| Foundations are critical. Houses new and old alike depend on solid footings and foundation walls to stand high and dry. This book brings together contractors and builders from all over the country to provide the best advice on formwork, foundations, waterproofing, reinforcement, and related topics.
Written by the pros who actually do the work, these articles will help you to:
- Prepare a site for excavation and formwork.
- Avoid common mistakes when working with concrete and masonry.
- Cut, form, and install rebar correctly.
- Prepare forms properly.
- Evaluate insulated concrete form systems.
- Select and install drainage components.
- Repair problems in old foundations.
- Construct block foundations.
- Select the right waterproofing treatment.
From the Introduction
My home is a study in foundations. Built 200 years ago, the original house sits on a stone foundation that's in surprisingly good shape thanks to the sandy soil surrounding it. On the east side is a bathroom addition built over a crawl space with a concrete-block foundation. To the south is a new two-story addition that rests securely on a walk-out basement with poured concrete walls. But sadly the north side of my house - an odd 4-ft. by 20-ft. extension of the gable end - has no foundation at all, unless you count loose stones placed on top of dirt. The grapes and marbles roll toward that side of the house. And in the winter, cold air and field mice come in over there. Studying my house, I've concluded two things: one, any foundation is better than no foundation at all; two, my next project isn't going to be much fun. Foundation work is not the glamorous side of home building. It is hard, dirty work. But it's also the work upon which all other work rests, and so a good foundation is critical to every home. And believe me, you don't want to be repairing a foundation; you want to get it right the first time. This book will help. It contains 14 articles originally published in Fine Homebuilding magazine. Written by builders from all over the country, these articles are quite literally advice from the trenches.
- Kevin Ireton
Editor-in-Chief, Fine Homebuilding Magazine
Table of Contents
Introduction—Part 1: CONCRETE BASICS: Avoiding Common Masonry Mistakes, Working with Rebar, Placing a Concrete Driveway; Part 2: BUILDING FOUNDATIONS: Pouring Concrete Slabs, Building a Block Foundation, Forming and Pouring Footings, Forming and Pouring Foundations,
Insulated Concrete Forms; Part 3: WATERPROOFING: Moisture-Proofing New Basements, Details for a Dry Foundation, Keeping a Basement Dry; Part 4: RETROFITTING FOUNDATIONS: Foundation Drainage, When Block Foundations Go Bad, Retrofitting a Foundation; Credits; Index. |
