CAVITY CONCRETE BLOCKS

Chronicle (Levin), 30 March 1946, Page 8

CAVITY CONCRETE BLOCKS

use FOR HOME BUILDING Reviewing some bf th'e probrems i"elating to liome buil'ding at Mohday's .neeiiiig oi the Feilding Chamber of 'ommerce,. M r. W. Whiteman gave it ••is his opinioit tliat timber was iiot likely to becoih'e plentiful again iior vould its cost ten'd iii any appreciable • legree to come down. He htated tliat tnillers todav had to go further back to seeure timber requirements and this would eontihue to add to the c'oht of the (inished product from the mills, so that those contemplating buiiding tould nOt •look upon the prospects with nm'ch optimism. Mr. Whiteman suggested tliat thero might be something in- pfp[xisals wliicli were b'eing advanced' for the buiiding of dwellihgs ,.of cavity concrete blocks for tlie'se had the *nd: vantage of longevity 'conrpared with the sliort en'cd life '6f the types of timber being used today. The eavi'ty concrete blocks provided the answer to any criticism- of thfi, employment df concrete on aeeouiit of sweatirig of the walls becanso each bloek was made with a cavity wliich , provi,ded for .the fr'ge circulation of air, thus reinoving hnv tendency towards dampness or swearing. .

Arr. Whiteman went .on to te.ll the meeling tliat Mr. P. G. .Redmayne of Feilding had advanced. propos'als f'othe use oi cavity V-'oiiciete bioc'ks for the buiiding of dwellings and .the iflfe.a nppealed to h.im ,as being well worth while. Actually an experiment was to l.e made in Feilding with the buiiding of a dwellinp' with snch materials and should it fulfill al! requirements he liad no doubt that it would m'ateriallv solve the qu'estion of honie buiiding in so f'ar as that was made difficult th rough the scarcitv of suitable timber. The woodeh dw'elling of to^av, lie c'oh^idered, gave promise of a cbmparatively short life and in a few years New Zealand would have to face up to another huge buiiding programme unldss more durable materials snch as concrete were emploved. The use of the cavity "oncrete block would provide for an udonnatelV reinforced buiiding whicli "oiild be readilv erected provided r-ement was avaHaklq.- W.hftenian felt that the proposais of Mr'Redmavhe uviffht wMl be erirQuruged sii^he .thev appeared to offer some relicf 'from ihe oresent acnte honsing proble.Tn.