Construction building stone types in Kenya
- ndolij
- Feb 11
- 2 min read
Updated: Mar 11
There are various types of building stones in Kenya depending on the quarry's geographic location. Building stones vary in colour, hardness, and ability to resist water absorption/ penetration. Building stones generally fall under four categories;
i) Below structure stones
ii) Walling Stones
iii) Cladding & Finishes stones
iv) Quarry Tiles / Paving Stones
Below Structure Stones
These stones are applied at the beginning of the building construction and are usually buried below ground. These stones are the foundation and hardcore stones.
i) Foundation Stones
Foundation stones are usually very hard and non-porous. They’re used in the construction of the building foundation that takes the building's weight. These stones are usually man-cut (chiseled) to regular shape and come mostly in the 9 by 9 feet size.
ii) Hardcore Stones
These are similar to the foundation stones however; they are not cut to regular size. They are applied before casting of the ground floor slab.
Walling Stones
These are applied as the main walling fabric (and finish) of the building.
There are various types of walling stones.
i) Machine-cut stones
These are construction building stones that are cut to shape and size by a machine at the quarry.
ii) Hand-dressed stones
These are construction building stones that are hand-chiseled to shape and size by skilled quarry stone handlers. The following are examples;
3. Cladding & Finishes Stones
These stones are produced in tile format and utilized as a finish to an already-built wall or floor. The following are examples.
Author
Comments