Features of a strip foundation for a garage and step-by-step instructions for construction

Constructing a garage is a useful addition to any home since it provides useful space for storage, tools, and automobiles. The foundation is one of the most important parts of building a strong and long-lasting garage. A strip foundation is the most robust and dependable type of foundation available.

A strip foundation, sometimes referred to as a continuous foundation, consists of a continuous concrete strip placed beneath the garage’s load-bearing walls. Because this kind of foundation can distribute the weight of the building evenly and keeps it from settling or shifting over time, it is perfect for garages. It works especially well in places with stable soil conditions.

This post will examine the characteristics of a strip foundation for a garage, emphasizing its advantages and reasons for being the best option. We’ll also give you detailed instructions to help you through the building process. Whether you are an experienced do-it-yourselfer or a novice, this guide attempts to simplify and simplify the process.

We’ll cover every crucial step, from setting up the location and creating the necessary foundation to pouring the concrete and making sure it cures properly. You’ll be able to construct a sturdy foundation that will hold up your garage for many years if you follow these instructions.

Feature	Description
Purpose	A strip foundation provides a solid base for a garage, distributing the load evenly to prevent settling.
Design	It consists of a continuous strip of concrete that runs along the perimeter of the garage.
Excavation	Dig a trench around the garage site to the required depth and width.
Formwork	Set up wooden or metal forms to shape the concrete in the trench.
Reinforcement	Place steel rebar or mesh inside the trench to strengthen the concrete.
Concrete Pouring	Pour concrete into the trench, ensuring it fills all gaps and covers the reinforcement.
Curing	Allow the concrete to cure for several days to achieve full strength.
Inspection	Check the foundation for any cracks or issues once it has fully set.

When should you use this type of base??

At the base of the foundation, the car box generates a load that is transferred to the ground. This pressure is resisted by the soil in turn.

The structure is stable as long as the soil resistance force is greater than the weight of the garage. The structure will start to settle if the circumstances are reversed.

The walls will start to fracture and eventually collapse due to this uneven process.

The adverse impact of frost heaving on soils extends to garage structures. In this instance, the frozen soil starts to compress the foundation upward, and the garage walls may also become unstable and incapable of supporting any weight due to the uneven force of the pushing forces.

The foundation is built as a monolithic strip to shield the garage box’s base from damaging forces. Both shallow and deep versions are made. The groundwater table is either above or below the sole. This holds true for the freezing depth of soil as well.

Advantages of LF

Comparing building support strips to other foundation types reveals numerous benefits, including:

• the foundation is able to maintain its load-bearing capacity and integrity for 2 centuries;
• LF forms a strong base that can withstand heavy loads. This allows you to build garages not only from aerated concrete, but from brick, heavy blocks using metal structures;
• foundations in the form of a strip are erected on almost any soil foundation. The exception is deep swampy and heaving soils;
• despite the high cost of 1 m 3 of monolithic reinforced concrete, it is profitable to build a strip foundation due to the low volume of materials consumed for the garage box;
• unlike point supports (column and screw foundations), LF allows you to arrange basements or inspection pits.

Gas block-based garage box:

Kinds

The foundation walls of the LF are laid out using prefabricated reinforced concrete, or concrete is poured into formwork that has reinforcement.

Strip foundation comes in two varieties as a result:

Made

Like any building structure, precast concrete foundations have benefits and drawbacks. Strip foundations made of reinforced concrete are very common.

This is because of the following benefits:

• the speed of construction of the garage base occurs due to the laying of supporting walls from large foundation blocks and pillows;
• reduction of construction time is influenced by the absence of wet processes. There is no need to wait a month for the monolith to gain bearing capacity;
• installation of a prefabricated foundation is carried out at any time of the year;
• no need to waste materials and time on assembling/dismantling formwork and knitting reinforced frames.

In addition to the indisputable benefits, the following drawbacks should be mentioned:

• the costs of constructing a prefabricated LF may be significantly higher than the cost of a poured foundation;
• installation of reinforced concrete blocks can only be carried out using lifting equipment (usually a truck crane is rented for this);
• interblock seams require careful sealing with mortar and high-quality waterproofing.

Jellied

One of the most popular styles of garage foundations is the strip monolithic reinforced concrete foundation.

Benefits of shallow LF

1. The reliability and strength of the LF justifies the costs of excavation work, laying reinforced frames, installing and dismantling formwork, preparing and pouring liquid concrete.
2. Allows you to build a garage from brick, gas and cinder blocks, as well as foam concrete.
3. The simplicity of the design of a monolithic foundation allows you to do without the use of expensive construction equipment.

In addition to its benefits, monolithic tape has two main drawbacks.

1. Large time costs for excavation work, formwork construction, reinforcement and concrete hardening (about 1 month).
2. It is impossible to construct a foundation in the cold season. Heating concrete in winter will significantly affect the increase in the estimated cost of building a garage.

For a garage, a strip foundation that is either deeply or shallowly laid is not utilized. This is the strip foundation’s poor bearing capacity in the first instance. The foundation in the second scenario may be substantially more expensive than the remainder of the building.

Section: Shallow strip foundation

Expert tips on creating a shallow strip foundation by hand are provided in the video:

How to calculate the depth?

The following variables are used to calculate the strip foundation’s base depth:

• composition of the soil base;
• calculated soil resistance;
• load on the foundation;
• groundwater level and soil freezing depth.

Soil base composition

Soils are classified into three groups based on their bearing capacity: rocky, dense, and weak bases. Peaty, marshy, and clayey soils are examples of weak soils.

On them, LFs are not erected. Cohesive rocks that are highly resistant to heaving are examples of dense bases.

The best bases are found in rocky soils.

Calculated soil resistance

In kg/cm2, this parameter is measured. The local department of architecture and land management can provide information on the value of soil resistance in relation to the construction site.

The local geological exploration service can identify this indicator if, for some reason, official soil resistance data cannot be used.

Foundation load

The combined weight of the garage’s walls, floor slabs, metal beams, roof, vehicle, and snow load is this amount.

Groundwater level and soil freezing depth

Two metrics are extracted from the site’s vertical survey. Which, as previously indicated, is available for pickup from the same neighborhood architecture department. Drilling experiments is also used to measure the depth at which soil freezes in the winter and the groundwater level.

For instance, 400 mm will be the ideal depth to lay the strip foundation’s base when the soil freezing depth is 300 mm and the groundwater level is 800 mm.

The following table shows the degree of foundation depth based on soil type:

How to calculate the dimensions of the tape?

The foundation’s length, height, and width are known as its LF dimensions. Here is how they are defined.

Length

The garage plan is used to calculate the length of the monolithic tape. In the event that the building has a partition, a tape is also positioned underneath it, the length of which is added to the LF’s overall measurement.

Width

If a developer intends to construct brick walls with a brick thickness of 1.5 (380 mm), for instance, 420 mm will be the ideal foundation width. That is, the tape should extend at least 20 mm on each side of the wall.

Height

The vertical size of the base (the portion of the LF that is above ground) and the depth of the base make up the height of the strip foundation. Generally, the plinth is 150–200 mm above the ground. In other words, the height of the tape will be 500 mm when the laying depth is 300 mm.

Step-by-step instructions for constructing a monolithic slab

To prepare a shallow foundation for a garage, gather the following supplies and tools:.

Instruments:

• entrenching equipment (shovels, picks and crowbar);
• wheelbarrow;
• vibrator;
• concrete mixer;
• laser level;
• hammer, cord, axe;
• buckets.

Resources:

• crushed stone; sand, cement;
• water;
• fittings;
• boards, beams, pegs;
• geotextile or PVC film;
• nails.

The steps involved in building a monolithic LF are as follows:

1. Garage plan transported to the construction site. Marking is done using a cord and pegs. The correctness of the rectangle is checked by measuring the diagonals between the opposite corners of the marking.
2. Width Between the cords, trenches are dug to a depth of 300 mm greater than the design base of the foundation. This is done to construct a crushed stone-sand cushion.
3. Horizontal trenches are controlled with a laser level and a staff.
4. pillow made of crushed stone and sand with a thickness of 150 mm per layer. The sand is spilled with water and compacted with a handy device. To prevent the walls of the trenches from crumbling, they are made at a slope. Geotextiles are laid at the bottom, its edges are turned up, secured to the ground with wood chips or nails. If this is not done, the crumbled soil may get into the liquid concrete, which should absolutely not be allowed.
5. Installing formwork from knocked down boards. Every 300 – 400 mm, stops and spacers are installed from timber. The inner surface of the formwork is covered with PVC film or geotextile.
6. Reinforced frame knitted from three upper and three lower horizontal rods ø 8 – 10 mm of a periodic profile, fastening them together with transverse connections from smooth reinforcement ø 6 mm and knitting wire. The reinforcement frame is installed in such a way that the bottom clearance is at least 60 mm, on the sides the distance to the formwork must be at least 30 mm. The same distance should remain to the calculated height of the tape. Such measures are necessary to protect the reinforced frame from corrosion.
7. After installation reinforcement is filled with concrete mortar formwork. It should be poured in layers 150 mm thick and compacted with a vibrator.
8. Concrete surface smooth with grout or trowel. Then the foundation is covered with film. This is done in order to protect the concrete from drying out in hot weather and from rain in bad weather.
9. After 30 days the formwork is dismantled and the side surfaces of the LF are covered with waterproofing.
10. Backfilling is carried out.

Do-it-yourself construction of a LF from prefabricated reinforced concrete

Basement-contained garages are built using foundation blocks. Installation must be done at least two meters below the surface. You will need construction equipment, such as an excavator, a truck crane, and a mortar mixer, to install the blocks.

The LF is constructed in the following manner.

1. The boundaries of the pit are marked on the site.
2. An excavator excavates soil to the design level.
3. Crushed stone and sand are laid followed by compaction.
4. Foundation blocks are installed using a truck crane.
5. Interblock seams are filled with mortar.
6. From the outside, the foundation is covered with bitumen mastic.
7. Backfilling of the external sinuses of the pit is carried out.
8. The horizontal surface of the tape is leveled with a cement screed.

Basic mistakes and tips

The following list demonstrates errors that can occur during the design and construction of strip foundations:

1. They do not take into account the weak design resistance of the soil foundation, as a result of which the garage sags unevenly. This leads to the destruction of the supporting structures of the building.
2. Poorly done waterproofing destroys the concrete base of the garage box. It is necessary to remove the soil on the sides of the tape and apply a new high-quality coating.
3. Construction of a belt on heaving soil. If the layer is not very thick, it should be removed.
4. Incorrectly calculated foundation depth. The garage will either sink or maybe be pushed out of the ground. The error can only be corrected by building a new foundation.

Building a strip foundation for your garage is a sensible and reliable decision that will guarantee your building stays sturdy and stable for many years to come. By evenly distributing the weight, this kind of foundation creates a sturdy base that can withstand both the weight of your car and the demands of regular use.

You can confidently take on this project if you adhere to the detailed instructions. A successful build requires careful execution, precise measurements, and good planning. Strong and dependable foundations are the product of careful site preparation, precise foundation laying, and sufficient curing times.

Recall that paying close attention to detail at every stage of building will pay off in the end. Every stage of the process, from formwork and excavation to concrete pouring and finishing touches, adds to the overall integrity of your garage. You can build a foundation that not only satisfies your needs but also endures over time with perseverance and hard work.

For a garage to have a stable and long-lasting base, building a strip foundation requires meticulous planning and execution. Because of its dependability and affordability, this kind of foundation—which is distinguished by a continuous strip of concrete supporting the load-bearing walls—is a popular option. We’ll walk you through the characteristics of a strip foundation in this post, along with detailed construction instructions that will guarantee your garage is sturdy for many years to come. We’ll cover everything from site preparation and excavation to concrete pouring and finishing touches.

Video on the topic

Foundation without formwork. Pouring the foundation without formwork. Features of a foundation without formwork.