# Footing requirements for a walkout Basement



## concretemasonry (Oct 10, 2006)

What part of the world are you in? - Climate, code, geography, etc.

I am sure you have some local code requirements that your designer must comply with. the codes are to protect you from yourself. The inspection is to protect you from the contractor and make sure everything is done right. Without a design and permit, you could take a big hit when you go to sell.

Do you have any knowledge of the soil condition, soil type and bearing capacity?

If you are going with ICFs, make sure you hire someone to approve the stacking and bracing and the help with the pumping since ICFs are not really a DIY job since the cost of a problem is very big.

Dick


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## jomama45 (Nov 13, 2008)

WARNING: Long reply :laughing:




Jameson1 said:


> I am planning on building my house early next spring. I am going to do the escalating (excavating) and pour the footings my self. I live on a sloped terrain and will have a walkout basement. My question is, i am planing on digging down 4 foot all the way around the perimeter of the house even along the back wall that will be 8-9 foot from the surface to place the footing. I am planning on doing this to have stability all the way around the house with one continuous footing.
> 
> It may appear to yourself that this method is far stronger, but stepped footings aren't the weak point in this construction. The wall strength & anchorment between footing & wall (especially in ICF foundations) are far more critical areas.
> 
> ...


 
I would not for a few reasons. Most importantly, you lose the 3-4" insurance policy provided by the floor when it comes to drainage & ground water control. Normally, the floor is a very important element to a foundation as it "locks" the base of the foundation wall into place. Not so in an ICF wall though, as they need far more dowels into the footing to tie the wall into. If you insist on going this direction, you will surely need to place a product like "waterstop" in place to help the wall/footing/floor joint from continuous leakage.

IMO, it's not as easy as one would think to simply dig the hole perfect (easpecially if your not an expert excavator) & pour it full of concrete. We cant even do it around here w/o placing foam, sacrificial plywood, etc... on each side of the pour to provide a smooth, uniform surface to fight frost heave & picking. Now fiqure that the footing has to be 4" wider than the wall MINIMUM, & your footing/frostwall is now 20" wide to play it safe. You're wasting a lot of money on concrete for little to no gain. And most importantly, trying to put in place some kind of makeshift form system on & in ground with no solid material to brace to with mass amounts of concrete pressure isn't easy by any means. It is absolutely of the most importance that the footing be flat & level when using ICF's or you're going to have some headaches on the foundation walls. Block & poured walls are much easier to work on with less than stellar footings.

IMO, just the actual weight added to the soil bearing from the excess concrete involved in this method is actually a negative. You would be much farther ahead with a 8-12" thick spread footing with a 20-24" width & continuous rebar through the footing. You may need to have someone run the numbers for your specific application. There's nothing wrong with stepping the footings up (or down) for frost protection. You can use block, poured wall, an Ivany block system (block with revisions to accept rebar & concrete fill), or even a wider ICF form if you want for the area around the full exposure that requires frost protedtion. This method is completly acceptable & has been done for decades successfully.

I would suggest studying the install procedures for the ICF assembly as well as more conventional foundation const. in your area to see what the norm is. I wouldn't sway too far from conventional thought & process when it comes to foundations. It's fairly simple & effective and there's not much room to "re-invent the wheel" in typical foundations. That will only cause excess headaches & wasting of money & time.

Best of luck. :thumbsup:


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