Building and Construction - new home poured basement & garage slab

Author

new home poured basement & garage slab

PatrickMcQuillen@gmail.com

2006-04-14, 6:21 pm

hey there, couple questions i am looking for some information on:

the floor in the basement is poured, i noticed there is a piece of
foam, about 2" wide, that is flush (for the most part) with the poured
floor that is against the outside walls. It actually rises about 1/2"
above the floor in one area and is not visible for some other sections
- is this common?
- what is it for?
- there is also a spot where there seams to be a chunk missing and has
some gravel resting in it.

the floor in the garage is also poured. It has the seams in the floor
for future cracking. i have not moved into the house yet & the cracks
are already developiing along the seams.
- Is this common to crack already?
- should i have this fixed?

Thank you for any help.

Budweiser

2006-04-14, 10:21 pm

<PatrickMcQuillen@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:114504XXXX.341870.263810@z34g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
> hey there, couple questions i am looking for some information on:
>
> the floor in the basement is poured, i noticed there is a piece of
> foam, about 2" wide, that is flush (for the most part) with the poured
> floor that is against the outside walls. It actually rises about 1/2"
> above the floor in one area and is not visible for some other sections
> - is this common?
> - what is it for?
> - there is also a spot where there seams to be a chunk missing and has
> some gravel resting in it.
>
> the floor in the garage is also poured. It has the seams in the floor
> for future cracking. i have not moved into the house yet & the cracks
> are already developiing along the seams.
> - Is this common to crack already?
> - should i have this fixed?
>
>
> Thank you for any help.
>

The foam between the slab and the walls is there as an expansion joint ,the
fact you can not see it in some places just means some grout has covered it
over --trim the excess to floor level if you wish.
The "seams" in your garaage slab are probably no more than day construction
joints /movement joints so it is pretty safe to ignore--it is not a
crack,just one of the properties of concrete during curing.

marson

2006-04-15, 12:21 am

do you have in floor heat in your basement? if so, the 2" foam would
serve as a thermal break between the floor and wall. 1/2" above the
floor? that is not unusual at all in a residential slab. getting the
level right without some very sophisticated and expensive tools is
difficult.

CWatters

2006-04-15, 7:21 pm

"Budweiser" <herethere@everywhere.com> wrote in message
news:H%W%f.30392$Ph2.13591@newsfe4-gui.ntli.net...
> The foam between the slab and the walls is there as an expansion joint
,the
> fact you can not see it in some places just means some grout has covered
it
> over --trim the excess to floor level if you wish.

I second that opinion. The foam is usually covered by a skirting board later
on

Budweiser

2006-04-15, 9:21 pm

"marson" <briankontio@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1145067822.991865.145200@g10g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
> do you have in floor heat in your basement? if so, the 2" foam would
> serve as a thermal break between the floor and wall. 1/2" above the
> floor? that is not unusual at all in a residential slab. getting the
> level right without some very sophisticated and expensive tools is
> difficult.
>

Even with floor heating,anything above the slab is not required.
The primary function will be as a movement/expansion joint---not as a
thermal break,however in some construction methods it can be used as one.
I appologise if my "wordage" upsets folks, However i am Civil Engineer by
trade based in the UK .and concrete is my "thing".
Maybe i "dumb down" my replies too much,my fault,but i want the original
poster to understand what i am saying.

marson

2006-04-15, 11:21 pm

here in the northern US it is not uncommon to find foam used as thermal
break, if the foundation walls are not insulated. of course i realize
that it does not have to be above the floor. even with your skill as
an engineer, i think you missed that the OP was asking if there was
anything wrong with it sticking above the floor. i'm guessing this is
just how it turned out...somewhat sloppy, but not atypical.

Budweiser

2006-04-16, 2:21 am

"marson" <briankontio@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1145150477.215645.277360@z34g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
> here in the northern US it is not uncommon to find foam used as thermal
> break, if the foundation walls are not insulated. of course i realize
> that it does not have to be above the floor. even with your skill as
> an engineer, i think you missed that the OP was asking if there was
> anything wrong with it sticking above the floor. i'm guessing this is
> just how it turned out...somewhat sloppy, but not atypical.
>

Valid point marson,
to the original poster
1--yes it is common
2--used as either an expansion joint or thermal break--in some designs it
can be both.
3- ignore the piece that is apparently missing,in an ideal world you would
not see any of it,if the gravel bothers you remove it.
4-The seams in the garage slab are not for future cracking,they are either
construction/day joints or designed movement joints.Without a picture and
design of the slab it is hard to make an assesment,but if it has not been
loaded and is as cast i would ignore it-after all it is only a garage
floor,not a structural element in the way you describe it..

is that a better answer?

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