Before starting the construction of his own home, a person needs to carefully prepare and tune in to the upcoming work. One of the first and most important stages of construction is the arrangement of the foundation. In private housing construction, the following design is often used: monolithic slab. This type of foundation has many advantages and a number of features that any developer should know.

The type of foundation under consideration is built on a base in the form of a sand cushion. The pouring technology requires mandatory reinforcement. This design is designed for very high loads, therefore it is used mainly in the construction of large houses with more than one floor.

However, the size and weight of the building are far from the only determining factors. For example, in areas characterized by uneven seasonal ground movements, monolithic pouring on a sand cushion is the best option.

Also, such a foundation is perfect for regions with high groundwater levels, being most relevant for buildings with basements. A floating monolithic foundation has a relatively large area, which helps reduce the overall load on the soil when compared with other types of structures.

Foundation pouring mixture you can make it yourself or order it from a specialized company. If you have money, but no time, desire or experience in making concrete, you can simply buy a ready-made solution and save yourself the extra hassle.

Work on constructing a monolithic foundation slab begins with the assembly of formwork. Wooden inventory panels are suitable for the manufacture of this structure. The functions of formwork can simply be performed by the walls of the pit, but in such a situation they will need to be insulated with roofing felt or polyethylene. Otherwise, the ground will absorb the cement “milk”, which will negatively affect the strength characteristics of the structure.

A monolithic slab foundation is the most reliable among other types of foundations used. Such a foundation is not afraid of exposure to moisture; it can withstand any load, which allows the construction of full-fledged two- or even three-story mansions.

Before starting work, you should prepare everything you need to complete it.

Tools and material for constructing a monolithic slab foundation

1. Concrete mixer or container of suitable volume.

2. Wheelbarrow for transporting materials and finished solution.

3. Several shovels and buckets.

4. Construction level.

5. Measuring tape.

6. Welding machine.

7. Joints, tampers, picks.

8. Trowel.

9. Square.

10. Metal rods for creating a reinforcement frame and clamps for these rods.

11. Ready concrete or ingredients for its preparation.

12. Materials for waterproofing.

The formwork is installed around the perimeter of the future building. The main function of this element is to give the foundation the desired shape until the poured concrete gains the required strength and can hold its shape on its own. Formwork can be assembled from edged boards, but they must be combined in such a way that there are no gaps at the joints. If possible, inventory panels should be used to assemble the formwork. This step will reduce the cost of time and effort at this stage of work.

It is better that the elements for assembling the formwork are made of coniferous wood. Larch is also suitable for making spacers and various types of fastenings. The formwork boards should be no more than 15 cm wide. Make sure that all boards used have the same thickness as possible. Before assembling the formwork, the boards should be thoroughly moistened, or even better, raw wood should be used. The problem is that the dry material will subsequently absorb moisture from the laid concrete, and this will not have the best effect on the strength of the finished structure. The front side of the formwork system is finished with metal or plywood sheets.

It is important to first take care to reduce the adhesion force of concrete to the formwork material, so that later boards or panels can be removed with the least effort. It is enough to simply cover the front part of the formwork with oil, liquid clay mortar, etc. Additionally, such coating will help to obtain a cleaner front surface of the monolithic foundation.

Determine the distance between the installed panels based on the width of the future monolithic base. From the outside of the formwork panels, stakes are driven into the ground, which will ensure the fixation of structural elements in a given position. Additionally, the stakes must be attached to the shields using nails. To ensure that the adjacent formwork panels do not fall apart when pouring concrete, wooden planks must be nailed to the top of the panels.

Be sure to ensure that no fasteners are located where the concrete mixture will be poured in the future. Otherwise, it will no longer be possible to remove these fasteners from the poured slab.

The formwork for the foundation should be installed as level as possible, because The evenness of the finished foundation directly depends on this. High precision installation becomes especially important at the plinth level, i.e. that part of the foundation that is above the surface of the earth. After removing the formwork, professionals recommend covering the base with a thin layer of cement mortar. Other cladding is carried out at the request of the owner; you can do just fine without it.

To increase the strength of the structure, a reinforcing belt is installed. Without reinforcement, the slab will be able to normally withstand compressive loads, but it will be powerless against tensile and bending loads. Proper reinforcement helps eliminate this disadvantage. It is performed using special welded structures or individual metal rods.

For reinforcement monolithic foundations steel reinforcement is used.

It is important that the rods are free of grease and corrosion damage. Such things will contribute to the deterioration of the quality of adhesion of the reinforcement to the concrete, due to which the rigidity of the structure and its strength will noticeably decrease.

The frame is assembled from hot-rolled or round reinforcing steel. The rods must have a periodic profile. In exceptional cases, the frame is assembled from square steel.

Depending on its purpose, the reinforcement in the reinforcing structure can be either working or distribution:

• working rods are designed to accept external and almost all internal loads created by the weight of the building;
• the functions of distribution fittings are clear from its name - it is responsible for distributing incoming loads between the working axes.

That is, the armored belt is a full-fledged complex, each element of which works together with the others.

To connect reinforcement, you can use the twisted wire method, but professionals in most situations recommend using welded connections.

Before the construction of the frame begins, the reinforcement is straightened, sorted and cut. On average, as practice shows, 1 m3 of concrete mixture requires about 100 kg of reinforcing material. The frame is assembled directly on the construction site.

When installing the formwork, be sure to ensure that the steel rods remain in place. The maximum permissible displacement is 20% of the diameter of an individual rod. Check the formwork after installing the reinforcement and immediately eliminate any defects that appear.

Guidelines for concreting a structure

It is strongly recommended not to carry out concreting at low air temperatures. When If the base is poured in frosty weather, the concrete mixture must be insulated, because when freezing, the material loses its strength and can simply crumble even under minor loads. In hot weather, the formwork for the foundation should be moistened before starting concreting so that in the future the boards do not absorb moisture from the poured mixture.

Concrete is poured in layers. Each of these layers in mandatory compacted. It is best to use a special vibrator for this job. If it is absent, you can pierce the mixture with improvised tools. You can understand that the mixture has sufficiently compacted by the cement laitance protruding on the surface of the layer. The mixture can be supplied using a concrete paver or manually.

Concreting must be carried out continuously, because Only if this condition is met can high strength and solidity of the structure as a whole be achieved. If it is not possible to complete the work in 1 day, you need to make working seams. Such a seam has the appearance of a flat joint and is created between the previously poured and new layers of concrete. Working seams in foundations of this kind can have an exclusively vertical or horizontal position.

Concreting work can only be resumed in a situation where the strength of the poured mixture is no more than 1 MPa. This point can be easily checked with a vibrating machine used for compaction. If the previous pouring layer liquefies during processing, concreting can be resumed. First, be sure to wash the seams and clean off the cement film with a wire brush.

Do not allow soil to get into the concrete pour. This leads to a significant decrease in the strength of the foundation system and contributes to the appearance of cracks.

After pouring, concrete requires some maintenance. Especially Much attention is required for about a week and a half after pouring. First of all, you should try to maintain optimal humidity and temperature values. It is best if the concrete hardens at a temperature in the range of +18-+25 degrees. No mechanical loads, impacts or any other impacts that could lead to destruction of the integrity of the structure should be allowed.

A freshly poured foundation must be protected from cold, wind loads, and direct solar radiation, because all this will contribute to the removal of moisture from the concrete, which will inevitably lead to the formation of cracks. In hot weather, the stove should be covered with some moisture-absorbing material, for example, burlap or some kind of thick fabric, and periodically watered with cold water.

Determine the frequency of wetting individually, the main thing is that the surface of the foundation is always wet. If it is frosty outside, the formwork must be additionally insulated by covering all exposed surfaces with mineral wool, sawdust or other suitable thermal insulation materials.

If construction is carried out in frosty weather, the laid concrete must be additionally heated. Usually, for this purpose, the structure is blown with warm air or steam. If possible, it is better to add fast-hardening grades of cement with a high heat release rate to the mixture. The most commonly used method is electric foundation heating.

When to dismantle the formwork?

The boards can be removed approximately a week and a half after pouring the slab. You can start installing floors, laying masonry and other similar work only after the structure has gained the required strength. This usually takes a month, but it’s better to wait a month and a half. If the installation of the slab was carried out in full accordance with the technology, further shrinkage will be as uniform as possible and no distortions or other defects will appear.

The mentioned 10 days are minimum term, but there is also no need to delay too much with dismantling the formwork. The longer it remains in place, the stronger the adhesion of the boards or panels to the concrete will be, and the more difficult it will be in the future to get rid of the formwork without damaging the top layer of the monolithic base.

Be extremely careful when dismantling the formwork. The corners of the structure must not be allowed to crumble (and by this time, as a rule, they have not yet had time to gain the required strength). It is recommended to immediately clean any defects that appear after dismantling the formwork with an iron brush, rinse thoroughly with clean water under strong pressure and rub with a “light” cement mortar prepared from 1 part cement and 2 times the volume of sand.

If you find large “sinks”, clear them to their full depth until you get through the layer of “weak” concrete. After this procedure, the surface must be treated again with an iron brush and rinsed with strong water pressure. For large sinks, it is recommended to use a rigid concrete mixture.

Before starting concreting work, think in advance about the placement of various technological cavities through which underground communications such as water pipes, cables, etc. will be laid. Such holes are made extremely simply. You take pipes of the required diameter and insert them into the desired places on the formwork.

As the foundation is poured, the pipes must be covered with a rag or other material with similar characteristics. After all communication elements have been installed, existing gaps and any kind of holes must be sealed using a special silicone compound to prevent moisture from penetrating into the system.

Thus, there is nothing overly complicated in the independent construction of a monolithic slab foundation. You just need to understand the instructions in detail and follow the instructions received at each stage of foundation construction. Good luck!

Video - DIY monolithic slab foundation

Slab foundations are monolithic reinforced concrete foundations that are used to lay the entire area of ​​the future house. This type of foundation is worth a closer look. It can be classified as a shallow foundation type.

Many owners of summer cottages are wondering how to make a foundation slab with their own hands. In theory it looks like this. The platform for such a slab is a flat, solid base, i.e. the soil must be freed from the loose top layer. Well-compacted sand up to 30 cm high is laid on the prepared surface and only then they begin to lay a monolithic concrete slab.

For the foundation you can use 1 or build it from precast concrete. To do this, you can use road slabs. How many slabs are needed for construction is calculated depending on the specific case. To level the surface of prefabricated slabs, a screed of cement or concrete should be made. Undoubtedly, when choosing from these 2 types of construction, one complete monolithic slab is considered most reliable. It is more rigid and durable than a precast slab foundation. They also differ in cost.

How to make a foundation slab with your own hands?

At the first stage, calculations should be made for the construction of the slab. This is a very important stage, since all calculations and measurements must be very thorough and accurate. An accurate calculation will allow you to calculate the amount of material required and the amount of funds needed. For accurate calculations, you need to contact design specialists. They will definitely take into account all kinds of rolls, shrinkage, deformation in concrete and loads on. And geologists will help in soil research: how high is the groundwater level and the depth of soil freezing in winter time. The service of a professional is worth it to ensure that the house stands firmly on its foundation in the future.

For further work you will need the following tools:

• shovel;
• level;
• geotextiles;
• vibrating plate;
• polystyrene foam;
• boards for making formwork;
• sand (1 ton contains approximately 0.625 m³);
• water;
• polyethylene;
• reinforcement cage;
• concrete solution.

The main work begins with preparing the construction site with your own hands. Following the calculations and markings, you should remove all weak-bearing soil with a shovel and, using a level, carefully level the entire area of ​​​​the site where construction will be built. Next, cover the entire surface with geotextile material. It will not allow the sand cushion to sink into the clay. Then they begin to form a sand cushion (crushed stone can be used).

Backfilling of sand should be done in layers, and each layer should be compacted well using a vibrating plate.

For better compaction, you can moisten the sand generously with water. The pillow should be up to 10 cm high.

The next step will be working with waterproofing material. The screed is covered with a layer of waterproofing materials. At the joints, be sure to go through with a blowtorch or torch to solder the seams. The layer of waterproofing material around the perimeter should be 0.5 m larger than the future slab foundation on all sides. The edges will later be attached to the outside of the slab. Then a layer of thermal insulation is laid using extruded polystyrene foam. Experts recommend covering it with plastic wrap. How much film is needed can be found out from the general information. It is not necessary to make such a layer, but it is advisable.

Thus, a kind of pie is obtained, consisting of a layer of sand, sand concrete, a waterproofing layer and polystyrene foam. The number of layers in this cake can be changed as needed.

Now you can begin installing the frame from reinforcement bars. It consists of 2 large meshes made of metal rods Ø12-16 mm with cell dimensions of about 20x20 cm. How much reinforcement will be needed? To do it yourself, you need to know its specific gravity:

• 1 ton of reinforcement Ø12 mm contains 1136 linear meters;
• in 1 ton of reinforcement Ø14 mm – 828 l.m.;
• in 1 ton of reinforcement Ø16 mm – 634 linear meters.

Meshes of reinforcement are installed on top of each other, and the location of the lower bars of the mesh should be 5 cm from the polyester, and the upper level of the reinforcement bars should be 5 cm below the upper plane of the foundation. will give the required rigidity to the base. In addition, the reinforcement is the skeleton in concrete foundation and enhances the ability of the base to withstand any load.

The next stage begins with the installation of formwork for the foundation slab. To do this, you will need boards planed on one side. From these the formwork for the slabs will be made with your own hands. The boards are assembled into panels and attached to the walls around the entire perimeter. To more firmly fix the formwork under a slab foundation, pegs and struts are used. You can begin the penultimate stage of work. Reinforcement and installation of formwork for the foundation slab is completed.

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2 ways to lay concrete

1. The easiest way is to pour concrete into the formwork for the foundation slab. If it is possible for a mixer to arrive, the concrete mixture can be unloaded directly into the formwork.
2. If it is impossible to approach the object, then the mixture enters the formwork using a wooden chute. Such a gutter can be easily made with your own hands. In order for the concrete to move better along the gutter, 1 worker is needed for each m. They will use shovels to push the concrete along the chute to the unloading point.

The grade of concrete determines the number of components for 1 ton of cement:

• M200 - for 1 ton of cement you will need 3.5 tons of sand and 5.6 tons of crushed stone;
• M300 – for 1 ton of cement – ​​2.4 tons of sand and 4.4 tons of crushed stone;
• M400 - for 1 ton of cement - 1.6 tons of sand and 3.2 tons of crushed stone.

After pouring concrete has finished, it should be immediately compacted using an internal vibrator. It is immersed in concrete in increments of up to 1 m, since the radius of action is approximately 0.5 m. How many times the tool is immersed in concrete depends on the required compaction rate. If such a vibrator is not available, you can use a piece of reinforcement and pierce the concrete. You should also take care to level the concrete surface. When working with a monolithic slab foundation, beacons should be used.

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Final stage

After pouring concrete into the slab formwork has finished and all compaction and leveling work has been done, you need to take care of the concrete.

1. In hot weather or rainy days, cover the stove with plastic wrap. It will protect the concrete from drying out and moisture.
2. In winter, the concrete is heated. To do this, use electrode heating or a heat gun covered with an awning. The strength of concrete is 50% acquired in the first 3 days. After this, heating can be omitted. The concrete will freeze, but you shouldn't be afraid. As soon as the air temperature begins to rise, the process of increasing strength in concrete will resume.
3. In summer, concrete should be watered every day. The number of waterings you can do with your own hands is as follows: for the first 3 days, water every 4 hours, and the next days the number of waterings can be reduced to one. The plastic film is removed, the foundation is watered and covered back with film.

After a week, you can begin to dismantle the formwork for the slab foundation.

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Advantages of a slab foundation

The main advantages of a monolithic foundation slab are:

• ease of making the plate. If the developer knows a little about construction work, he can use semi-skilled workers to build the slab foundation;
• low cost. You can avoid buying an expensive concrete pump and pour concrete directly from the trays of concrete mixer trucks;
• resistance to heavy loads. The large area of ​​the slab, reinforced with a reinforced frame and support in the form of soil, allows the monolithic reinforced concrete slab to withstand quite large loads on the base of the house. For example, we can cite Ostankino Tower. The 63 m high column rests on a 1 m thick foundation;
• integrity of walls during local swelling of the soil. This guarantee is given thanks to the one-piece monolithic sole. The reinforced concrete slab reinforcement creates a rigid foundation for the construction of columns and walls. In the winter season, when the soil swells, the entire building will rise and fall evenly. No damage will occur in the concrete;
• ideal for construction on difficult soils. By choosing a monolithic slab as a foundation, you can greatly reduce excavation work. This is especially true for soil with a high level of freezing and high groundwater levels.

How to make a slab foundation with your own hands? In private construction, when choosing the type of foundation, the installation of a strip foundation is most often used. However, the construction technology includes a number of difficulties, which makes the use of this option impractical even when constructing a small building. IN in this case The best option would be to construct a monolithic foundation yourself.

The monolithic foundation is poured with your own hands along the perimeter of the future building. It will have a uniform distribution of loads on large area, which makes it an indispensable option for construction in unstable soils. Step-by-step instructions will describe in detail how to properly install a slab foundation. Installation is quite simple.

Design structure and diagram

During installation, the foundation slab does not require a large depth. It must be located close enough to the surface of the earth. This is explained by the fact that the slab under the house must float on the soil below. It is then that the most optimal strength characteristics will be manifested, and ground heaving in winter will not pose a danger to the house.

The structure of a slab foundation with your own hands looks like this:

1. Soil base. Usually this is the bottom of the pit, which must be compacted.
2. Sand pillow. The foundation slab can have different designs: sand, crushed stone or combined with gravel. Purpose – uniform distribution of ground loads and vibrations. Can be made in several layers using different materials.
3. Reinforcing layer. It is designed to protect the previous layer from erosion and silting. Production includes several methods for constructing geotextiles, depending on construction conditions. Can be used between the first and second layers to prevent the movement of soil particles, as well as between sand and gravel backfills. The function is the same everywhere. Having a backfill of gravel or crushed stone above the sand layer prevents the capillary movement of moisture.
4. Concrete preparation. In some cases, the construction technology does not include this layer in order to save money. But it plays a very important role - giving clear geometry for the further process of pouring a monolithic foundation slab. After the concrete preparation has been installed, the installation of waterproofing will be carried out to a much higher quality.
5. Waterproofing. Acts as a barrier to the movement of ground moisture. It is recommended to install at least two layers of roll waterproofing (polymer-bitumen).
6. Monolithic structure (slab).
7. Reinforcement belt. The standard version looks like this: two interconnected reinforcement grids for maximum rigidity. The protective layer of concrete should be approximately 50 millimeters.

This is what the structure of manufacturing monolithic foundations looks like. However, a monolithic slab can be made in several ways depending on the construction conditions. The classic version is a solid structure, the width of which is maintained over the entire working area. It is great for stable soil foundations. The main disadvantage is the small thickness of the slab, which, due to the close location of the upper edge to ground level, negatively affects the walls. An alternative is to use reinforcement (stiffening ribs) located at the top or bottom of the structure.

Technological process

It consists of a number of separate works that need to be given Special attention. A DIY foundation slab for a home has the following step-by-step instructions:

Step-by-step instruction.

Preparation

The construction of a monolithic slab includes a thorough study of soil characteristics and design calculations. Survey work can be carried out visually without the involvement of specialists. Usually carried out in two ways:

1. Through the pits.
2. By drilling wells.

For a shallowly buried monolithic foundation slab, pits with a depth of 50 centimeters are sufficient. The main parameters that should be determined are:

1. Type of soil base.
2. Soil bearing capacity.
3. Determination of groundwater level.

When calculating the structure, the parameters of the soil foundation and the total load of the building are taken into account. The standard option for private construction is to make a slab 15 centimeters wide with a single type of reinforcement. A full calculation is carried out by civil engineers working according to building codes (SP, SNiP, STB and others), which contain information on how to pour a foundation slab.

Marking the territory and digging a pit

1. To properly arrange the foundation slab, it is necessary to remove the axes. Marking the foundation slab with your own hands is as follows:
2. A right angle is laid from the starting point.
3. It is applied on the surface of the earth (with a peg).
4. The length of the foundation is canceled. After this, two points will appear with which you need to carry out the operations described above (accuracy 10 mm).
5. The building is demolished, onto which the sides of the slab are designed.
6. A cord is laid along the border.

The depth of the pit for a monolithic foundation slab will be summed up from the thicknesses:

1. Insulation.
2. Waterproofing.
3. Preparations.
4. Foundation pillow.

The construction of a monolithic foundation slab implies its location above ground level. The perimeter is equipped drainage pipes with a certain bias. A do-it-yourself monolithic slab must provide for the location of utility networks in advance.

Slab base

Pouring a foundation slab implies a multi-layer threshold. It is made by hand and has step by step actions. Initially, the pit is covered with a reinforcing layer (geotextile). The basic rule is that its installation should extend beyond the edges of the monolith by one meter.

Also, the technology for constructing a monolithic foundation involves a cushion of bulk materials. It is recommended to use a two-layer sand layer - 20 centimeters of sand and crushed stone. It is forbidden to use small fractions of sand, as over time severe shrinkage will occur, which will compromise the integrity of the structure. The substrate structure for a monolithic slab can have a thickness of up to 30 to 50 centimeters.

Important: When constructing a foundation slab, each layer should be compacted separately. For these purposes, it is recommended to use a vibrating plate.

The next stage is the production of concrete footings. When concreting the constructed frame, “skinny” grades (B7.5 or B12.5) are used. Its thickness ranges from 50 to 70 millimeters. Filling can be carried out:

1. Manually (help step by step photos).
2. Mechanized equipment.

Construction of a monolithic structure can be continued only after two weeks. The final set of strength will occur in 28 days, given favorable weather. During this period, you need to take care of the structure (you can learn this from various videos). The base of the foundation made should be 10 centimeters wider according to the slab parameter.

Next, the monolithic foundation slab is equipped with a waterproofing layer. Often its role is played by standard dense polyethylene. However, it is better not to skimp on this. There may be installation of waterproofing made from penetrating compounds.

The final step was always insulation. The construction of a monolithic foundation prohibits the use of standard options (foam plastic or mineral wool) as insulation. The use of extruded polystyrene foam is recommended. The thickness is selected relative to the climatic region of construction; in most cases, 100 millimeters is enough.

Reinforcement reinforcement

Installation of reinforcement in private construction is based on the minimum parameters that are found in a special manual. There you can find a lot of information on how to make a monolithic foundation with your own hands. The total cross-sectional area of ​​the reinforcement must be more than 0.3 percent relative to the total foundation section. Structurally, the minimum diameter of the rods is 10 or 12 mm (depending on the side). The minimum tile size for foundation reinforcement for a private house is 40 millimeters.

Formwork work

The pouring technology may include the following types of formwork:

1. Removable (wooden).
2. Non-removable (foam).

Thanks to the second type, a do-it-yourself slab requires less cost, and installation is easier. Pouring a monolithic slab should not be done from a great height. It must be compacted. It is better to use a concrete pump that does not pass through a low-quality mixture.

Installation of formwork.

To make a monolithic slab foundation with your own hands, you need to install high-quality formwork. Its main purpose is to give the body of the slab the required shape while the concrete gains the required strength. The slab foundation technology is often equipped with formwork made of boards. They need to be arranged in such a way that there are no gaps.

The construction of slab foundation formwork can be done from inventory panels, which will save time and money.

It will be easier to make a foundation slab with your own hands, step by step instructions, from boards of the same thickness that need to be moistened. They must be installed as level as possible so that the structure of the foundation slab is correct.

Concrete care process

How to make a high-quality slab foundation with your own hands? Proper care must be taken:

1. Covering - to prevent liquid evaporation.
2. Moisturizing – should be done with a certain frequency.

The construction of a slab foundation involves spraying it every 2-3 hours (depending on the weather) during the installation process for a whole week. This is necessary to prevent cracks from appearing. The slab foundation technology involves removing the formwork after two weeks. It is recommended to wait for the concrete to fully gain strength.

List of required tools

How to make a slab foundation with your own hands without using special tools? For a monolithic slab foundation you will need:

1. Concrete mixer (without it, pouring the slab will be difficult).
2. Cart for pouring a monolithic foundation.
3. Shovels and buckets.
4. Construction level so that the foundation structure is correct.
5. Tape measure (high-quality pouring of a monolithic foundation slab cannot be done without).
6. Welder. The technology for constructing a monolithic slab foundation includes connecting reinforcement using this apparatus.
7. Master OK.
8. Square, for checking the accuracy of angles.
9. Fittings.
10. Crusts, joints and tampers. Without them, a DIY foundation slab will not have an aesthetic appearance.
11. A monolithic slab foundation with your own hands will not do without ready-made concrete or components for its production.

Conclusion

For more information on how to pour a slab, you can see a do-it-yourself monolithic foundation, step-by-step photos. As a rule, installation, foundation manufacturing and pouring technology are not complicated. You just need to know the structure of monolithic structures and follow the step-by-step instructions (rules) with your own hands.

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Classmates

Another name for a slab foundation is monolithic.

Quite widespread in home improvement due to the fact that very reliable and can place on itself construction of any weight and design.

So, make a foundation slab with your own hands: step-by-step instructions will be discussed in the article.

Before moving on to considering the issue of a slab foundation with your own hands: step-by-step instructions for constructing a foundation, you should find out what the features of such a design are.

Application

The installation of a slab foundation for a private house can be compared with or.

As a result of the comparison, it will be possible to identify several positions in which expedient will build a slab foundation with his own hands:

• The slab foundation is built with your own hands if there are difficult soils at the construction site, for example, a slab foundation on a slope is possible;
• monolithic foundation slab: technology is often used in buildings in which there is no need to construct basements and ground floors with high walls. A plinth on a slab foundation is much more difficult to complete;
• in buildings where the installation of a floor on a monolithic foundation slab implies the base itself as a floor. At the same time, the foundation slab does not provide floor insulation, and this issue will need to be addressed separately.

Important! This type of base is good to use if the soils are characterized by a strong degree of freezing.

Foundation slab for a house: how to do it right? As for the technological rules for design and construction, the slab foundation is regulated SNiP 2.02.02-83.

Device

How to make a foundation slab? A slab for this type of base is not just some kind of concrete product. Because of its characteristic features, it is also called a pie-stove, because it consists from several layers of different materials.

During pouring, as the technology says monolithic slab foundation: the thickness of each layer must be calculated separately.

The composition of the “pie” is as follows:

Layer	Purpose
Geotextiles	Required for ensuring strength base plate. It is an obstacle to mixing the cushion and soil.
Pillow	Intended to make the support for the slab level, serves as drainage and creates a layer that is susceptible to heaving.
Concrete base	Provides waterproofing properties, and also increases the level of load-bearing capacity.
Waterproofing	Considering that any structure located in the soil is exposed to moisture, such a layer is necessary to prevent this effect. In addition, the waterproofing layer prevents concrete leakage, which maintains the strength of the material after hardening.
Thermal insulation	Not every slab is equipped with this layer. It is necessary if a warm basement is designed in the building or the slab is located close to the soil surface.
Formwork	For maintaining the shape of concrete at the moment of its hardening. It can be built removable or remain in the structure.
Reinforcement	Due to the high compressive strength of concrete, it is necessary to create reinforcement with metal rods so that the material can subsequently not subject to cracking and was able to last as long as possible.
Concrete	Thanks to this layer all loads from the building are taken into account. In most cases, reinforced concrete is used because it has more durable characteristics.

Calculation

When you need to start building the foundation yourself, then installing a monolithic foundation slab: construction technology says that a calculation is first necessary. The construction of a house with a monolithic slab foundation begins with independent calculations, drawing up a plan and diagram.

Calculations are carried out based on next algorithm:

• before starting production slab base, initially the required thickness of the slab is calculated;
• calculation of the total area;
• determining the depth of placement.

Based on these parameters, they produce in order to begin the construction of a slab foundation in the future.

Important! In addition to calculations, the installation of a monolithic slab foundation involves several more preparatory measures, such as determining the type of reinforcement, selecting materials for waterproofing and performing calculations for these materials.

Construction technology

How to make a slab foundation correctly? The construction of a monolithic foundation slab involves a certain sequence of actions.

Marking

The construction of a slab foundation involves the next step after calculation - marking the site.

This process is very simple, however very important for design and allows you to avoid many difficulties in subsequent work.

Necessary carry out markings very accurately.

The construction of a slab monolithic foundation recommends adhering to certain nuances regarding markup:

1. Marking is done according to the perimeter future building. There is no need to determine the location of walls and other structures at this stage - this can be done after the slab is ready.
2. Marking should be located one meter more in width than the immediate perimeter of the structure. This must be done so that later it will be possible to arrange a drainage system and build a blind area.
3. If the future house according to the project has terraces, balconies, a porch, then they should be taken into account and carry out markings taking into account these elements so that you don’t have to worry about the integrity of the walls in the house in the future.

Pit

The construction of the slab foundation further involves digging a pit. A parameter such as depth, depends on the type of soil where construction is taking place.

Installation of the monolithic slab foundation at this stage is carried out according to following rules:

1. In the presence of dense soils, the pit is dug to a depth of 50 cm.
2. If the soils are unstable and weak, then the depth will be 1 m.
3. After digging the pit, it is necessary to level its bottom.
4. The edges of the pit must be made as smooth as possible.
5. If during the process in some areas the depth is greater than what was determined, then such places should be filled only with sandy soil, which will not shrink later, i.e. the foundation slab on sandy soil will be reliable.
6. If drainage of a slab foundation is necessary: ​​an equipment scheme with water drainage is used where there are high groundwater. This should be taken into account during the digging process and height differences should be taken into account.

Important! To dig a pit quickly and less expensively, it is best to use special equipment.

Pillow device

As was already mentioned above when listing the layers of the “pie,” a foundation slab is erected on a sand cushion.

After completing the previous steps, you can begin construction of a support cushion, which is done as follows:

1. Before pouring sand, it it is necessary to rinse and remove any impurities from it which may shrink.
2. Fill in layers(up to 40 cm), compacting each layer.
3. Sand level should be such that there is 20 cm of free space left from the soil surface.
4. Communications in the slab foundation, which will later be in the house, are taken into account at this stage.
5. After the sand has been poured and compacted, a layer of geotextile is laid out so that mixing with the next layer of material does not occur.
6. After geotextiles it is necessary pour gravel up to 20 cm in thickness.
7. Such material should be distributed as evenly as possible over the sand layer and ensure that it is level with the soil of the site. The check can be carried out using a hydraulic level or level. It is very important to compact crushed stone, just like sand..

Important! Eat different ways How to make a sand cushion under a slab foundation, if you build a slab foundation with your own hands step by step, but they differ only in the sequence of actions, which ultimately leads to the same result.

Formwork and waterproofing

The construction of a slab foundation with your own hands requires that you need formwork, which can be either removable or permanent.

Algorithm of actions at this stage the following:

1. Formwork for slab foundations constructed clearly around the perimeter of the house. In this case, do not forget that the pit is dug a meter wider than the house. The formwork for the foundation slab should follow the immediate perimeter of the building.
2. The height of the structure is equal to the thickness of the slab. After installing it, using cords and a level, it needs to be trimmed. On average, the thickness of the slab is about 30 cm.
3. The next thing to do is to make sure that the formwork structure is firmly and rigidly fixed - waterproofing slab foundation. In order for the waterproofing of a monolithic foundation slab to be carried out correctly, it is best to use a material that contains bitumen. It is this kind of waterproofing that will provide high level protecting the base from moisture. The action plan if conventional waterproofing is not enough (that is, how to raise a foundation slab with a high groundwater level) provides for some nuances.
4. The strips that were laid on the formwork must be connected. To do this, they are initially placed with an overlap, after which they are welded together. In this process, it is necessary to ensure the integrity of the waterproofing strip so that there is no opportunity for moisture to penetrate into the concrete. In addition, after the slab hardens, it will be easy to disassemble such a structure and separate it from the concrete.

Important! In some cases, before laying waterproofing material, the monolithic foundation slab is insulated. When insulating a slab foundation, you can choose the two most progressive options: insulating the foundation slab with penoplex or insulating the foundation slab with expanded polystyrene foam (EPS), which has a high degree of density. What material to use to insulate the foundation slab is up to you to decide.

Reinforcement and filling

In this section of the article, we will look at how to correctly knit reinforcement for a monolithic slab and how to correctly pour a foundation slab under a house.

Reinforcement of the foundation slab must be carried out only after the waterproofing lining has been carried out. Otherwise, reinforcing a slab foundation will be very difficult.

The reinforced slab diagram includes following points:

1. Laying reinforcement in a slab foundation implies the use of reinforcement with a cross section of 10 – 14 mm. The cross section is calculated depending on the load on the base.
2. The rods need to be tied using a special crochet hook. You can use wire as material for the coupling. In this case, you need to maintain a distance from the waterproofing of 5–7 cm, and keep the mesh pitch at 25 cm. Knitting occurs in two rows.
3. The reinforcement of the monolithic slab in the second row is knitted in such a way that after the foundation slab is poured, the metal frame went deep it by 5 cm minimum. Such reinforcement of a monolithic foundation slab is the most reliable.
4. Then it runs itself pouring a slab foundation. The technology for pouring a monolithic foundation slab states that the grade of concrete should be M200 or more. Pouring a monolithic foundation slab should take no more than one day - this will allow you to build a reliable and durable structure. What is the best way to pour a slab under the foundation? Using an industrial vibrator, you need to rid the material of air inclusions.
5. While the base has not hardened, slab foundation technology requires that it be align as accurately as possible. This will avoid difficulties in the future. To do this, use a board, rod or rule.

It is very important after the monolithic slab has been reinforced and concrete has been poured, to ensure proper care and the necessary conditions for to make the slab strong and reliable:

• Concrete needs to stand for at least 28 days;
• the temperature must be at least 20 degrees;
• it is very important to maintain a humidity of 80%; for this, the concrete is watered and covered with polyethylene;
• if pouring a slab under the foundation is carried out in winter, then it is necessary to think about heating the concrete;
• If you need to leave the base for the winter, it is very important to keep it from moisture.

Quality checking

Foundation slab construction technology states that to check the quality of the resulting foundation, you can use the visual method.

Correcting errors made during the installation process is quite difficult, and in some cases impossible..

There are steps to check whether a floating slab foundation has been created correctly: the quality control technology is quite simple.

This the following actions:

1. The soil is visible that surrounds the base: there should be no depressions or dips in the ground, as well as cracks. If there are any, then most likely the process was carried out without geological verification. In some cases, cracks in the soil may appear due to strong pressure from the slab - this depends on its area.
2. If there are salt deposits, then this indicates a violation of waterproofing or its absence. In this case, you need to take care of constructing such a layer.
3. The next thing technology requires: a foundation slab for the house checked for porosity. This can be done by looking closely at the presence of bubbles in the hardened concrete. How to fill correctly? The fewer bubbles, the better the filling.

If there are some doubts that the technology for constructing a monolithic slab foundation has been violated, and the reliability of the slab is in question, then it is best to seek the help of specialists who check the base using a Schmidt hammer.

Foundation-slab construction technology was not violated, it should be:

• minimally porous, do not contain air inclusions;
• do not affect the soil layer, destroying it;
• dry, without various wet spots and deposits;
• exceed the perimeter of the house being built;
• smooth.

Important! If mistakes were made in construction, then it is best to seek advice from professionals who will help eliminate the flaws.

Photo

Part of the article, thanks to which it is much easier to make a monolithic slab foundation with your own hands: step-by-step photos of the foundation construction process are presented below.

Useful video

The video below clearly shows how to make a slab monolithic base:

conclusions

The slab type of base is very simple in design, but despite this, provides a very high level of reliability and stability. In addition, it is very convenient to build a monolithic slab foundation with your own hands, and quite economically.

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• Date: 08-08-2015
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• Rating: 33

One of the most common types of bases is. In most cases, this type of foundation is used on heterogeneous and floating soils. The foundation is monolithic design, which is not afraid of any changes in the soil.

A slab-type foundation is laid completely over the entire area of ​​the building, and not just under the walls.

A slab of this type will move with a private house, thereby protecting it from destructive effects. Experts consider this type of foundation to be the most reliable and stable.

Slab foundation: types and advantages

It is not always advisable to use strip foundation. Most often this is due to the existing properties of the soil on which construction is planned.

It is optimal to lay when the soil:

• subject to interseasonal excessive swelling;
• has high humidity;
• Groundwater was discovered in the upper layers of the soil.

This type of foundation has not only proven itself well in such conditions, but in some cases it may be the only opportunity to construct large buildings.

Required items:

• concrete;
• waterproofing material;
• nails;
• cement;
• level;
• sealant;
• fittings

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How is the foundation slab constructed?

The main difference between a foundation slab and a pile or strip foundation is its placement. It will need to be laid not under the walls of the building, but under the entire area of ​​a private house. The building must be installed on a reinforced concrete pad. That is why all ground movements will not harm the foundation or private house in any way.

The mass of the structure and slab is so high that it can withstand almost any temporary ground movement. If the pressure exceeds the design standards, the house will rise along with the slab, without any negative consequences.

Laying a slab foundation is much easier than building a strip foundation or installing screw piles. It is worth noting that the price of this type of foundation is not the lowest. The structure consists of monolithic concrete, which is reinforced with a reinforcing structure. The entire foundation is installed in a place that will need to be marked on the site in advance.

If there is no desire to fill a solid slab, and the soil is relatively dry and quite dense, you can use FL foundation slabs, which must be laid in a foundation pit. Laying them will provide a solid foundation.

Before laying the foundation, you will need to perform some calculations. This is done during the preparation of the project, but this action can also be done using special computer programs.

There is no point in giving an example, because one should take into account the values ​​​​that are regulated by SNiP 2.03.0184 “Reinforced concrete structures” and DBN V.2.1-10-2009 “Foundations and foundations of structures”. It is worth noting that in most cases, for a light one-story private house, you will need to pour a concrete base more than 30 cm thick, which must be reinforced with a mesh with cells of 20x20 cm. This mesh is laid out from metal rods with a cross-section of 12-16 mm.

Before installing the reinforcement, you will need to properly perform waterproofing, which can protect the concrete from negative impacts moisture during temperature changes in winter.

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Slab foundation construction technology

First of all, the top layer of soil more than 40-50 cm thick is removed. The layer will depend on the size of the building. The boundaries of the pit on each side must be 1 m larger than the future foundation. This will need to be done for the installation of formwork panels, which protect the poured concrete from cracking.

When the pit is prepared and all communication pipes are laid, it will be possible to begin backfilling the compensation cushion. The height of this pillow ranges from 25 to 30 cm. Everything will depend on the type of soil. The pillow must be thoroughly compacted.

If the soil is swampy or has high humidity, crushed stone will need to be added to the sand backfill to improve waterproofing properties.

Next, it will be possible to begin installing the formwork. Such a process will be no different from activities when working with concrete. It will be necessary to install limiting panels around the perimeter of the foundation being manufactured.

In most cases, shields can be made from waterproof plywood or wood. They will need to be securely fixed in place so as to prevent them from moving during the concrete pouring process.

For the formwork of a thick base slab, construction boards that are firmly anchored in the ground are best suited. Wooden beam it is necessary to lay it so that in the future it serves as a measure of the height at which fresh concrete can be poured evenly.

As soon as the formwork is ready, you will need to lay out the film for waterproofing. The bottom of the pit should not be covered. If a thick slab foundation is being made, it is necessary to insert the panels from the inside 15 cm up the formwork. The film is secured with nails. Next, a static calculation is performed and steel reinforcement is installed. Soils with high load-bearing capacity often require only structural reinforcement to connect with the foundation. To do this, install a steel grate at the top of the slab. In this case, it is necessary to pay attention to the correct side overlap. Most often, 30 cm will be enough. If the grate sag, it must be leveled using strapping wire.

You will need to place steel gratings on the lower struts. Next, a reinforcement cage is installed along the edge. It is quite difficult to bend reinforcing bars on your own, so it is better to entrust this task to a reinforcement supplier.

The upper steel grilles are placed on the following spacers. These structures should be made of different heights. With their help, it is necessary to fix the gap between the lower and upper layers of the steel grating. To ensure a stable position of the steel gratings, spacers will need to be installed in the form of continuous tracks. The distance between such tracks should be 1 m. At the end, the upper reinforcement is firmly tied with wire to the lower one. It is important to note that after concrete works There should be no visible metal on the entire surface.

Before pouring concrete, you need to think about grounding the base. To do this, you will need to make a closed ring from galvanized steel tape. This ring is built into the steel reinforcement or base of the outer side of the foundation. The connecting bars should be bent high at the corners where metal pipes and lightning rod connections are provided.

Concrete must be used exclusively grade M300 or higher. It is recommended to fill the entire volume in 1 day, so there is no need to resort to mixing yourself. Concrete must be ordered in a mixer of the appropriate volume. This will significantly reduce the time required for all necessary work and save your own strength. Concrete purchased from the factory is guaranteed to be manufactured in compliance with all existing technological standards.

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How to properly waterproof a foundation slab?

Excess moisture is the main enemy of the builder. Due to the fact that high-quality waterproofing of the foundation slab is not provided, quite often it is necessary to alter private houses and carry out repairs in them. Such problems often arise among inexperienced builders, but they can easily be avoided if you study this issue in detail in advance.

You should know what the lack of a reliable water barrier leads to. Water is aggressive to most building materials. The concrete from which the foundation is made is no exception. Concrete has a porous structure that can easily absorb water. Penetrating soil moisture contains impurities of mineral salts: chlorides, sulfates and bicarbonates. They crystallize in the pores of concrete, greatly increasing in volume. As a result, the array will be destroyed.

The opposite situation may also occur. Water will enter the pores of the concrete and begin to wash away salts from it, resulting in the destruction of this building material. Also, as a result of poor-quality waterproofing, the wall material will “pull” moisture from it. As a result, dampness may appear in the room, mold on the walls, damage to finishing materials and the need for new repairs.

In any building premises that have a basement, a mandatory step is to install a slab. It must be performed even if there is no underground water in the basement area.

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Methods for waterproofing a slab foundation

This problem can be solved in several ways. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages. The most common types today are the following:

1. Coating. This waterproofing is durable, gives good results, and is quite easy to use.
2. Penetrating. A more modern way of cutting off moisture. The difference between the method is that when applying waterproofing of this type, the composition will react with concrete, therefore, upon subsequent contact with moisture construction material crystallizes and seals all its pores.
3. Rolled. A method that has been used for quite a long time. The durability of this waterproofing is not too long.

The main problem in the construction of a foundation slab is the waterproofing of the structure in the lower part, because it has a large area. In most cases, such work can be done in 2 ways. It is possible to use coating and roll materials.

It should be noted that it is not recommended to use roofing felt for waterproofing. This rolled material used to be quite often used in construction. To do this, bitumen was applied to a cardboard base. Its durability is not very long, because the paper base quickly deteriorates, the material has low bending strength, and not the best resistance to low and high temperatures, ultraviolet radiation, etc. Bitumen, which is used in the production of roofing felt, does not have good elasticity and viscosity. As a result, the material will quickly crack and the waterproofing barrier will lose its tightness.

Modern materials for installing roll waterproofing are rubemast, stekloizol, etc. They are made on the basis of fiberglass and fiberglass. This gives them high strength. The bitumen with which the base is impregnated includes various modifying additives. That is why the material has become elastic, has good bending strength, and resistance to changes in low and high temperatures.