POLITECNICO DI MILANO

BUILDING PATHOLOGY AND DIAGNOSTIC

case study: HOTEL ALBERI

via lungo lario Isonzo LECCO-

STUDENTS: Janaina Gerde Muniz Gerardo Diosdado Espinosa Marco DellOro

CONTENTS
1. 2. 3.

LOCATION............................................................................................................................................3
THEBUILDINGANDITSCONSTRUCTIONTECHNIQUESANDMATERIALS.............................................4

FAILUREPATTERNIDENTIFICATION................................................................................................... 10
3.1.ExteriorDegradationpattern........................................................................................................... 10 3.2.InteriorDegradationpattern........................................................................................................... 16

4.

MAPPING...........................................................................................................................................22

 1. LOCATION
Our case study is a Hotel situated on the lakeside of Lecco. Despite of being a new building, only ten yearsold,itpresentsmanyanddifferentinterestingdefects.

The Hotel Alberi has been built attached at two other buildings and for this reason it has only two faades exposed: west and east faade. Its proximity to the lake also let the building exposed to humidity,thereforeincreasingthechancesforearlydegradationofbuildingcomponents.

The building surrounding

2. THEBUILDINGANDITSCONSTRUCTIONTECHNIQUESANDMATERIALS
The Hotel is composed by five floors over the ground level. In the ground floor we can find the hall of the hotel and a small dining room. Upstairs there are four floors where are located the rooms of the guests. The last floor, the 5th, is used by the owner's family. There is also a basement floor, used like garagesandservicesfacilities.

The buildings site

Ground Floor Plan

First Floor Plan


Second, Third and Fourth Floors Plan (Type floor)

Fifth Floor Plan

Basement Floor Plan

TheHotelhasbeenbuiltwithatypicalreinforcedconcretestructure.Accordingtotheownersofthe building,theverticalenclosureontheexternalsideoftheEASTfaadearemadebyholebricksanda renderinglayer,whileinsidethefinishingiswithgypsumboardandwallpaper.

Concrete Structure

Dry wall system


East Faade

Atthebasement,theperimetralwallsareinconcretewithaninsulationlayerinside,andawaterproof layeroutside,madewithasphaltandfeltmembranes. OntheWESTfaade,whichlooksatthelandscapeofthelake,theenclosureisgivenbyaventilated wall,madebyalayerofceramicbricks,alayerofinsulation,alayerofstillair,andthefinishingismade withstonetiles,hangedatthereinforcedconcretestructurewithmetallicjoints.


West Faade

SomeexampleofmaterialsusedinthebuildingprocessoftheHotelAlberi,accordingtoinformation fromtheowner: Thehorizontalstructuresaremadewithreinforcedconcretecombinedwithholedbricks,in ordertohavearesistantbutlightstructure. Theverticalstructuresaremadewithreinforcedconcretepillar Theceilingsandtheinsidelayerofthewallsaremadewithgypsumboards,appliedonalight metallicstructure. Thefloorsoftheroomsarefinishedwithparquet,gluedatthelayerbelow

3. FAILUREPATTERNIDENTIFICATION
3.1.ExteriorDegradationpattern
EASTFAADE Degradationpattern Degradationpattern

EASTFAADE Degradationpattern

 EASTFAADE Degradationpattern Description Chromaticalteration: Undertheleftbottomwindow thereisalinepresenting chromaticalteration. Thepaintedcentralcolumn presentsdiffuseoverallits surfacebleachingofthepaint.

Crackmissingstructuraljoints: The center decorative column presents cracking on different places, which apparently will eventuallybecomelossofmass. At the lower part of the faade are shown 3horizontal cracks, on the whole width of the building, and apparently situated on the wallslabconnections. Also in the connection between the slab and the porch columns there are deeper cracks, presenting already exfoliation on the paint and loss of mass on the leftcolumn.

 Degradationpattern Description Cracksanddelaminationofthepainting: Incorrespondencewithcracksandhaircrackwe can see delamination of the paint, loss of mass and,inthelastpicture,someblistering.

WESTFAADE Degradationpattern Degradationpattern

WESTFAADE Degradationpattern Syntheticdescription Crackandchromaticalteration: As we saw on the east faade, also on this side we can see that the central column presents some color bleaching, diffuse along the entire surface, in some point we can observe an exfoliation of the paint. Also on the main central column are visiblesomesmallbutdiffusecracks.

Cracksmissingjoints: In the first picture we can see a column at the main faade, presenting a vertical cracking in all itsheight,anditslocatedbasicallyin thejointsbetweenfinishing. In the second picture of the main faade it can be noticed again a vertical crack between the different finishing types. The crack continues to the second level, presenting also loss of mass and chromatic alterationontheleftside.

3.2.

InteriorDegradationpattern
BASEMENTFLOOR

 BASEMENTFLOOR Degradationpattern Lossofmasswithpulverization: We can see a detachment of the painting and rendering leading to a pulverization of the wall. Probably caused by the humidity in the basement floor. Description

Crackmissingstructuraljoints: As seen in the picture, the cracks are only in the joints of the structural parts. These cracks were probably caused by the movement of the site whilesomeconstructionworksweredonenearby.

Crackofthepainting,pulverizationandstain: By the pattern of the cracks, the stains and the pulverization in this wall, we can say that they wereprobablycausedbywatercapillarity.

 FIRSTTOFOURTHFLOOR

FIRSTTOFOURTHFLOOR Degradationpattern Syntheticdescription CrackandDelaminationofthepainting: In this case, the loss of mass appears in the shapeofacrackinthepainting, leadingalsoto adelaminationprocess.

Blistering: Case of blistering in the painting of the gypsum ceiling, probably caused by water capillarity.

Staining: The ceiling surface became darker, due to iron oxidesandwateretc.

Degradationpattern

Syntheticdescription Cracksmissingstructuraljoints: Asseeninthesepictures,thecracksareonlyin the joints of the structural parts. These cracks arealsoreflectedintheexteriorofthebuilding andwereprobablycausedbythemovementof the site while some construction works were donenearby.

Crackingblisteringofthewallpaper: Thecrackinthewallherecausesablisteringat thewallpaper.Thiscrackisalsoreflectedinthe outside and it was probably caused by the movement of the site while some construction worksweredonenearby.

Degradationpattern

Syntheticdescription Cracking: Here the cracks appear in the openings of the walls, from the top to the bottom direction. These cracks were probably caused by the movement of the site while some construction worksweredonenearby.

4. MAPPING
WESTFAADE

EASTFAADE