How to Pour Concrete Footing
Whether you want to construct your own wall or have it built by a professional, it first needs a firm concrete footing. You can make a concrete footing by purchasing a few pieces of basic masonry equipment and following these steps. Plan to spend several hours laying the footing and another four days allowing it to set. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Strings
- Batterboards
- Sand
- Tamper
- Gravel
- Steel reinforcing
- Brick or stone
- Motor oil
- Shovel
- Wood scraps
- Plastic sheeting
Instructions
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1
Lay the footing with strings and batterboards as a guide for the trench. Make a line on the ground with taut string and cover it with a small amount of sand. Lift the string to use it as a guide for the forms.
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2
Use a tamper to level the bottom of the trench. Place the gravel base at the bottom of the trench. Make sure the tip of the gravel lies below the frostline of the area.
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3
Build a standard steel form using the batterboard strings as the guide. Support the steel reinforcing on pieces of brick or stone. Place the reinforcing approximately half of the foundation's thickness up from the bottom.
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4
Lubricate the form with motor oil. Pour the footing from one end of the form to the other, tamping it with the shovel. Run the shovel up and down along the edges of the forms to cover any gaps.
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5
Take the scrap piece of wood and screed the top of the footing to make it level. Work from one end of the footing to the other in a zigzag pattern. Even out high spots and fill gaps.
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6
Cure the footing for four days after the screeding is complete. Cover with plastic sheeting. Remove the forms on the fifth day.
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Comments
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codeman
Mar 08, 2009
You fail to mention some important information in building a proper footing:1- The footing must rest upon undisturbed soil or the soil must be compacted to 98% which is essentially full compaction.2- Proper footing dimensions are 30" wide x 12" deep.3- Steel reinforcing bar should be #44- Hooked J-bar anchors must be installed vertically every 4' 5- Gravel base must be 4" minimum6- If the soil saturation level is high enough, a drip-dry drainage system must be installed astride the footings to divert water away.7- A beveled 2x4 "key" supported overhead by 2x4 hangars every 4' must be nailed to the top of the form thereby creating a keyway in the footing. The beveled contour allows the key to be easily removed after the concrete has cured.8- Backfilling must be done in 12" lifts to allow for proper compaction. -
codeman
Mar 08, 2009
You fail to mention some important information in building a proper footing:1- The footing must rest upon undisturbed soil or the soil must be compacted to 98% which is essentially full compaction.2- Proper footing dimensions are 30" wide x 12" deep.3- Steel reinforcing bar should be #44- Hooked J-bar anchors must be installed vertically every 4' 5- Gravel base must be 4" minimum6- If the soil saturation level is high enough, a drip-dry drainage system must be installed astride the footings to divert water away.7- A beveled 2x4 "key" supported overhead by 2x4 hangars every 4' must be nailed to the top of the form thereby creating a keyway in the footing. The beveled contour allows the key to be easily removed after the concrete has cured.8- Backfilling must be done in 12" lifts to allow for proper compaction.
