Residential Foundation Recommendation
Residential Foundation Recommendation
(OP)
I am currently a CIVE E.I.T. with work experience in the retail commercial sector. I am about to start building my new residence. I am having a really hard time trying to decide the type of foundation to put under my residence.
My lot is in Montgomery County, Texas, which is north of Houston. The lot has silty clay with a mixture of iron ore in the first few feet of the soil. The lot will be cleared sometime in the next week so that the geotechnical engineer can make the borings and get a report to me with more specifics of the subgrade.
My home is pretty much U-shape with a total slab area of 3,483 sf. The bottom of the U is two-story.
Thank you in advance for any comments.
I would like any ideas on whether to use a post tension slab, slab-on-grade with grade beams and piers or any other suggestions.
My lot is in Montgomery County, Texas, which is north of Houston. The lot has silty clay with a mixture of iron ore in the first few feet of the soil. The lot will be cleared sometime in the next week so that the geotechnical engineer can make the borings and get a report to me with more specifics of the subgrade.
My home is pretty much U-shape with a total slab area of 3,483 sf. The bottom of the U is two-story.
Thank you in advance for any comments.
I would like any ideas on whether to use a post tension slab, slab-on-grade with grade beams and piers or any other suggestions.





RE: Residential Foundation Recommendation
The report will give you the minimum parameters you'll need to design to. It will then be up to you to choose the most economical and practical foundation for the type of building you want to build. The report could keep you from over-engineering your foundation.
RE: Residential Foundation Recommendation
RE: Residential Foundation Recommendation
RE: Residential Foundation Recommendation
RE: Residential Foundation Recommendation
The soils get better as you move north of Buffalo Bayou - so yours should be pretty good. SHOULD. But you also need to be aware of growth faults, particularly from salt domes...
Contract with a qualified local geotechnical firm to consult with you. It's money well spent. I'd suggest Marie Starich with Solum(?) Engineering in Missouri City or Zeki Tolunay with Tolunay-Wong in west Houston. DON'T GO CHEAP WITH YOUR CONSULTANT.
Please see FAQ731-376 for great suggestions on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips Fora. See FAQ158-922 for recommendations regarding the question, "How Do You Evaluate Fill Settlement Beneath Structures?"
RE: Residential Foundation Recommendation
Thanks for your response. With regard to the shape of the house, my wife is dead set on this house. So I have to find a way to overcome the problems that come with that shape.
Cracks/distortion at the corners: This has been a concern that I have thought about. Other than reinforcing the corners, are there any other ways to combat cracks? And are the cracks more prevalent in conventional slabs or PT slabs?