In Construction

Properties Of Woods

  • The freshly cut surface of the wood should exhibit a hard and shining appearance.
  • The true specific gravity of wood is approximately equal for all species and averages 1.54.
  • Bulk density depends on the volume of pores and moisture content of the wood.
  • When absorbing water, Wood increases both its linear and volumetric dimensions.
  • The heat conductivity is quite low.
  • Wood is not affected by weak alkali solution but decays in an acid medium (pH< 4).
  • Wood has three principal axes—longitudinal, radial, and tangential.
  • It has three values of modulus of elasticity varying by as much as 150 to 1, three shear moduli varying by 20 to 1, and six Poisson’s ratios varying by 40 to 1.
  • There is no sharply defined elastic limit in wood.
  • Wood is a ductile material.
  • It is one of the strongest structural materials when the compressive force acts parallel to fibers of the wood.
  • Compressive strength perpendicular to fibers of wood is much lower.
  • Compressive strength parallel to fibres varies from 30.0 to 77.5 N/mm2 (at 15% moisture content).
  • Tensile strength parallel to the fibers is 80.0 to 190.0 N/mm2.
  • Wood has low shearing strength of 6.5–14.5 N/mm2 along the fibers.

Uses Of Woods

  • In the form of piles, posts, beams, lintels, door/window frames and shutters, roof members, etc.
  • Used for flooring, ceiling, paneling, and construction of partition walls.
  • For formwork of concrete, for the timbering of trenches, centering for arch work, scaffolding, transmission poles, and fencing.

Mud and Clay:

As a building material, mud and clay are normally used in two ways:

1. Making walls directly with the mud mixture, and

2. Walls are built by air-dried mud blocks.

Read More: Use Of Different Types Of Clay In Construction

Thatch:

The dried grass is called Thatch.

And this is one of the oldest building materials.

The grass is a good insulator and can easily be harvested.

It isn’t used in modern buildings much.

But it’s sometimes used on the roof of buildings to make a small shade.

Most of the time, you’ll see thatch as a roofing material of a house in the rural area.

But in some countries, thatch is used to make a complete house like this:

Thatch used as a building material to make houses.

Bricks And Blocks:

In this section, you’ll learn:

  • What are bricks?
  • The composition of bricks
  • Brick making process
  • Different types of bricks
  • Properties, and
  • Uses of bricks in construction

Bricks are rectangular blocks of uniform size made with clay.

A good brick clay should have the following compositions:

  • Alumina — 20% to 30%
  • Silika — 50% to 60%
  • Oxide of iron — 5% to 6%
  • Magnesia — A small quantity
  • Lime — A small quantity

But iron pyrites, alkalies, pebbles, organic matter should not be present in good brick clay.

The process of manufacturing bricks involves:

  • Preparation of clay
  • Molding
  • Drying
  • Burning

Types Of Bricks

Bricks can be classified depending on various criteria. Such as,

On The Basis Of Field Practice:

  • First class
  • Second class
  • Third class, and
  • Fourth class

On The Basis Of Use:

  • Common bricks
  • Facing bricks
  • Engineering bricks

On The Basis Of Finish:

  • Sand-faced bricks
  • Rustic bricks

On The Basis Of Manufacture:

  • Hand-made bricks
  • Machine-made bricks

On The Basis Of Burning:

  • Pale bricks
  • Body bricks
  • Arch bricks

On The Basis Of Types:

  • Solid bricks
  • Perforated bricks
  • Hollow bricks
  • Cellular bricks

Properties Of Bricks

  • An ideal brick is truly rectangular, well defined, and has sharp edges.
  • The surface of the bricks is regular and even.
  • The brick should have a uniform deep red or cherry color as indicative of uniformity in chemical composition.
  • Should not exceed 20% of its dry weight when kept immersed in water for 24 hours.
  • The crushing strength should not be less than 10 N/mm2.
  • Density varies from 1600 kg/m3 to 1900 kg/m3.
  • Depending upon its density, a standard brick’s weight is between 3.2 to 3.5 kg.
  • The compressive strength may vary from 35 kg/cm2 to more than 200 kg/cm2.
  • The flexural strength of a common building brick shouldn’t be less than 10 kg/cm2.
  • A good building brick should possess a shearing strength of 50-70 kg/cm2.
  • Bricks should provide adequate insulation against heat, cold, and noise.

Uses Of Bricks

  • Can be used for permanent structural construction such as buildings, dams, roads, bridge piers, etc.
  • For the construction of walls of any size, floors, arches, and cornices.
  • For decorative purposes.
  • Used as aggregate for concrete.
  • For manufacture of Surki (powdered bricks) to be used in lime plaster and lime concrete.
  • Making walkways.

Concrete:

This section will teach you:

  • Details about concrete
  • Different types of concrete
  • Its properties, and
  • Uses.

Concrete is a widely used man-made building material.

And, it is an important building material because of the following reasons:

  • It can be molded into any shape and size.
  • Its preparation and placing processes can be mechanized completely.
  • It possesses adequate plasticity for mechanical working.
  • Properties of concrete are highly controllable.

The main constituents of concrete are:

  • Cement/Lime: Lime was used once. Nowadays ordinary portland cement is used.
  • Fine Aggregate: Usually natural river sand, which is passed through 4.75 mm B.S.test sieve, is used as fine aggregates.
  • Coarse Aggregate: Generally, broken stone, which is retained on 4.75 mm size B.S.test sieve, is used as coarse aggregate.
    But the maximum size of coarse aggregate should not be exceeded to one-third of the thickness of the concrete section.
  • Water: Fresh drinking water should be used.

There are two ways to mix these constituents to prepare concrete:

  • Hand mixing
  • Machine mixing

Types Of Concrete:

Here are some common types of concrete used in construction:

  • Plain/ordinary concrete
  • Reinforced concrete
  • Lightweight concrete
  • High-density concrete
  • Precast concrete
  • Prestressed concrete
  • Air-entrained concrete
  • Self-compacting concrete
  • Polymer concrete

You’ll also find some other types of concrete. Read more about that here.

Properties Of Concrete

Let’s learn some of the properties of concrete that make it a versatile building material.

  • Concrete is highly workable in the plastic state.
  • It can segregate and bleed too.
  • Concrete gains 95% of desired compressive strength within 28 days.
  • It has high compressive strength that varies between 15 to 60 MPa.
  • Concrete is weak in tension and the tensile strength is typically about 10% of compressive strength.
  • And, the bending strength is about 15% of compressive strength.
  • Concrete is highly durable.
  • It tends to be porous.
  • It is free from corrosion.

Uses Of Concrete

Virtually, Concrete can be used in any civil construction works.

However, I’d like to summarise some uses of concrete depending on their mix proportion.

Here they are:

  • 1:2:2 — For heavy loaded R.C.C columns and R.C.C arches of long spans.
  • 1:2:2 — For small pre-cast members of concrete, like fencing poles, telegraph poles, etc. and watertight construction.
  • 1:2:3 — For water tanks, bridges, sewers, etc.
  • 1:2½:3½ — For footpaths, concrete roads.
  • 1:2:4 — For general work of RCC such as stairs, beams, columns, slabs, etc.
  • 1:4:8 — Mass concrete for heavy walls, foundation footings, etc.

Cement:

In this section, you’ll learn:

  • About cement as a building material.
  • Ingredients of cement.
  • Cement types.
  • Properties of cement, and
  • Its uses.

Cement is a substance used for binding and hardening other materials.

You may have a question in your mind that what building material was used as a binder before the invention of cement.

In the ancient world, calcium oxide was widely used as a binder.

After that, the Egyptians used calcined gypsum as cement. The Greeks and Romans used lime made by heating limestone.

The history of Portland cement began in 1756 and such name was first patented in 1824 by Joseph Aspdin.

Ingredients Of Cement:

The ingredients of typical portland cement are:

  • Lime (CaO) — 62%
  • Silica (SiO2) — 22%
  • Alumina (Al2O3) — 5%
  • Calcium Sulphate (CaSO4) — 4%
  • Iron Oxide (Fe2O3) — 3%
  • Magnesia (MgO) — 2%
  • Sulphur (S) — 1%
  • Alkalies — 1%

Types Of Cement:

Here are the different types of cement used in the construction industry:

  • Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC)
  • Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC)
  • Rapid Hardening Cement
  • Quick setting cement
  • Low Heat Cement
  • Sulfates resisting cement
  • Blast Furnace Slag Cement
  • High Alumina Cement
  • White Cement
  • Colored cement
  • Air Entraining Cement
  • Expansive cement
  • Hydrographic cement

Properties Of Cement

  • The hydration rate of cement is directly related to its fineness.
  • Cement doesn’t shrink upon hardening.
  • It sets and hardens when water is added.
  • The initial setting time of cement is 30-45 minutes and the final setting time is about 10 hours.
  • The hydration process of cement generates heat.
  • The density of cement may be anywhere from 62 to 78 lb/ft3.
  • The specific gravity of portland cement is 3.15.

Uses Of Cement

Cement is used extensively as a binding material. Here are some of them:

  • In mortar for plastering, masonry work, pointing, etc.
  • For making joints for drains and pipes.
  • For water tightness of structures.
  • In concrete for laying floors, roofs and constructing lintels, beams, stairs, pillars, etc.
  • It is used where a hard surface is required for the protection of exposed surfaces of structures against the destructive agents of the weather and certain organic or inorganic chemicals.
  • For precast pipes manufacturing, piles, fencing posts, etc.
  • In the construction of important engineering structures such as bridges, culverts, dams, tunnels, lighthouses, etc.
  • In the preparation of foundations, watertight floors, footpaths, etc.
  • Cement is also employed for the construction of wells, water tanks, tennis courts, lamp posts, telephone cabins, roads, etc.

Metal:

In this section, you’ll learn:

  • What is metal?
  • Different types of metal used as a building material
  • Properties of different types of metal
  • Uses of metal in building construction

What Is Metal?

Metal is a solid material that is generally hard, shiny, malleable, fusible, ductile, and has good thermal and electrical conductivity.

Due to their durability and strength to form structural components, pipework, cladding materials, metal is the most popular building material.

Types Of Metal

Basically, metal can be categorized into two types:

1. Ferrous metal, and

2. Non-ferrous metal

Under each category, you’ll find several other types.

Let’s discuss both categories a little bit.

Ferrous Metal:

This category contains iron as its main constituent.

Types of metal under this category are:

  • Cast iron
  • Wrought iron
  • Galvanized Iron (GI)
  • Steel, etc.

Non-Ferrous Metal:

The metal of this category doesn’t contain iron as its main constituents.

Types of metal of this category are:

  • Aluminum
  • Copper
  • Bronze
  • Brass
  • Lead
Types of Metal

Now, let’s learn a little bit about some commonly used metals regardless of their category.

Cast Iron:

This is a hard, relatively brittle alloy of iron and carbon which can be readily cast in a mold. It contains a higher proportion of carbon than steel.

It is manufactured by remelting pig iron with coke and limestone.

Composition Of Cast Iron:
  • Carbon — 2% to 4%
  • Silicon — 2.5%
  • Phosphorous — 1% to 1.5%
  • Manganese — 0.75%
  • Sulphur — 0.10%
Properties Of Cast Iron:
  • It becomes soft in saltwater.
  • Can be hardened by heating and sudden cooling.
  • Can’t be magnetized.
  • It does not be rust easily.
  • It is fusible.
  • Hard, but brittle too.
  • It is not ductile and cannot be adopted to absorb shocks and impacts.
  • The melting temperature of it is about 12500°C.
  • It shrinks on cooling.
  • Its structure is granular and crystalline with a whitish or grayish tinge.
  • The specific gravity of it is 7.5.
  • It lacks plasticity and hence it is unsuitable for forging work.
  • It is weak in tension (1500 kg/cm2) and strong in compression (6000 kg/cm2).
  • Two pieces of cast iron cannot be connected by the process of riveting or welding (They are to be connected by nuts and bolts).
Uses Of Cast Iron:
  • Cisterns, Water pipes, Gas pipes and Sewers, Manhole covers, and Sanitary fittings.
  • For making ornamental castings like brackets, gates, lampposts, etc.
  • Hardware
  • It is used in making pots, pans, and utensils.
  • For preparing rail chairs, carriage wheels, etc.
  • Circular stairs.

Wrought Iron:

Wrought iron is a form of iron with very low carbon content (less than 0.15%) in contrast to cast iron (2% to 4%).

It is tough, ductile, malleable, and can be easily welded.

Wrought iron is the purest form of iron. The presence of total impurities in it does not exceed 0.50%. And it has less than 2% slag by weight.

It is much more expensive to produce than cast iron.

Almost all of the wrought iron works are joined by riveting.

Wrought iron is manufactured by four operations:

  • Refining
  • Pudding
  • Shinging
  • Rolling
Properties Of Wrought Iron:
  • It can be used to form temporary magnets but can’t be magnetized permanently.
  • Moderately elastic.
  • Can be easily forged and welded.
  • Unaffected by saline water.
  • Resists corrosion in a better way.

The specific gravity of Wrought iron is about 7.8

  • Its melting point is about 1500°C
  • Ultimate compressive strength is about 2000 kg/cm2
  • Ultimate tensile strength is about 4000 kg/cm2
Uses Of Wrought Iron:

For:

  • Roofing sheets, Straps for timber roof trusses, Nuts, and bolts.
  • Handrails, Water and steam pipes, Ornamental ironwork.
  • Door-window grill
  • Rivets, Chains, Railway couplings,
  • Boiler tubes, Horseshoe bars.

Galvanized Iron (GI):

GI is the iron coated with zinc to prevent rust.

This is achieved through hot-dip galvanizing.

Uses Of GI:
  • Metal decking
  • Roofing and accessories
  • Ceiling framing
  • Wall Framing
  • Piping

Steel:

This is an alloy of iron and carbon.

Carbon content varies from 0.15% to 2%.

Types Of Steel:

The four main types of steel are:

1. Carbon steel –

1a) Low carbon steel

1b) Mild/Medium carbon steel (MS)

1c) High carbon steel

1d) Ultra-high carbon steel

2. Alloy steel –

2a) Stainless steel

2b) HSLA (High Strength Low Alloy)

2c) Weathering steel

Properties Of Steel:

Physical Properties:

  • Carbon Content: Variation in carbon content produces different grade steel.
  • Presence Of Impurities:

– Silicon — 0.30% to 0.40%

– Sulphur — 0.02% to 0.10%

– Phosphorous — below 0.12%

– Manganese — 0.3% to 1%

  • Heat Treatment Processes: It is possible to alter the properties of steel by heating and cooling under controlled conditions.
  • Magnetic Properties Of Steel: Its magnetic properties can be obtained by carefully adjusting its chemical composition.
  • Density: 7850 kg/m3

The Properties That Need To Be Considered By Designers:

  • Ultimate tensile strength — 60900 psi
  • Yield tensile strength — 50800 psi
  • Modulus of Elasticity — 29000 ksi
  • Toughness
  • Ductility
  • Weldability
  • Durability
Uses Of Steel:

Carbon steel:

  • Structural steel
  • Concrete reinforcement
  • Roofing and accessories
  • Decking and panels
  • Doors and Windows
  • Hardware

Stainless steel:

  • Exterior and interior wall finishes
  • Railing
  • Doors and windows
  • Hardware

HSLA steel:

  • Prestressed concrete reinforcement
  • Special structural steel
  • High-strength bolts
  • Cable for Elevators

Weathering steel:

  • Garden design, landscape edging, planter boxes
  • Roofing and siding
  • Signposts
  • Gates, Fences, Billboards
  • Outdoor sculptures

Aluminum:

Aluminum is a soft, non-magnetic, malleable, and ductile silvery-white metal with electrical and thermal conductivity.

Properties Of Aluminum:
  • Good conductor of heat and electricity.
  • Rarely attacked by nitric acid, organic acid, or water. It is highly resistant to corrosion.
  • Lightweight and soft.
  • It melts at about 658°C.
  • Readily dissolves in hydrochloric acid.
  • It possesses great toughness and tensile strength.
  • The specific gravity of it is about 2.70.
Uses Of Aluminum:
  • Utensils
  • Electric wires
  • Window frame and door frames.
  • Glazing bars and correlated sheets

Copper:

Copper is ductile, malleable, and brown-reddish color with electrical and thermal conductivity.

Properties Of Copper:
  • It becomes brittle just below its melting point.
  • Can’t be welded.
  • Can be worked in hot and cold conditions.
  • Has brown-reddish color
  • Good conductor of heat and electricity.
  • Copper is malleable, ductile, and soft.
  • The specific gravity is 8.90.
Uses Of Copper:
  • Sheets, Tubes, and Wires.
  • Electric cables, Electroplating, Lighting conductors,
  • Alloys, Household utensils,, Dowels in stone masonry, etc.

Plastics:

In this section, you’ll learn about:

  • Plastics as a building material
  • Different types of plastics
  • Their properties, and
  • Uses

Plastics are strong, durable, waterproof, lightweight, easy to mold, and recyclable — all these properties make them ideal construction materials.

So, in this section, you’ll learn:

  • About different types of plastic
  • Their Properties, and
  • Uses of them as a building material

Types Of Plastics:

There are mainly two groups of plastics:

  • Thermoplastics
  • Thermosetting plastics

Both of these groups have several types of plastic:

Thermoplastic:

  • High-density polythene
  • Low-density polythene
  • Poly Vinyl chloride (PVC)
  • Polystyrene
  • Polypropylene
  • Acrylonitrile (Nylon)
  • ABS
  • Poly Vinyl Acetate (PVA)
  • Acrylic (Perspex)
  • Elastomers

Thermosetting Plastics:

  • Epoxy resin
  • Polyester resin
  • Glass-reinforced plastic
  • Carbon fiber plastic
  • Melamine formaldehyde
Different Types Of Plastics

Properties Of Plastic:

  • Plastic can be transparent.
  • Plastic offers great resistance to moisture, chemicals, and solvents.
  • It lacks ductility.
  • Plastic poses excellent electrical insulation.
  • It is durable.
  • The melting point is 50°C.
  • Plastics are reasonably strong.
  • Low thermal conductivity compared to wood.

Uses Of Plastics:

Commercial Uses Of Plastics

As you can see building and construction is the second most-used sector of plastics.

And they are used for:

  • Bath and sink units
  • Cistern ball floats
  • Corrugated and plain sheets
  • Decorative laminate and moldings
  • Electrical conducts
  • Electrical insulations
  • Films of waterproofing, damp proofing
  • Floor tiles
  • Foams for thermal insulation
  • Jointless flooring
  • Lighting fixtures
  • Overhead water tanks
  • Paints and varnishes
  • Pipes to carry cold water
  • Roof lights
  • Wall tiles
  • Safety glass
  • Water-resistant adhesives etc.

Glass:

In this section, you’ll learn:

  • Different types of glasses
  • Their properties, and
  • Uses as a building material

It is one of the most versatile and oldest materials in the building construction industry.

Let’s see the…

Different Types Of Glasses:

  • Float Glass
  • Tinted Glass
  • Toughened Glass
  • Laminated Glass
  • Shatterproof glass
  • Extra clean glass
  • Double Glazed Units
  • Chromatic glass
  • Glass wool
  • Glass blocks

But if you want to broadly classify glass, you’ll find:

  • Soda-lime glass
  • Potash lime glass
  • Potash lead glass
  • Common glass
  • Special glass

Properties Of Glass:

  • Absorbs, refracts, or transmits light.
  • It has no definite crystalline structure.
  • No sharp melting point.
  • Affected by alkalies
  • An excellent electrical insulator
  • It behaves more as solid than most solids in the sense that it is elastic
  • Capable of being worked in many ways
  • Extremely brittle.
  • Usually affected by air or water
  • It is possible to intentionally alter some of its properties such as fusibility, hardness, refractive power to suit different purposes.
  • Easily attacked by ordinary chemical reagents.
  • The glasses may be clear, colorless, diffused, and stained.
  • It is possible to weld pieces of glass by fusion
  • Transparent and translucent.
  • When heated, it becomes soft.
  • It is possible to make glass lighter than cork or softer than cotton or stronger than steel.

Uses Of Glass:

Glass is used in a variety of ways in different sectors.

In construction, it is used as:

  • Windows and doors
  • Facades
  • Load bearing elements
  • Reinforcement structures
  • Solar energy producing glass
  • Interior design
  • Furniture elements like mirrors, balustrades, tables, etc.
Glass As A Building Material

Ceramics:

In this section, you’ll learn about:

  • Different types of ceramics
  • Their properties, and
  • Uses of them

Types Of Ceramics:

There are three main types of ceramics:

  • Earthenware
  • Stoneware
  • Porcelain

Properties Of Ceramics:

  • High hardness
  • High elastic modulus
  • Good electrical insulation
  • High dimensional stability
  • High resistance to corrosion and chemical attack
  • Good wear resistance
  • High weather resistance
  • Low ductility
  • High melting point
  • Low to medium thermal conductivity
  • High working temperature
  • Low thermal expansion
  • Low to medium tensile strength
  • High compressive strength
  • Medium machinability
  • Opacity
  • Brittleness
  • Poor impact strength
  • Low thermal shock resistance

Uses Of Ceramics:

  • Decorative and household products, symmetric objects like plates, cups and saucers, flowerpots, vessels.
  • Sparkplug, dishes, Electrical insulators like high voltage insulators and low voltage insulators, and high-class potteries
  • Sewage pipes, public laboratories, underground cable sheathings, drainage pipes, valves, and pumps in chemical industries
  • Covering the surface of the floor, wall, and ceilings.
  • Foam
  • Recently, synthetic polystyrene or polyurethane foam has been used in combination with structural materials, such as concrete.
  • It is lightweight, easily shaped, and an excellent insulator.
  • Foam is usually used as part of a structural insulated panel, wherein the foam is sandwiched between wood or cement or insulating concrete forms.

Fabric:

In this section, I’ll discuss:

  • What is the fabric?
  • Different types fabric
  • Properties of fabric, and
  • Uses of fabric

If you are curious about it, let’s first see…

What Is Fabric?

Fabric is a flexible artificial material that is made by a network of natural or artificial fibers.

Different Types Of Fabrics:

  • Membrane materials
  • Cotton canvas
  • Polyesters
  • Vinyl-laminated polyesters
  • Vinyl-coated polyester
  • Fiberglass
  • Olefin/polyolefin
  • PVDF woven
  • ePTFE woven
  • Blackout fabric

Properties Of Fabrics:

  • Flame resistance
  • Design flexibility
  • Colorfastness
  • Transportable
  • Cost-effective
  • Energy efficient

Uses Of Fabrics

  • Protect the building occupants from the weather, such as wind, rain, solar radiation, snow, and so on.
  • Regulate the indoor environment in terms of temperature, humidity, moisture, and so on.
  • Provide privacy for occupants.
  • Prevent the transmission of noise.
  • Fabrics provide security for occupants and the building contents.
  • It also provides safety, for example preventing the spread of fire or smoke.
  • Provide views into and out of the building.
  • Also prevent access between the inside and the outside of the building.

Read More: Architecture Fabric: The New Use of Textiles as A Building Material

Conclusion:

As I said at the begging of this post, there is a huge number of building materials used in civil construction.

And, new materials are developing often to use in construction.

The thing is, you don’t need to learn about all types of building materials.

Just start with the material that you use most and grow from there.

Your Turn:

I want to make this guild a one-stop resource for all types of building materials.

So, I’ll update this guide frequently.

That’s why I’d like you to bookmark this page. So that, you can come back to this guide whenever you want.

And,

Let me know which type of building materials you want to learn more about by commenting below…

2 thoughts on “Types Of Building Materials: The Definitive Guide”

  1. Phil

    Would you consider adding wood?

    1. Liton Biswas

      Sure.