Ever since man learned to build his own shelter and not rely on whatever place he could just lay down his head, man has used various types of construction materials to build his dwelling. When man learned to cultivate crops and domesticate animals to sustain his needs, man needed to construct a permanent type of shelter for himself. From this need arose the use of construction materials, some of which are still in use today for constructing buildings and other great edifices.
Generally, there are two major sources of contruction materials
. This is the natural type of building material. Our ancestors used a lot of natural
building materials. The simple natural building materials for constructing the roofs and walls of houses and even great big walls for protecting against invading tribes were mixed from thatch or sod, mud and clay.
Structures that have been built from rock have also been familiar to man for the longest time. There are different types of rock, and different types of buildings and edifices have also been created. Some houses made from rock that were in existence from the Neolithic and Bronze Age are still standing today. Rocks are one of the strongest building materials, as we can observe from the Pyramids in Egypt.
Boards and planks from wood are used extensively in building houses and other structures. Wood is flexible enough to bend and adjust to contours while still retaining its strength. Machine saws have made it easier to cut wood into the width, height and length that is desired.
The other source of building material is called synthetic building material. Examples of synthetic material would include petroleum based paints and PVCs. These are materials used in construction that are generally made in industrial settings. Although there are paints and pipes that are environmentally sound, it is more common and much cheaper.
Another building material is concrete. This is made from mixing different kinds of materials together. Portland cement concrete is the most common form of concrete, though, when used alone, it is not very strong. To strengthen a building that uses cement, steel rods are added to it. This is used today in almost any building - houses, buildings, bridges and the like.
One of the most important construction materials used for construction purposes is metal. Metal is used in constructing large buildings or skyscrapers. Metals are composed of different kinds of metal alloys, one of which is steel. Steel is strong, and can be used in constructing buildings that will be used for a long time and need to last.
When choosing the different kinds of construction materials that will be used in building your edifice, be sure to check which can be sourced easily. The material should be of sufficient quantity so there is no problem with supply until the building is finished. In the end, your building will have been made up of different kinds of materials.
