Designing the foundation to fit with the natural grade of the lot
While some custom homes are carefully designed to work with the natural grade of a lot, many homes are built from model plans that are modified for the homeowner. Homes not properly fit to the site can not only look awkward, but can require expensive landscape work.
Once working on site, we will make sure to recommend adjustments to the planned grading if it does not work well with the elevations of the site. This would typically include changing the foundation wall drops or embedding additional furring strips into the wall. Grade adjustments can also shift the loads on the foundation, requiring additional reinforcement to be added to the walls.
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Adding reinforcement to foundation walls as needed
When evaluating foundation design, we often see areas on a job that will be subject to heightened pressure. The following are two common examples of these situations.
When you have a straight basement wall that exceeds 50’ in length, we know to add more vertical reinforcement. It is at this length that the backfill pressure will mount and by adding reinforcement, we relieve the stress on the center of these long walls.
Vertical reinforcement is not usually required in stoop and garage walls due to the backfill being balanced on each side. If the grade drops along a stoop or garage, the fill is no longer balanced and the walls must be reinforced or they may fail.
Taking the step to think through how the design is affecting the wall loads is incredibly important. We have seen walls done by our competition fail due to lack of forethought. Correcting a foundation wall that was not reinforced is very expensive, so this must be done right the first time.
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Making Sump pump recommendations
Even though we don’t install sump pumps, that doesn’t mean we aren’t concerned about how they are used. We may recommend upgrading to a higher output pump or suggest adding a second pump depending on the home’s design. As foundations have grown more complex, owners are choosing to drop areas in the basement. Whether this is a large space for a basketball court or a small area for an elevator pit, special considerations must be made regarding the placement, size, and depth of the crock.
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Adding Filter Fabric and installing it correctly
When we see silty and/or sandy soils, it’s important to add filter fabric. Fine silt particles can clog the Form-A-Drain system, compromising its effectiveness. Rather than placing the fabric directly over the draintile, we find it more effective to place the fabric on top of our 12” layer of stone. This keeps the fine soils from coming into close contact with Form-A-Drain, therefore, preventing clogs from occurring.
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Waterproof only when necessary
Our goal is to build a foundation that should not require waterproofing. We could recommend waterproofing to all customers hoping to increase our profits and to shift the liability to the manufacturer of the product, but that’s not how we do business.
There are, however, situations where waterproofing is practical insurance, specifically if the home is being built in a wet area. We also often get asked about doing a full stone backfill around a foundation in areas with clay soil. Unfortunately, what people don’t think about is that on the other side of the stone, there will still be clay. You will be creating an area around your foundation that will allow water to flow freely, when the goal should be to direct water away from the foundation as much as possible. If making a choice, we would recommend spending money on a waterproof membrane instead. Beyond preventing leakage, you’ll get a warranty with the membrane that you will not with a stone backfill.
Additions are another area where waterproofing is used. The seam from existing basement to new basement or crawlspace will be especially susceptible to leakage. Waterproofing these seams is something we consider mandatory and given the small size of most of these projects, it is a better value to also waterproof the remainder of the structure.
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