Do I Fill Cavity In Concrete Block Up To Floor Level Help?

[billzgolf]

Took The Previous Advice From You Guys On My Garage Foundations And Dug Out Proper Trench Footings,due To The Slope Etc I'll Have Two Or Three Course Of Concrete Blocks(double Skin With 100mm Cavity) Before I'm Up To Floor Level,should The Cavity Between The Blocks Be In Filled With Something Or Will The Metal Ties Be Sufficien To Stop The Outer Back Fill And Concrete Floor Pushing Them In On Each Other?i'm Using Dense Concrete Blocks 440mm X 22mm X 100mm.
Raring To Go But Don't Want Any Blunders At This Stage.
Thanks In Advance Guys.

[journeyman Mick]

Billzgolf,
don't you need to have plans approved by council there? Generally here all this stuff has to be engineer designed. As a bit of a rule of thumb for your project, you should have a starter bar every 2nd or 3rd block and a perimeter bar in the top course. The top course is usually done in "knock out" blocks so when you pour the concrete it will form a continuous perimeter beam.

Mick

[ozwinner]

The top course is usually done in "knock out" blocks so when you pour the concrete it will form a continuous perimeter beam.

Mick

As Im not a blockie what does "knock out" blocks, mean?

Al :confused:

[journeyman Mick]

Al,
"knock outs" come with a slot cut through the webs where they join onto the outside skins, these go down to about halfway. So you lay your top course of blocks with these and knock them out as required. They do corner knock outs and half and halfs as well for corners etc. Thre's also bondbeam blcks, these have no webs, they're just the two skins joined at the bottom by a very solid piece. So for a retaining wall that's to be completely core filled you'd lay the top course in knock outs, and knock them out to lay your horizontal reinforcement in. When you core fill the wall there will be a continuous horizontal beam at the top of the wall that ties into all the vertical cores.

In cyclone areas the top of a house wall has a continuous bondbeam (sometimes two courses) and cores filled next to each opening plus every 1200 (I think). It's a very good building method, structurally.

Mick

[ozwinner]

Ok, got it.
Thanks Mick.

Al :p