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Precast Concrete Foundation Installation

Bob Vila meets with Jim Costello from Superior Walls of America to discuss the difference between precast panels delivered to the site and a traditional poured concrete foundation. The precast panel is made of an outside shell wall of high strength concrete combined with rebar reinforced concrete pillars. The ten-inch thick pillars give a look similar to a traditional stud wall with Styrofoam insulation. Pressure treated furring strips attached to the pillars make drywall or paneling easy to attach. The panels have an R factor, the measure of a materials resistance to the passage of heat, of 5 (concrete block has an R factor of about 2). Polyurethane caulk with special concrete adhesives is added between each panel to insure a tight seal. The panels are attached to each other and the base with pre-installed saddle bolts. A typical home�s installation takes about five hours and without having to wait for the foundation to set or dry, contractors can begin framing immediately. The walls are guaranteed for 15 years compared to poured concrete walls, which generally have a warranty of one year.

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Advantages of a Precast Foundation System

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Precast Concrete Foundation Installation

computer-generated transcript - may not be 100% accurate

" Jim Costello is with us from superior walls hey -- this is. Quite a moment because they -- people are used to watching a foundation. Kind of get stripped a few days after he gets poured. Concrete trucks all over the place. This is such a clean simple approach how do they compare I mean how does this compare to a traditional foundation well this is. Cast in a factory in and it's cast in a horizontal position. And using high strength concrete. So it's much stronger than traditional foundation. And it's much more hurt and mentally stable but it's only a couple of inches thick. Well -- a couple of inches thick for the law itself the structural members is ten and a quarter it all right and it incorporates. Steel or reinforcing rods are reinforcing steel rebar in each stud but really it. Concrete version of a stud Wall Street. At the actual blue stuff that we're seeing obviously is rigid insulation that's Dow styrofoam OK so it comes with an. Right it has. You can't just buy these off the shelf though right it has to be engineered and designed for a specific house location yes it's made individually for each home. And it's so it's pre engineered for one and two family residential use but it's designed then for each particular house. Any dimension you need right you can't just go out and buy panels and string them all together no that's correct it's made individually okay. Now Jim this this next panel that's coming in is a mitered corner what's the material that he's putting it -- the type of adhesive."

" It's day out polyurethane sealant Bob it's specially formulated for application to our type of concrete. And its. It's he uses a bead on the exterior as you just saw him just put on. And then after the panel is set to be an additional bead to the very outside and one to the inside. What is it about this concrete that needs this special type of product well we use -- 5000. PSI. Concrete mix and it's as water cement ratio of of point four Phillips the high strength mix and it has some characteristics that we've specialized this caulk to meet. So Jim this is kind of one of the key panels this will actually have. Patio doors installed in the center of it right yes that's correct good and now we've seen the adhesive go down on the bottom and in the corner but -- What's the actual fastening process I mean how do these things do they get bolted together yes they do when that's when the panelist guests in the factory there's an embedded. Saddle bolt assembly that's embedded in the of the lower bond beam and the upper bond beam and then there's a half inch diameter bolt that. That bolts them both together terrific now this what has been laid on its side and it looks for all the world like just -- big wide sidewalk in Los Angeles or someplace yes. I'm amazed the strength and it just it's only -- right the shell as an inch and three quarters on the shelf yeah but the overall structure is ten and a quarter. Okay let's look at it where it's standing up over years -- we get a better idea of that."

" The overall shell because of cities. Studs gets to be that dimension right that's correct. Right it's a concrete stud. And it has a wood. A wood nailer here on the face wood wood has nothing to do with a structural integrity that's just furring -- nailing that's right or the next applications in here whether it's drywall or whatever exactly. And this is that 500 pound. 5000 PSI PSI steel reinforced concrete OK -- Amazing now do you ever have to worry about settlement. Well settlement is not anymore an issue with this system them with any concrete wall system. So you do have to be concerned about what your soils are but it's not it's not a problem. Different than any other concrete wall. What about worrying about them traveled trying to go lateral you know. That's a good question Bob because there's soil pressure on the outside in a basement and this is a very rigid wall. And you need to connect it correctly for the top of the wall to the floor system in order that the soil doesn't push the wall it. Sure but so it are very specific directions for the contractor to connect that floor system to the top of the -- and the key is making sure you've created a box. That's correct -- look over here at the corner where they're putting down another. Okay this is the next to the last section for this main part of the house Jim and it's the one wall that's gonna be retaining. Soil is because of the grade sloping off the other sides are kind of open. Yes Bob that's right so -- as the challenging condition right that's correct the Wallace fully engineered to withstand the backfill pressure. But it's important -- in the for the floor and properly fasten the floor system of the house above. In order to make a rigid box all right so we won't be back building until that point that's right yes. I haven't seen anybody put a put a level opted to any of these to make sure their mom yeah a lot of faith in the system -- It's done they actually have been checking for for the panel being level. Left -- right as they go OK but it's a self closing box in his. That computer design and made -- steel forms and what about making sure it's where that you have tomorrow about them. After they set them they do square the corners so they will they will continue to check the corners square and big -- the tape from corner to corner. Yes that's okay. Two more bolts and they're done with this or two more bolts and we've got a box that sir thanks him thinking about."

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