Building Your Basement With A Modern Concrete Foundation Design
If you are planning on building a home in a basement, the design of the foundation needs to be protected from issues like water and structural damage. Today, modern materials and mechanical systems help to protect foundations from this damage. The following concrete foundation design information can be used when building your basement:
Start with a Plan for French Drain Systems
There is also the French drain system that needs to be well-designed to keep your basement dry. The foundation drain system should be installed before the concrete is poured. This will allow you to install French drain tiles below the level of the slab and design solutions to contain the water. If it is possible, the drains should drain outside of the foundation, but you may need to install a sump pump as well to remove the excess moisture that gets into the basement.
Designing the Footing Beams to Support Loads
Footing beams in your basement need to support structural loads. These loads begin at the roof and go down to the foundation of your home. Thus, it is important that the footing beams are reinforced with steel bar reinforcements. The footing beams also need to be structurally engineered to support the weight of the roof loads that they will be supporting.
Forming the Basement Foundation Walls
The next step in building your basement foundation is forming the walls. Today, there are options for foundation forms that include stamped materials for areas that will be exposed above the soil and insulated forms that can protect the concrete foundation. Once the forms are removed, the concrete needs waterproofing. Today, there are options to add insulation and structural design features with forms that stay in place after the concrete has cured. After the basement walls have been cured, the concrete slab can be installed to complete most of the concrete work that needs to be done.
Designs for the Waterproofing and Mechanical Drainage
Waterproofing is another feature to consider for the design of your basement foundation. It is probably the most important component and needs to be designed to keep the water out and reduce static water pressure. The mechanical drainage can include French drain systems and plumbing that are connected to a sump pump. The pump may be needed to remove water from drainage, as well as plumbing drains.
The problems with your basement can be prevented with the right design and systems to protect it. Contact a concrete foundation service for help building the basement for your new home.