Meitan Prefabricated House Slabs

Prefabricated house slabs in Meitan were widely used in the 1970s and 1980s. Nowadays, due to various issues, they have gradually been phased out. The existing prefabricated slab houses are mainly repaired and renovated, and only those that are in a dangerous condition are demolished.

Historical Usage

In the 1970s and 1980s, when building new houses in rural and urban areas of Meitan, prefabricated cement slabs were widely used because of their low cost and easy installation. Their installation was simple, and even ordinary people without experience as bricklayers could easily operate. It took about three months to build a house using prefabricated slabs, greatly improving the efficiency of house construction.

Policy Situation

On September 6, 2002, the state issued the 'Notice of the Ministry of Construction on Printing and Distributing the 'Detailed Rules for the Promotion and Application of New Technologies of the Ministry of Construction'', which clearly prohibited the use of prefabricated slabs for the construction of commercial housing. Various regions responded one after another. For example, since January 1, 2012, in Jining City, all industrial and civil construction projects should use reinforced concrete cast-in-place slabs instead of reinforced concrete prefabricated slabs in the design and construction process; since January 1, 2005, in Sichuan Province, the use of prefabricated concrete slabs as floor slabs, roof slabs, and balcony slabs has been prohibited.

Existing Problems

• Poor Seismic Performance: Prefabricated slabs are usually connected through pre-reserved holes or slots by grouting or welding. This connection method is prone to damage under external forces such as earthquakes, leading to the detachment of prefabricated slabs or the instability of the overall structure. In some major earthquake disasters, the most damaged houses are those built with prefabricated slabs.
• Short Service Life: Manufacturers claim that the service life of prefabricated slabs can reach 50 years, but in fact, it is only about 10 years. After this period, problems such as aging, rusting, cracking, and leakage will occur.
• Prone to Leakage and Cracking: The size of prefabricated slabs is generally around 3300*600. The floor slab of a 10-square-meter bedroom is composed of five or six prefabricated slabs, and the overall structural integrity of the floor slab is poor, making it prone to cracking. Prefabricated slab buildings are composed of two slabs spliced together, and the splicing gaps are simply filled with cement mortar. Over time, the gaps become larger and are prone to leakage.

Situation of Existing Prefabricated Slab Houses

The existing prefabricated slab houses generally have problems such as weak seismic resistance, poor sound and heat insulation, and a service life of about 30 - 50 years. Since 2022, China has implemented the old housing renovation policy, focusing on the repair and renovation of prefabricated slab houses, and only demolishing buildings that meet the criteria for dangerous houses. Some regions have already carried out demolition work.