What is the role of concrete in building a house?

Concrete is the most widely used construction material in the entire world. Rather than existing as an independent material, concrete is a mix of various materials. These materials include cement, water, fine aggregate, and crushed stones or gravel. Sand and gravel or crushed stones are examples of fine aggregate and coarse aggregate, respectively.

The many cement contractors Delaware folks look to for all their construction needs have one thing in common, they all use concrete. This prevalent use of concrete begs the question, why is concrete such an essential material for construction?

Well, concrete is similar to mortars in both composition and structure. This similarity means concrete works as a binder for the various masonry units in construction, just like any mortar. Unlike ordinary mortar, however, concrete has a wide range of applications. This versatility is as a result of concrete having both fine aggregates and coarse aggregates that are larger. The large size of the coarse aggregates confers strength attributes to concrete, that mortar doesn’t have. This makes it suitable for application in larger and heavier structures. Most mortars have sand as the sole aggregate and are hence weaker than concrete.

 

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