Site Practice

AIRTEC PACKS

Airtec blocks are packed upright, banded and shrink wrapped in high quality heavy duty plastic.
 
The packs are supplied with or without pallets as required.
 
 

SAFE UNLOADING AND STORAGE OF AIRTEC

Care should be taken when unloading packs of Airtec blocks, be it by fork-truck or lorry grab. It is good practice to take steps to minimize the amount of mechanical handling of the packs as far as is reasonably practicable.
 
The following guidelines should be adhered to when using Airtec blocks on site:
 
  • The packs should be carefully lowered from the lorry onto firm, level ground in an area where they can remain undisturbed until they are required.
  • Repeated handling of the packs should be kept to an absolute minimum to avoid unnecessary damage to the blocks.
  • The packs are wrapped in plastic but further precautions should be taken to avoid excessive wetting of the blocks by storing in as dry an area as possible.
  • Ideally, packs of Airtec blocks should be stacked to a maximum of four-high on firm-level ground but should never be un-banded at such a height.
  • On soft, uneven or loose ground Airtec packs should never be stacked greater than two-high.
  • When un-banding the packs, care should be taken to avoid the blocks from falling over and breaking; the likelihood of this is reduced if the pack is un-banded on level ground.
  • When using more than one grade of Airtec product, care must be taken not to mix them up. It is advisable that a means of physical segregation of the packs on site is maintained. If this is not practical for limitations on the space available, keep the plastic wrapping and banding on the packs until the blocks are required.
  • The block type is indicated on the packing label and the strength grade is ink-sprayed onto the blocks on one side of the pack.
  • Blocks that may have become wet during storage should be left to dry out prior to use in order to avoid possible drying shrinkage and cracking of the completed blockwork.

SAFE HANDLING OF AIRTEC BLOCKS

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in conjunction with the Construction Industry Advisory Committee (CONIAC) have identified that the repetitive manual handling of heavy concrete can result in injury over a period of time. A guideline maximum weight of 20kg per block has been set in repetitive manual handling situations so as to reduce the risk of injury.
 
Due to their cellular microstructure, all Airtec products are less than half the weight of an equivalent strength ordinary concrete block.
 
The majority of Airtec blocks are within the 20kg weight limit and where weights exceed 20kg – for example on the large Foundation blocks – special on site handling precautions should be taken. In addition, all Airtec Foundation blocks are provided with hand-holds to make lifting easier and safer.
 
 

SETTING OUT & BLOCK LAYING

The ease by which Airtec blocks can be cut and the provision of Airtec Brickettes give the builder far more flexibility in setting out blockwork and obtaining correct coursing heights.
 
Airtec blocks are durable and are BBA certified to be resistant to freeze-thaw cycles. However, in common with all masonry work, good working practices should be adhered to including the following:
  • Keep Airtec blocks protected from the weather and allow excessively wet blocks to dry naturally before using. Avoid excessively rapid drying out of the blocks.
  • Always use a full bed of mortar and always use fully-filled perpend mortar joints. This is especially important for acoustic Party / Separating walls.
  • Use the recommended mortar mixes. Avoid the use of overly strong mixes.
  • After laying protect as the blocks far as possible from wetting and frost until the mortar has matured and gained full strength.
  • Movement joints and bed joint reinforcement should be built in as the work proceeds.
  • Lintels should bear onto full blocks wherever possible or at a minimum 150mm.
  • When walls are to be externally rendered or internally plastered, rake back the mortar joint to give the coating a better key to adhere to the blockwork.
 
For Thin Joint mortar construction, please refer to the relevant section for further guidance. 
 
 
 
 

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