Formwork for strip foundation at home

The formwork, which is necessary for the strip foundation, can be knocked together with your own hands. The home master will have to work a little, but the walls of the base will be perfectly even and easy to finish if needed later.

The implementation of any technological process requires a clear sequence of actions. When erecting a strip foundation, a private builder must rely on the following scope of work:

• calculations and design;
• preparation of the construction site;
• marking - the dimensions of the future foundation are taken out to the site;
• excavation;
• formwork installation;
• reinforcement;
• pouring the foundation and subsequent maintenance of the structure.

Having determined what material the shields will be made of (board thickness) and knowing the dimensions of the building (perimeter), the height of the foundation, you can calculate their area

Depending on the actual conditions of construction, a number of additional measures can be carried out: thermal insulation, waterproofing, lining the base, arranging the blind area, backfilling, etc.

formwork

If small buildings are being erected on the site, design is not required. But it is necessary to think over the area and layout of the shields. This will help to calculate the amount of wood.

In practice, three options are most often encountered:

• on dense soil without a basement, trenches break out, the walls of which become part of the formwork. The shields themselves are installed only on the above-ground part;
• if the soil is again dense, but the base is being built, the formwork is placed to the entire height of the foundation from the inside. It is permissible to mount only the above-ground part along the outer border. Some use another method, in which only the above-ground part is equipped, and after the concrete has gained strength, the soil is removed from the inside;
• if the soil is crumbling and does not allow you to get vertical walls, you will have to collect shields to the entire height of the base.

materials

Of course, the choice of ready-made collapsible formwork may be a suitable option, but its use in one-time construction is unprofitable. For private purposes most often used wooden shields. They are made either from plywood, which is also unprofitable. Why use an expensive material for a disposable design? - or lumber.

Since the formwork is a temporary structure, when buying, you should check that the material meets the minimum requirements. Boards can be made from any type of wood, rejected samples are also used. or those that remained after the dismantling of other structures.

Criterias of choice:

• thickness of at least 25 mm (all boards must be of the same thickness, so it is easier to create a flat surface of the shields) and strength;
• width - up to 150 mm. Wider boards warp a lot;
• no geometric distortion. The board should not be crooked, twisted, curved, otherwise it is impossible to create a shield with a flat surface;
• the material should not have knots, cracks. This negatively affects strength;
• the edges must be evenly cut. The board should not be jointed, and the edge may have one straight edge adjacent to the smooth side.

If the boards were in use before installation, all nails are removed from them, accidentally left fasteners can damage the base

If there is a defect in the board, then you can make a patch from thin sheet material, such as a piece of galvanized steel or thin plywood.

In addition to boards, you can purchase assembly bars (50 * 100), self-tapping screws or nails (these are ideal fasteners), waterproofing material. The length of the nails should exceed the thickness of the formwork by 10-15 mm. They are always driven in from the pouring side of the concrete, and their ends are bent across the planks.

On average, to build a house with a perimeter of 50 m, 0.8 m³ of dry wood boards (25 mm thick) are required. By the way, the cost of formwork depends entirely on the price for which the board was purchased. The cheapest way is to contact the base where they sell lumber.

Do-it-yourself removable formwork

First of all, markup is carried out. If it was planned when digging trenches, all marks, diagonals, dimensions and angles are checked again. Otherwise, it will be impossible to correct the geometry of the finished foundation.

Shield assembly:

• the smaller the width of the board, the smaller the distance between the transverse bars;
• longitudinal bars must be attached at the edges;
• the size of the shield should be such that after installation their height is 15 cm higher than the fill;
• the length is determined in accordance with the plan of the base itself.