Earthquakes can occur at any place and at anytime and if one is not prepared the loss to property and life would be unimaginable. In the wake of the recent earthquakes that hit Nepal and flattened many of its towns and historical structures we at CommonFloor felt it our responsibility to inform each one of you about earthquake proof houses and how to ensure that your abode is earthquake resistant to a large extent, if not entirely. We say ‘not entirely’ as building entirely earthquake proof houses is extremely expensive and may in fact be  impossible.

Firstly, if you are getting your house/apartment built then you have to know which part of India you live in. India is divided into mainly two zones- one being the high seismic zone and the other one being the low seismic zone or may be nil. The northern part of India falls around the high seismic zone and hence buildings there must be built in a way to be able to sustain jolts of a minimum of 4.5 in the Richter scale. If you are buying a house then make sure to get the structural design from your builder so as to get it checked by experts. It might be a lengthy process but it’s always important to be safe.

If you are in the process of getting your house built then here are some of the ways through which you can ensure an earthquake resistant house. To begin with, include shear walls, shear core and cross bracing when the foundation is laid. Support walls are known as shear walls and are mainly laid around staircases or elevator shafts for providing a better grip to that hollow space. Don’t forget to get the walls strengthened and supported by diagonal steel beams known as cross bracing.

Moving on, add the base isolator methods which acts as shock absorbers between a building and its foundation. These shock absorbers are made of alternate layers of steel and a type of synthetic rubber acting as a spring during earthquakes. These absorb the to and fro motion.

Other ways of keeping your house earthquake resistant is by building it on a column which is placed as deep as 2 ½ meters under the ground. Beams must be placed to provide extra support and the roofs must me made extra sturdy. The bars in the column should be minimum 12 mm thick with about 900/900 foundation.

Apart from the above if you have a plot it’s advisable not to directly go into building a house there as the soil might not be fit enough to take weights. Even if it is, it’s important to know how much weight it can take. In such situations do get the soil tested which can be done by a number of private and even semi-government agencies. These agencies would tell you how much weight the soil can take, whether construction is at all possible and so on.

So, find the right builder, carry out the necessary, though lengthy research work and get on with your dream home.