Things to Keep in Mind Before Purchasing Cement
Shekhar Parikh is the Co-Founder of gharpedia.com and Director of SDCPL. He leads affordable housing projects at SDCPL, a leading design consultancy firm having strong national presence. He is a Civil Engineer with vast experience of 35 years. He is the core member of Editorial team at Gharpedia. He is also co-founder of 1mnt.in the first in Industry software for contractors’ billing.
Cement gives strength to structures and makes it long lasting. Therefore, it is very important that cement used in construction should be fresh with good quality and free from any deterioration.If you use bad quality of cement then structure do not gain desired strength. It will also lead to various problems in the structure such as leakages, corrosion, cracks etc. as well as it will increase maintenance cost.
Following things there should be keep in mind before purchasing cement.
01. Purchase the cement from authorized company outlets only.
02. It is mandatory for any cement manufacturer to have ISI mark. Hence, the bag must carry the ISI mark.
03. Check the stitching of cement bag and ensure that the cement bag has not been re-stitched.
04. Check the week number and year of the manufacturing which is printed on the cement bags. Avoid purchasing cement bags manufactured before 3 monthsof the purchase date. Strength of cement decreases with over period of time.
Also Read: How Long Period Cement can be Used? (From Date of Manufacture)
05. Condition of the bags should be good and stored at moisture free area in cement store. Avoid damaged bag such as sometimes cement bags turned into hard like a rock. These types of cement bags are useless because the chemical reaction have been taken place inside and it became rock.
Also Read: 10 Important Precautions While Storing Cement Bags in Godown / Warehouse.
06. Check for the manufacturer’s name or trademark on the bag.Many other information printed on cement bags should be checked.
Also Read: You need to know what Informations are Available on Cement Bags
07. Check whether you are buying the right grade as specified by in-charge engineer/architect. i.e. 33/43/53 Grade, PPC/OPC
08. Check the weight, either of the truck or a random bag.