Foundations and Concrete Work: Details, design considerations, and specifications that guarantee a solid base for any structure

	View Cart My Account/Order Status Help/Policies

Building Codes

International Codes

National Electrical Code

IAPMO Uniform Codes

Uniform Building Code

Categories

Industry News

Construction and Code News

California Building Standards Commission Completes Adoptions for New Code

Mississippi Adopts International Building and Residential Codes

ICC and IAPMO End Discussions on Joint Codes

California First to Adopt 2006 Uniform Plumbing and Mechanical Codes

FEMA Provides Flood Recovery Guidance to Coastal Parishes of Louisiana to Support Rebuilding Efforts

Articles

Hurricane Structural Preparedness
Hurricane Straps
Hurricane Shutters
Tips for Building in Areas Prone to Wildfires
Is Your Backyard Party Friendly?
Facts about Fire Prevention Codes and Christmas Trees
Archived News Releases

Home > Concrete and Masonry >

Foundations and Concrete Work: Details, design considerations, and specifications that guarantee a solid base for any structure

Foundations and Concrete Work, from the editors of Fine Homebuilding magazine, provides pro-level advice on troubleshooting common masonry mistakes, using concrete in home landscapes, and laying a foundation that will last. Whatever the concrete project, you'll find all the field-tested methods and techniques you need in this updated and expanded edition.

List Price $24.95
Website Price $22.46

Author: Fine Homebuilding Magazine
Format: Softcover
Copyright: 2008
Pages: 288

Qty:

Description

For the best, most reliable advice on foundations and concrete, you have to talk to the people in the trenches. No source of information on foundations and concrete work is better respected or more widely followed than that provided by Fine Homebuilding magazine. This latest edition from the editors of Fine Homebuilding is the biggest and most authoritative volume yet on the subject. With more than 400 illustrative on-the-job photographs and drawings, Foundations and Concrete Work is a rock-solid reference that distills decades of hands-on advice and techniques from America's finest builders.

Form and pour a solid foundation
Install concrete piers and footings
Lay groundwork for patios and decks
Waterproof a basement and keep it dry
Retrofit and repair foundations

Quality construction begins with a strong, sturdy foundation. Whether building from scratch, adding on to a home, or doing major renovations and repairs, you'll want expert advice on foundations and concrete work to get the job done right. In this book from the editors of Fine Homebuilding magazine, engineers, contractors, and remodelers provide pro-level advice on troubleshooting common masonry mistakes, using concrete in the home landscape, and laying a foundation that will last. Whatever the concrete project, you'll find all the field-tested methods and techniques you need in this updated and expanded edition.

From the Introduction
After graduating from college I did what anybody with a B.A. in English would do: I went to work as a form carpenter on a concrete crew. I spent my days hauling heavy, smelly, cement-encrusted, oil-soaked forms in and out of trenches. You set up the forms and take them down. You scrape them off. You do it again. And usually you're walking around in mud-caked boots that feel like you're wearing a pumpkin on each foot.

I worked for a boss who delighted in ordering concrete before we were ready. He'd start filling the forms while I was still working frantically to nail them together. I still wince when I see a ready-mix truck coming down the road, but my year on that crew taught me a lot about pouring concrete and building foundations. I learned how to place anchor bolts so they could withstand a hurricane. I learned how to use rebar and wire mesh to strengthen a slab, and the consequences of not bracing forms properly (you don't want to know).

Fortunately, you don't have to spend a year walking around in muddy boots to learn what I did. This book contains all of that knowledge, and then some. Collected here are 28 articles from past issues of Fine Homebuilding. Written by builders from all over the country, these articles will help ensure that you can build a strong foundation that's dry, warm, square, and level. Do yourself one favor, though: Wait until the forms are done before you order the concrete.
Kevin Ireton, editor
Fine Homebuilding

Contents
Part 1: Concrete Basics. Avoiding Common Masonry Mistakes. Working with Rebar. Placing a Concrete Driveway. Drilling Concrete? Get a Rotary Hammer. A Solid Deck Begins with Concrete Piers. Part 2: Building Foundations. Soil: The Other Half of the Foundation. Start with Batterboards. Pouring Concrete Slabs. Building a Block Foundation. Laying Up Concrete Block. Forming and Pouring Footings. Forming and Pouring Foundations. Footing and Foundation in One Pour. Insulated Concrete Forms. A Fast Foundation for an Addition. Building a House of Insulated Concrete Block. Part 3: Waterproofing. The Stay-Dry, No-Mold Finished Basement. Moisture-Proofing New Basements. Sealing a Crawl Space. Details for a Dry Foundation. Keeping a Basement Dry. Part 4: Retrofitting Foundations. Foundation Drainage. When Block Foundations Go Bad. Retrofitting a Foundation. Part 5: Concrete in the Landscape. Four Retaining Wall Choices. Building a Modular Retaining Wall. Dress Up a Block Wall with a Rock Wall. A Concrete-Paver Patio from the Bottom Up.

About the Author
Since 1981, the pages of Fine Homebuilding magazine have inspired and instructed people who care about quality home improvement and construction. With a circulation of more than 300,000, the magazine is the premier source for information on how to build projects better, faster, and more efficiently.