Along with such characteristics of aerated concrete as low thermal insulation and low price, aerated concrete is an ideal building material, a brick substitute, there are some of its disadvantages. Alexander Batushinsky notes that talking about aerated concrete blocks, as a building material, which is cheaper than brick and wood, is wrong. According to Alexander Batushinsky, there are a number of reasons for this.
First of all, this is that the total cost will depend on the real design of the walls, and it is not possible to compare different walls by their thermal conductivity. Secondly, the assembly cost depends on the technology of home building and can be varied. Thirdly, the assortment variations of wood and bricks are diverse, therefore there are a great many prices for these building materials: from the most expensive, to the cheapest. Fourthly, this is the aesthetic side of the matter, the walls of aerated concrete must be covered with finishing materials, while the walls of brick or wood are not at all necessary. Therefore, comparing the cost is very, very difficult.
However, the expert believes that with a direct calculation, it turns out that the cost of one cubic meter of aerated concrete is much less than, for example, one cubic meter of large -format ceramic blocks. He notes that such a comparison is “incorrect”, and to contrast aerated concrete and brick should not be. It is best to consider these building materials as accompanying, and builders, design workers and simple consumers are already able to combine them in construction work. However, the head of Pnny Lane Realty Saint Petersburg Pavel Pikalev is skeptical to aerated concrete, but does not deny its worthy characteristics. He believes that aerated concrete simplifies and reduces the cost of construction.
Reducing value is good, but the issue of quality is not in last place. Aerated concrete has a number of disadvantages, such as fragility, moisture permeability, the need for careful coating and warming up. All these qualities of aerated concrete require additional actions in its use, which means they limit the area of its use. Pavel Pikalev, in particular notes that using aerated concrete blocks, you can easily save and make mistakes. For example, to carry out construction in raw weather, in the rain or in the cold. And if desired, this is easily hidden from the customer.
Alexander Batushinsky also notes the objective shortcomings of this building material. Firstly, due to the lack of practice in the construction of aerated concrete blocks, consumers are incredulously related to this material (this is especially important with low-rise buildings), and there is also a lack of experience in builders when laying it. Secondly, any finishing material must be applied to the walls of aerated concrete.
