A reinforced concrete block structural system comprising:
- multiple precast concrete structural building blocks;
- each building block comprising a tire wall stack unit having a plurality of stacked annular used motor vehicle-type tire walls maintained in a compressed or uncompressed state and having a central opening passing through the tire wall stack unit, the tire wall stack unit embedded in the precast concrete structural building block of generally rectilinear configuration;
- a shallow recessed area extending across an upper surface of the building block, the central opening of the tire wall stack unit spanning a hollow core which extends through the building block in vertical alignment with the central opening through the tire wall stack unit, the hollow core having open ends passing through a bottom side of the building block and through the shallow recessed area on the upper surface of the building block, the recessed area extending laterally between generally parallel side walls on opposite sides of the building block, the side walls spaced laterally outwardly from the open end of the hollow core which passes through the building block upper surface;
- the structural system formed by at least one horizontally extending upper row of said building blocks positioned side-by-side along the upper row and stacked on at least one horizontally extending lower row of said building blocks positioned side-by-side along the lower row, the hollow cores in the building blocks aligned vertically between adjacent upper and lower rows of the stacked building blocks;
- the recessed areas in the building blocks positioned in the lower row cooperating with the bottom sides of the building blocks positioned in the upper row to form a long, continuous void space extending horizontally between the upper and lower rows of the stacked building blocks and extending laterally between the side walls of the horizontally positioned building blocks;
- the structural system further comprising vertical reinforcing structural members passing through the aligned hollow cores of the building blocks in said upper and lower rows and mortared in place in the hollow cores;
- and
- a plurality of metal reinforcing bars contained in the continuous void space on opposite sides of the vertical reinforcing structural members, the reinforcing bars mortared in place in the void space along opposite sides of the vertical reinforcing members to form a horizontal bond beam reinforcing structure positioned between and bonding the upper and lower rows of the stacked building blocks.