STRIP

FOUNDATIONS
FOR
HOUSES
G. Barnbrook
BSc,
CEng,
MICE,
ACIArb
This
document
LtaS
8
pages
J
The
construction of
strip
foundations
-
whether
strip
footings
or trench fifi
-
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
BCA
publication
48.048: House
foundations for the builder and
building designer.
STRIP
FOOTINGS
TRENCH FILL
I
LJ
L1
TRENCH SIZE
Excavate at
least to the
depths
and
widths shown
in the
specification
or on the
drawing
for the
job.
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.
2
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
faffing
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 ifil
is
used, and
where no one wifi
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 unifor-
mity
of the soil for
bearing
capacity.)
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
reffil,
preferably
with a lean concrete
(1
part
cement: 12
parts
aggregate).
Ground level
Finished
ground
level
V
SOFT SPOTS
CLAY SOILS
Firm
clay
over
soft. Do not
over-dig
where a finn
clay
crust
(possibly
1 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.
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.
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.
3
Keeping
the
sides
straight.
The
sides of trench
fill
concrete in
clay
soil should
be
kept
vertical at
the
top
section.
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 ii this is
essential at certain
points.
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.
Keep
this
dimension
as
large
as
possible
Firm
clay
crust
Soft
clay
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
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.
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.
maximum
With narrower
trench
ifil,
even
greater
care must
be
taken to
produce
accurate
setting-out.
Always
aim to have trench ifil 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 stifi have the
wall
approximately
central on the foundation.
Strip
footings.
For
strip footings,
drive
short steel
pins
into
the trench bottom to establish
the
top
of
the concrete.
350 mm mm.
Try
to
keep
this
dimension
larger
than
the foundation width
tj
foundation
Wall width W

W + 150 mm mm.
(but
total width
depends
on wall
load,
soil conditions
and
structure
type)
MARKING THE
TOP LEVEL
4
Trench fill. For
trench
fill,
there are
usually only
about
four courses of
brickwork,
or
one or two
courses of
blockwork,
above the trench
ff1 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
speci1ring
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.
5
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.
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
lorry-
mounted
pump
can
deliver
concrete
easily
across
inaccessible
parts
of a site
and
place
it
where
required.
Both methods are
particularly
useful for trench
fill,
where
greater quantities
of concrete are used than
for
strip
footings.
Ready-mixed
concrete for
strip
foundations
For normal
ground
conditions: Order
Designated
mix GEN 3
20 mm
aggregate
75
mm
slump
for
strip footings,
or
125 mm
slump
for trench fill
For
aggressive
ground
conditions,
e.g.
sulfate. or
acidic soil.: Order
A
higher-grade designed
mix with
possibly
a
different cement
type
Ask the
Engineer
for
guidance.
(See
BCA
publication
48.048)
DAYWORK JOINTS
The
strip
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, fmish 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
necessasy
and
keeping
the vertical face of
the concrete at the
joint
either
rough
or
indented.
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.
6
Method C. The best
protection
against
differential
setfiement at a
joint
is
provided
by installing
some
horizontal steel dowel
bars.
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.
..s...
500 mm 500 mm
TL
U
TiETJI ii
I[
Till
l[ilL IL
lET
Pegs
at
ground
level
Timber form
drilled for bars
(optional:
depends
on area of
expanded
metal
to be
supported)
Dowel
bars
Pegs
at
ground
level
ps
.
Pegs
in
trench base
Expanded
metal
Timbor form
(oponal)
Expanded __________
metal
f(n
- -,
17- '.
"
Method A
for
strip footings
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.
Pegs
at
ground
level
DPC
_____________________________________
Stainless steel
_____________________
brick
reinforcement
__________
in
both wall leaves
Daywork lox1t
Concrete foundation
H
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.
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 fill 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.
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.
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
h
(not
greater
than
t)
Lap
at least
2 x h or
300
mm.
whichever is
greatest
Ship
footing
Trench fill
h
(not
greater
than
t)
Lap
at least 1 m or
2 x
h,
whichever
is
greater