Beginner’s Guide on How to Check the Quality of Cement

When you are putting your money and resources into a particular construction project like your home, garage, basement, etc. then it’s better to make sure that the material used for the same is of good quality. Out of all construction elements, one key material is cement. 
Now imagine, you are planning to extend the balcony of your house. So you get some local workers to do the job, buy construction material and in case of cement, you look for various Cement manufacturing companies to select the best of the best.
But, will it be enough? 
The answer is no! You should be able to assess the quality of cement too. Because in huge projects like residential apartments, bridges, roads etc. there are numerous engineers present onsite, who do the quality analysis. But here you have to do the job by yourself. The overall strength of your structure depends on a variety of factors, and the quality of the cement you are using is one of them. Excellent quality cement should always be used to achieve the desired strength of concrete and to make sure the structure stands tall for a long time.
You would not want your balcony extension to fall during the rain after all!
So, here are some quick tips to test the quality of cement:
1)Date of Manufacturing – From raw material to the end product, it goes through numerous cement manufacturing process. So unlike wine, the strength of cement being used decreases with time. In general practice it is better to use cement before 90 days of the date of manufacture. A year after manufacture, the strength of the cement is reduced by 40-50%.
2)Colour of Cement – Good cement is always uniform in colour. You can identify good cement by its grey colour with a slightly green shade. 
3)Lumps – In cement, lumps are formed due to absorption of moisture from the atmosphere. Good quality cement has no lumps in it.
4)Smoothness: Take some amount of cement from the bag, then rub it in between your fingers. It should give a smooth, granular feeling. If it feels rough, then there are chances that it must have been adulterated by mixing of sand during the cement production process. 
5)Temperature – If you push your hand inside a bag of good cement, you should feel certain coolness. Bad cement feels warm in your hand, because it means that hydration has already taken place.
6)Floating – Good quality cement floats in water for some time before sinking.
7)Cement Paste: Take some cement out of the bag and then mix it with water to make a paste. Take some of it between your fingers, it must feel sticky. If the cement is adulterated , the paste will give an earthy smell.
So it is very important to start this practice whenever you are taking up a small construction-related projects, in order to make them strong and reliable. 
Want to explore more about the cement industry and its initiatives towards a sustainable future? 

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