Traditional Ways to Demolish a Building
Developers and building demolition experts assess several factors when deciding how to demolish a building. Among other considerations, they take into account the area where the building is located, the primary materials the building is made of, the purpose of the demolition, and best way to dispose of the debris. Demolition methods can vary from one devastating blast to careful part-by-part dismantling, but given the conditions of a crowded urban setting, the technique employed must be safe for the demolition crew, the neighboring buildings and public areas in general.
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Implosion Collapse is by far the most powerful way to demolish a building. It involves using explosives to knock out a building’s primary vertical foundation supports, causing the building to disintegrate onto itself from the inside out. The installation of the explosive charges and the pro-programmed detonation sequence are crucial to a successful and safe demolition. Implosion Collapse is often used to demolish large structures in semi-urban areas.
For a successful demolition blast to occur, crews must analyze a complete set of structural blueprints to determine the main building structural components and identify whether other areas will need to be exploded in addition to those identified on the blueprints. They then evaluate the explosive types to use, the exact location where to position them in the building, and figure out the timing sequence of their detonation.
Crane wrecking ball demolition is one of the oldest effective and most common methods for building demolition. It is generally used for concrete and masonry structures. The crane wrecking ball weights in the vicinity of 13,500 pounds and is suspended through a cable from a crane or some other heavy equipment. The ball is either dropped onto the building or swung into the structure from side to side, simply crushing the building with repeated blows.Highly skilled and experienced crane operators perform crane wrecking ball demolition. Smoothness in controlling the swing of the ball is crucial, as missing the target may tip over or overload it unnecessarily. The building size to be demolished is limited by the crane’s size and the working area surrounding space; this includes proximity to power lines. Crane wrecking ball demolition creates a great deal of dust, vibration, and noise.
Demolition with a high reach arm is a good alternative to implosion collapse and is typically used on buildings reaching a height of more than about 60 feet. This method involves a base machine, such as an excavator, fitted with a long demolition arm consisting of three sections or a telescopic boom. A demolition tool, such as a crusher, shears, or a high impact hammer, is attached to the end of the arm and is used to break up the building from the top down. The machine removes large pieces of the structure. A special grounds crew breaks down the pieces and sorts them for disposal. High reach arm demolition is used on reinforced concrete, masonry, steel, and mixed-material structures and is considered to be safer than traditional crane wrecking ball demolition for demolishing tall buildings.
Also known as strip-out, selective demolition is gaining popularity because it allows builders to reuse or recycle the building’s materials. Selective interior and exterior demolition of wood, brick, metals, and concrete allow for recycling and future use in new structures, blending the old with the new. The main goal of this method is to recover the maximum amount of primary reusable and secondary recyclable material in a safe and cost-effective manner. However, the process is labor-intensive and can be very difficult to achieve the demolition in a timely and economical manner for light-framed buildings.