DIRECTORY OF
CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS REFERENCES
DEVELOPED FOR AN ONLINE CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS COURSE
AT HONOLULU COMMUNITY COLLEGE
"Home of the first internet web site in the State of Hawaii"
Sites for which links are shown have been selected because of their educational
rather than purely promotional value. In general, they contain clear photos of materials or products, historical or
how-to information, glossaries, or web directories of their own. To recommend additions to this directory, please e-mail
Doug Madden at Honolulu Community College.
This site partially updated May 17, 2005.
GENERAL REFERENCES
General Building and Materials References:
- AEC Infocenter.
- Business center dedicated to the architectural, engineering, and construction and home-building industry.
- Architectural Resources and Communications (ARC)
- Links to major product manufacturers, service providers, schools of architecture, etc.
- BIA Hawaii Building Industry Association
- Build.com. A division of Building Online listed below.
- Products and manufacturer directory. Request information online.
- BuilderNET. Articles, source products, and links.
- Builder Online
- Electronic cousin of Builder magazine.
- Building Australia Online
- Links to Australian and international informational sites and to product manufacturers in many categories.
- Building Industry Exchange (BIX)
- Links to construction-related companies, schools, etc.
- Building Online. Links to more than 104,000 building-related sites.
- Cyberplaces: The Internet Guide for Architects, Engineers and Contractors
- DoItYourself.com How-to information, hints, and links in 20 categories.
- Environmental Building News
- Fine Homebuilding
- Promotes the Fine Homebuilding magazine, but also contains good sections on tools, building techniques, materials, and design.
- First Source Online
- Bills itself as "the most comprehensive product resource on the internet." 950 products, 3000 images.
- Hawaii Remodeling Magazine
- The History of Construction Materials. At the About.com web site.
- Home & Garden Television
- TV episode highlights, unusual homes, building and remodeling, design and decorating.
- Home Channel News
- News and analysis for the home improvement retail industry.
- HomeWarehouse.com
- Products, links to manufacturer web sites, how-to tips on many topics, discussions (at "Message Board") sign-ups, dictionary, etc.
- How House Construction Works by Marshall Brain.
- Descriptions and images from site preparation to finishing up -- foundation, floor, wall, roof, plumbing, electrical, insulation, etc.
- How Stuff Works by Marshall Brain.
- House construction, refrigerators, air conditioners, hydraulic machines (e.g., elevators), 3-way electrical switches, toilets, etc. Something added every week. Free newsletter.
- Ihomeline.com's Resource Guide
- Design basics, costing information, manufacturer references, and more in many categories.
- ImproveNet.com
- Wide variety of products, references, kitchen visualizer, and more.
- National Association of Home Builders
- National Association of Women in Construction
- National Building Museum
- Permanent and temporary exhibitions, design and construction artifacts, tours of landmark buildings, publications, etc. Created by an act of Congress.
- Old-House Journal
- Sweets Group Online
- Comprehensive construction resource guide. Easy-to-use table of contents.
- This Old House
- Television program, magazine, encyclopedia of projects, merchandise, etc.
- The Thomas Register of American Manufacturers
Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, Etc.:
- Dictionaries on the Net. Links to dictionaries.
- Dictionary of Architectural Terms. Created by the Utah Heritage Foundation.
- Encyclopaedia Brittanica Online
- The Concise Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia
- Billed "the Internet's premier free encyclopedia."
- Meriam-Webster OnLine Dictionary
- The Virtual Reference Desk
- Acronyms, quotations, encyclopedias, dictionaries, weather, fast facts -- you name it.
GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
- American National Standards Institute
- American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM)
- Building Codes -- CodeCheck
- "The life-safety principles that underlie building codes throughout the U.S."
- Construction Specifications Institute (CSI)
- Council of American Building Officials (CABO)
- Do You Need a Building Permit? City and County of Honolulu.
- International Code Council (ICC)
- National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA)
- 4specs. Links to specifications online in all 16 CSI divisions.
- Underwriters' Laboratories Inc. (UL)
CONCRETE
- Aerated Concrete. At the Advanced Buildings web site.
- A lightweight, precast concrete with aluminum powder added during manufacture -- result is a "foamed" concrete that is cured in a pressurized steam chamber (an "autoclave").
- American Concrete Institute
- A Brief History of Concrete Ships
- Cement and Concrete Products Industry of Hawaii
- Concrete Countertops at ConcreteNetwork.com
- ConcreteNetwork.com
- An excellent source of information on many concrete topics.
- Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute
- Concrete Sawing and Drilling Association
- Flyash Concrete. At the Advanced Buildings web site.
- Flyash, a waste product of thermal power generation, can be used to replace 50% or more cement in concrete, which reduces carbon dioxide greenhouse gas emissions that occur in the production of Portland cement.
- History of Concrete -- A Timeline
- A neat, concise, table-format history of concrete from 12,000,000 BC to present.
- History of Concrete
- In five periods from 12,000,000 BC.
- James Hardie Building Products, Siding
- Cement composition siding -- information and several photo galleries.
- Monolithic Dome Institute
- Reinforced concrete domes -- photo gallery, plans, designing your own dome, FAQ's, and more.
- Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute
- Quikrete Home Page. Products, glossary of terms, concrete trivia.
- Stamped Concrete. Stampcrete International, Ltd.
- The pages on traditional stamping and seamless texturing include step-by-step photos of the processes.
- Symons sitemap lists pages of concrete-related products.
- Tilt-up Concrete Association
- The Vermiculite Association
SITE WORK
- 100% Good Stuff Gypsum™
- Ashapura Mining Products
- Discover How Rock Is Formed. At the Franklin Institute web site.
- Descriptions and animations about how igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rock is formed.
- How Bridges Work. "How Stuff Works" by Marshall Brain.
- How Moissanite Jewels Work. "How Stuff Works" by Marshall Brain,
- New "gemstone," moissanite, surpasses a number of characteristics of diamond -- at 1/10th the cost.
- Keystone Retaining Walls
- Block retaining wall system, products, details, installation.
- Marble Institute of America
- Marble Varieties. At the Walter S. Arnold, Stonecarver web site.
- National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA). Good FAQ's and terms.
- Reinforced Grass Paving Systems. At the Advanced Buildings web site.
- Retaining Walls. Do-It-Yourself Project Help at the Hometime Video web site.
- Slate, Quartzite, and Sandstone Definitions. Echeguren Slate Company web site.
- The Slate Valley Museum
- Extensive collection of large, clear photos of slate pits and workers involved in a variety of quarrying and finishing operations.
- Soil Science Society of America
- Stone World Magazine
- StoneInfo.com. "The RE-search Engine of the Stone Industry."
- Stormwater Management. At the Advanced Buildings web site.
- Techniques used to reduce the flow of runoff water from buildings and landscaped areas.
- Unilock Paving Stones and Retaining Walls
- Versa-Lok Retaining Walls
MASONRY
- Adobe Builder News. "The source for all things adobe and rammed earth."
- American Slate Company
- Good information on the origin of slate, and a wealth of images of flooring and roofing listed on the "products" page.
- Brick Industry Association
- Brick Manufacture: Points of Interest Along Lost Streams [in Toronto, Canada]"
- Interesting narrative and large photo images
- The Brick Manufacturing Process. At the Glen-Gery Brick web site.
- Excellent explanations and large, clear images on several pages devoted exclusively to brick manufacture.
- Brick Value Builders. Promotes builders who build with brick.
- Camel's Back [Straw Bale] Construction
- A Century (or More) of Stackwood Homes. An article in the Nov/Dec 1978 issue of Mother Earth News."
- Click on the link here to go to Mother Earth News, click on "Complete Issue Index" under Mother's Archive in the left frame, select "1978" in the first "Select a Year" drop-down list, scroll way down to "Issue #54," and select "A Century (Or More) of Stackwood Homes."
- Clayton Block Company. Brick, glass block, pavers, concrete block, etc.
- Earth Architecture and Ceramics: The Sandbag Construction System. International Code Council publication.
- International Masonry Institute
- Masonry Advisory Council. Claims more than 250 pages of free technical information.
- Masonry Career Guide. Long list of careers, with descriptions.
- Masonry Institute of Hawaii
- Glossary (from the Home page) and block sizes and shapes (from the Manufacturers page).
- Masonry Online
- Comprehensive site of the Masonry Advisory Council, Illinois.
- National Concrete Masonry Association
- Natural Stone. Many images of different stones and applications.
- Sandbag City Sandbag Construction
- Straw Bale Basics
- Straw Bale Construction
- Details, performance information, and examples (click "Examples" at the right).
- Traditional Masonry -- U.S. Heritage Group
- Promotes traditional lime putty mortar and old masonry brick and stone work.
- Vermont Natural Stoneworks. Slate products.
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