Mysuru Architect Builds Sustainable House By Using Construction Debris

As you spot a house at Harthale, Nanjangud in Mysuru, you will feel it is just like any other normal place. Although as you step inside the house, you will be marvelled at its architecture. What sets the elements of the house apart from others are that the recycled wooden windows and doors made from construction debris.

The material used for building the house is procured from demolished buildings, broken ceramics for surface, mud concrete blocks made out of building waste, flooring also with mud concrete.

The 45-year-old architect from Mysuru, M Rajesh Kumar Jain, has set a suitable example of making something useful out of construction waste. The farmhouse is spread over an area of about 450 sq ft, and it is built for a retired vice-admiral.

For constructing the house, glass bottles were procured from local vendors for lighting purposes. Apart from that, 'jaali' bricks are used for natural ventilation and roofing is done with old used micro concrete roofing tiles, where steel is used.

For laying the foundation of the house, excavated gravel at the site is used. It is surprising to know that it took only 30 bags of cement for finishing the entire project. Rajesh admits that people have a misconception that using more steel means the building will be stronger.

However, people consider cement as a superior and compulsory material for construction. Further, Rajesh says that in order to make an eco-friendly house, one could make minimal use of cement for joint finishing of bricks and flooring etc.

"I have a degree in Architecture. I started doing research and found how construction waste is causing hazards to health and nature. All this made me encourage people to construct sustainable," says Rajesh as reported by The New Indian Express.

Rajesh observed heaps of construction materials being dumped on either side of the outer ring roads and in vacant places. For reducing the waste that is generated through construction work, Rajesh started using this debris to build compounds and for the works under the flooring.

The use of new materials could also be minimised by using this method for building houses. Another advantage of using this method is that the transportation cost too will reduce.

According to Rajesh, it would also reduce water and air pollution and protect our environment. Rajesh advocates that by using construction debris, the waste disposal and building cost would be reduced.

He adds that the tiles which are used inside the house help to reflect heat and keep the temperature cool. This reduces the dependency on energy and can be lessened by using solar power. The cost of building a house using this method in a 30x40 site would come around ₹30-35 lakh.

His team collects construction debris dumped on the roadsides. After that, they segregate it into fine and coarse aggregate and add new soil. The tiles are processed scientifically to create bricks. The method being adopted by the architect has started receiving appreciation and support from people.

Rajesh has built around 150 eco-friendly houses in the last 15 years. Out of all the houses which he has built, two have been constructed using complete construction waste.

Rajesh has built more than 20 houses using waste materials for compounds and under the flooring.

His office earlier used to function out of a rented building. Then, he decided to build his own office room in 2019 by using waste construction materials.

For his future plans, Rajesh is looking forward to giving training and awareness programmes on how to build eco-friendly houses and their advantages. He wants to build sustainable houses which is the need of the hour and aims to set an example to everyone through his work.

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