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If you are preparing to build the house of your dreams, you must know that the foundation must be strong as it will bear the weight of the entire house. Therefore, the construction of the foundation must be given utmost importance; and if you’re not sure about what you must know and consider while laying the foundation, you have come to the right place to find the answers. Building a strong foundation for your home ensures durability. To build a robust and strong foundation for your home, make a note of the 7 steps to follow. 

Step 1: Site selection

Site selection is the most vital step to construct a firm foundation. At first, you need to finalise the area based on your needs, plot location, and ground condition of your plot. You must check if the plot is prone to water logging. Make it a point to investigate the condition of the soil of the land you wish to build your home on. The soil needs special treatment and foundation because it may lack the desired load-carrying capacity. Alternatively, the soil may possess some unfavourable characteristics that can subsequently weaken the foundation of your house in the long term. In such a scenario, you may need the services of a structural engineer or geotechnical consultant.

Step 2: Excavation

Excavation work is the next crucial step when it comes to building a foundation. Carrying out adequate surveillance of the land is required, so that a layout plan can be formed on the ground, based on the approved drawing. Every pillar and trench excavation lines must be marked considering the centre lines of all walls. Make sure that the excavation work is carried out by your contractor and is true to all levels, alignments, shapes, and sizes. When it comes to this context, you will need to hire a contractor after verifying his or her credentials when it comes to similar work done in the past.

Step 3: Anti-termite treatment

The next step involves anti-termite treatment. It is an essential step to protect your foundation and home from termite attacks. The soil surrounding the foundation must be treated up to the level of the plinth with the right set of chemicals. Because such a task is a specialised job, it must be executed by a specialised agency. If possible, such an agency must be a member of the Indian Pest Control Association.

Step 4: Laying brick layer

The following step regarding building foundation layout is the compaction of the excavated soil’s top layer and the addition of a brick flat soling layer on top of it. After which, your home construction company (if you have hired one) will lay a thin layer (50-75 mm in thickness) of lean concrete of a minimum of 6 inches more than the size of the footing. 

This step will ensure that your home foundation stays on a rigid and flat level based to lay RCC (Reinforced Cement Concrete) work of the footing and retain the moisture content of the footing concrete without any soil soaking.

Step 5: Wooden framework

The next step of building a foundation is the wooden formwork. The formwork must be made based on the size of the footing. In addition, it must be firm enough so that there are no problems while placing reinforcement bars and laying and compacting concrete. The gap that arises between the formwork needs to be sealed properly to eventually prevent the loss of slurry from the concrete.

Step 6: Rebar work

The ensuing step is concerned with carrying out Reinforcement Steel (or Rebar) work. Cutting and bending of the rebar is to be done based on the bar bending schedule of the footing to prevent wastage of steel materials. The placing and fixing of the Rebar are to be done accurately with suitable concrete cover blocks to avoid any displacement of the Rebar during the pouring of the concrete.

Step 7: Pouring concrete

The final step, when it comes to the foundation of your house, is pouring concrete into the footing. The concrete must adhere to the approved design grade. For quality checks, the workability of the concrete must be checked at regular intervals during the process of concreting work. Moreover, concrete test cubes of the desired numbers need to be checked for their crushing strength. The concrete needs to be compacted properly and cured adequately. Curing should begin early and must be continued for sufficient periods to make sure that it does not crack and successfully develops the desired strength.

The takeaway

The foundation of any building is one of the most essential elements and must be built with precision to ensure that the rest of the structure is strong enough. If you are building the house of your dreams, make sure that you give this part of the construction importance. Right from inspecting the soil to designing the foundation, everything must be done the right way to make sure it is strong and durable. If you think you may need help with all this, you can contact JSW One Homes to guide you and help you throughout the process.