Information Regarding The 3 Common Forms Of Home Foundations
Posted By Donald Kain on December 16, 2011
There are 3 basic kinds of foundations in use today in the development of a home.
Post-Tension, Concrete Slab Foundations
A slab foundation is a foundation built immediately on the soil with no cellar or crawl space. Slab foundations aren't unusual in areas where soil conditions are not acceptable for a basement, and are the most common foundation found in hotter areas such as Florida, Arizona, California and Texas, or anywhere where the depth between the soil and stable underlying rock is extraordinarily shallow. Slabs are the quickest and most cost-effective foundation because they require less work, talent and materials cost. They are comprised of a concrete slab that is generally six to eight inches thick. Inserted within the slab is a grid of supporting ribbed metal rods known as “rebar.” Even in locations where basements are plentiful, slab foundations are sometimes laid to serve as the base for structures like garages, pole barns, and sheds.
Slabs are the least pricey of the 3 main foundation types but provide no storage or utility space, as the home really sits immediately on a large platform of solid concrete. Slabs have the downside of being complicated and pricey to mend when they settle and crack, and plumbing lines that protrude from the soil upward through the concrete can also be pricey to repair [*T]. In areas where the essential soil is thick or susceptible to excessive growth and contraction, wires are inserted which can sometimes be tightened to provide better horizontal support and reduce the width of cracks.
Pier and Beam Foundations
A pier and beam foundation consists of either vertical wood or concrete columns (piers) that support beams or floor beams above the ground. The areas between the soil and the bottom of the house floor is often known as the crawl space. These foundations are built either at ground zero or over a shallow excavation that varies in depth, but is often about thirty six to forty inches deep. The best crawl space foundations have a load-bearing concrete wall and concrete or steel piers, both having footings below the freeze line of the soil, together with a good barrier over the soil to keep moisture in order. More cost effective versions have no load-bearing exterior walls, piers with shallow footings, and no moisture barrier at all over the soil. Crawl spaces that enclosed by a wall or by skirting must have vents on each side to permit air to circulate and help keep the soil dry under the home. These vents must be set up to forestall the entry of rodents and snakes.
Crawl space foundations are most frequently used in areas where there is heavy clay content in the soil that can severely damage (crack) slab foundations, or in waterfront or flood prone building sites where the required floor height to stop water penetration of the living space must be higher than a slab can normally provide. The number one advantages of crawl space foundations are that plumbing lines are quickly accessible for repairs, and foundation settlement Problems are simpler and less expensive to fix than with slab foundations. A first drawback occurs when these foundations are not properly maintained or are built without acceptable ventilation, allowing water or pests to mean damage. Crawl space foundations without adequate insulation applied to the bottom of the house floor can be energy wasteful in a colder climate. If pier and beam foundation repair is required, your home might need extra repairs to the support beams that will became warped or rotted.
Cellar Foundations
A basement is a sort of foundation which includes an accessible space between the soil and the bottom of the first floor of a home. This foundation provides living space below the home, below the ground elevation. It is basically a slab foundation with walls and a floor. Basements are most often built in colder weather climates eg the Northeast, Midwest and Rocky Mountains, and in places where the price of excavation is not extortionate. Basements commence with a hole approximately eight feet deep , however , some homeowners will choose a 9 or ten foot deep cellar wall to increase height and volume of useable space.
The floor and walls are built, then the house itself is built over that. Basement foundations have got the advantage of providing handy space for resources, mechanicals systems, and storage unavailable in the prior two sorts of foundations. The primary drawback of basements is that because they are often below ground level, they are vulnerable to seepage, mould. Formation, and flooding. Basements in wet climates must always have a working drain and pump in the floor to combat flooding.
Jack Durden is an authority on foundation repair in Dallas who performs quality work and consulting in the DFW Metroplex. If your home wishes foundation repair, it's smart to have a specialist research your present position immediately before additional structural repairs are needed.
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