STRIP FOUNDATIONS FOR HOUSES

G. Barnbrook BSc, CEng, MICE, ACIArb

The construction of strip foundations - whether strip footings or trench fill - is generally a straightforward operation. However, in some circumstances and particularly in hazardous soils, special care must be taken. This Guide points out where this special care is needed and offers some practical hints on construction. The section on the correct mix to specify has been updated.

For more detailed information, including design guidance, refer to BeA publication 48.048: House foundations for the builder and building designer.

STRIP FOOTINGS

TRENCH FILL

TRENCH SIZE

Excavate at least to the depths and widths shown in the specification or on the drawing for the job.

Finished ground level \l

._-_- ..... _

•

TRENCH EXCAVATION AND FILL ON SLOPING SITES

Trenches must always be excavated vertically. This means that on sloping sites. excavators must be level before trenches are dug across the slope. to avoid trench fill being out-of-vertical. Non-vertical foundations could start to rotate when loaded. causing movement of walls.

Vertical

SAFETY

Remember the safety code for excavation work and follow the Construction (General Provisions) Regulations 1961. Provide support to the excavation sides to prevent danger to personnel in the trench from falling earth or other materials. This usually means that shoring must be provided in trenches over 1.2 m deep where strip footings are used. The type of shoring must be chosen to suit the ground conditions.

Where trench fill is used, and where no one will normally enter the trench. shoring is not usually required. (The bottom of most trenches can be prodded with a steel bar from ground level to check the uniformity of the soil for bearing capacity.)

SOFT SPOTS

Where an inspection of the trench base is necessary at particular points in trenches deeper than about 1.2 m, quickly installed hand-operated hydraulic 'speedy' shoring is available to allow safe access. The equipment is also useful if some soil falls into deeper trenches and must be removed by hand.

If a soft spot is found in the trench run, remove the soft soil and refill. preferably with a lean concrete (1 part cement: 12 parts aggregate).

Ground level \l

2

CLAY SOILS

Firm clay over soft. Do not over-dig where a finn clay crust (possibly I or 2 m deep) overlies generally softer clay. The deeper the strip into the crust, the higher the stress will be in the softer soil, leading to greater settlement.

Soft clay

Firm clay crust

Keep this dimension as large

as possible

Effects of weather. As soon as a trench is excavated in clay soil, place the strip footing or trench fill concrete straight away (preferably on the same day) to avoid the clay base either drying out or becoming wet.

Moisture driven out: a foundation placed on a dried clay base may suffer heave movement later when the clay takes up moisture and swells

Over-wetting: a foundation placed on a swollen clay base will settle later as the clay compresses under the house load

If delay does occur in concreting, and the clay base dries out or becomes wet, the trench must be 'bottomed out'. i.e, dug back 75 mm at least to clay of original moisture content - then concreted immediately.

Keeping the sides straight. The sides of trench fill concrete in clay soil should be kept vertical at the top section.

Keep corners sq uare at

top of foundation section. Do not form 'mushroom head' by concreting higher, against rounded trench edges

If the top edges of the trench sides collapse during excavation. the trench fill concrete level must be kept down to maintain vertical sides. Alternatively. formwork can be used to produce higher vertical sides if this is essential at certain points.

If formwork is not used, keep the top of the concrete down to this level, and build the wall from there

Remember that in some clay soils with a high shrinkage potential. concrete in the wider top section of a trench would increase the risk of clay heave problems while the foundations remain without the weight of the house on them - this

is because swelling clay would be able to exert upward thrust against the underside of any sideways-projecting concrete.

Bucket marks. When a trench is excavated in clay soils. the base often has some tooth marks made in it by the excavator bucket. Provided that the clay soil between the tooth marks is not loose in the trench base. there is no need to 'bottom-out' the trench by hand. However. if there is any loose soil it must be removed.

3

DEPTH IN WET SANDY OR GRAVEL SOILS

In these types of soil. do not excavate unnecessarily deep. You must dig down to a level where bearing capacity is satisfactory. but a depth of 350 mm is often sufficient to allow removal of surface vegetable soil. However. keep drain trenches well away from shallow foundations (see page 7).

Remember that the bearing capacity of sand and gravel soils near or below ground water level can be as little as half that of the soil well above ground water level. Keep foundations in wet granular soils as high as possible.

Finished ground level '1

Try to keep this dimension larger than the foundation width

WATER PROBLEMS

Do not pour concrete into standing or flowing water in a trench. Deal with a water problem during excavation - for example. by using pipes to connect up temporarily interrupted field drains. However. site drainage should finally be permanently routed around and away from a house.

SETTING-OUT

Where strip footings or trench fill are narrow

- e.g. only 450 mm wide - set out the foundation accurately to avoid the house wall being more than about 25 mm off centre line.

t wall

It foundation

With narrower trench fill, even greater care must be taken to produce accurate setting-out. Always aim to have trench fill at least 150 mm wider than the wall to be built on it to allow for some small margin of error in setting-out and still have the wall approximately central on the foundation.

Wall width W

~~~~~I~~~t W + 150 mm min.

>-==7/11 (but total width

depends on wall load, soil conditions and structure type)

MARKING THE TOP LEVEL

Strip footings. For strip footings. drive short steel pins into the trench bottom to establish the top of the concrete.

r Concrete level for stnp

_ footing

4

Trench fiU. For trench fill, there are usually only about four courses of brickwork, or one or two courses of blockwork, above the trench fill concrete up to damp-proof course, so it is important to level the concrete top accurately. Establish the concrete top level using long steel pins in the trench bottom or by using short horizontal pins in the trench sides.

READY-MIXED CONCRETE

The concrete used in strip foundations is often supplied from ready-mixed concrete companies. A designated mix, GEN 3, to British Standard 5328, should be ordered. This will comply with the requirements of most specifying authorities, and of the Building Regulations, for normal non-aggressive soils.

Concrete of this type is reasonably self-compacting as poured and levelled and would not require additional compaction in normal circumstances.

Do not add extra unauthorized water to the concrete on site. This will make the concrete weaker.

ACCESS

Temporary access. If easier placing of concrete is required, make a good access to both sides of the house to allow several points of discharge into the trenches.

Temporary access

_J _

I I I I I I I I ,

I I ,

,

----------------------~'

Superplasticized concrete. Where access is very difficult, superplasticized or 'flowing' concrete (containing a special admixture to make the concrete flow) can be supplied to allow placing from only one point in the trench with little or no labour.

Pumped concrete. Alternatively, a lorrymounted pump can deliver concrete easily across inaccessible parts

of a site and place

it where required.

D

Both methods are particularly useful for trench fill, where greater quantities of concrete are used than for strip footings.

5

DAYWORK JOINTS

The strtp foundations of one house or terrace block should be completed in one pour, wherever possible, to avoid daywork joints. If a daywork joint becomes unavoidable. e.g. because of concrete supply break-down, finish the first pour using one of the methods described below. (An Engineer can advise you which is the best method to use in any particular case.)

Method A. Finish with an edge as near vertical as possible, using formwork if necessary and keeping the vertical face of the concrete at the joint either rough or indented.

Expanded metal

Method A for trench fill

Expanded •.. metal

Method A for strip footings

Method B. A preferable alternative with trench fill in clay soils, or in soils where higher than normal differential settlement may occur, is to form a wedge-shaped joint using corrugated sheet.

Pegs at - ground level

Method C. The best protection against differential settlement at a joint is provided by installing some horizontal steel dowel bars.

'Four bars 16 or 20 mm diameter and 0.9 m long, with half their length left protruding. For concrete depth over 1 m, increase the number of bars proportionally.

Always keep a few suitable dowel bars and some expanded metal or corrugated sheet available on site for emergency daywork joints in foundations.

BRICKWORK REINFORCEMENT

Brickwork reinforcement may sometimes be specified for walls above daywork joints. This should be installed as shown.

DPC

Daywork joint ------1

Concrete foundation

6

STEPS IN LEVEL ON SLOPING SITES

On sloping sites, it is necessary to follow the rules for steps in strip footings given in the Building Regulations (e.g. Approved Document A for England and Wales).

Strip footings. The step height, h, should not be greater than the concrete thickness, t. The length of lap at the step should be at least equal to 2 x h, or t or 300 mm, whichever is greatest.

h

(not greater than t)

Lap at least

2 x h or 300 mm. whichever is greatest

Trench fill. The Building Regulations do not specifically deal with steps in trench fill foundations. The following guidelines are given in BS 8103:

- For trench fill less than 500 mm deep, use the rules given above for strip footings.

- For trench flll 500 mm deep or more, the step should not be greater than the concrete thickness, t. The length of lap at the step should be at least 1 m or twice the step height, h, whichever is greater.

t = 500 mm or more

-t

Lap at least 1 m or 2 x h, whichever

is greater

DRAINS AND OTHER SERVICES

Services through the house sub-structure. In the case of a strip footing (below left), some of the bricks or blocks in the wall have to be cut out. With trench fill (below right), a pipe, duct or box is fixed into the trench before the concrete is placed. The duct should be sensibly larger than the drain or service to be installed, and positioned with reasonable accuracy.

Strip tooting

Trench fill

Service trenches. Beware of weakening the

soil support to a foundation by digging trenches adjacent to it. The depth, d, should be large enough for L to exceed h.

For further reading see back cover.

7

BeA Guide: Strip foundations for houses

CVSfB

.(16.4). q4 •

G. Barnbrook

UDC 69.021.15:624.15

BRITISH CEMENT ASSOCIATION PUBLICATION 48.047

FURTHER READING

BARNBROOK, G. House foundations for the builder and building designer. C&CA (now BCA), Wexharn Springs (now Crowthorne), 1981. 36 pp.

(Ref. 48.048)

HMSo. Construction (General Provisions) Regulations. Statutory Instrument 1961, no. 1580. HMSO, London. 16 pp.

BRITISH STANDARDS INSTITUTION.

BS 8103: Structural design of low-rise buildings.

Part 1: 1986. Code of practice for stability, site investigation, foundations and ground floor slabs for housing.

BSI, Milton Keynes, 1986.28 pp.

coii@rete

When Portland cement is mixed with water, or even becomes damp, alkalis are released which can be harmful to the skin. The effect depends on the length of contact, any abrasion, the individual, and the part of the body involved. Suitable protective clothing should be worn. If eyes are affected they should be washed out without delay and medical attention sought.

Many construction activities are potentially dangerous so care is needed at all times. Current legislation requires all persons to consider the effects of their actions or lack of action on the health and safety of themselves and others. Advice on safety legislation may be obtained from any of the area offices of the Health and Safety Executive.

48.047

First published 1980. Second edition 1981. Reprinted with minor revisions 1993. ISBN 072101251 5

ISSN 0143-6880

Price Group B

© British Cement Association 1 993

British Cement Association Century House, Telford Avenue, Crowthorne, Berks RG11 6YS Telephone: (0344) 762676 Fax: (0344) 761214

All advice or information from the British Cement Association is intended for those who will evaluate the significance and limitations of its contents and take responsibility for its use and application. No liability (including that for negligence) for any loss resulting from such advice or information is accepted. Readers should note that all BCA publications are subject to revision from time to time and should therefore ensure that they are in possession of the latest version.