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Mobile ViewFOUNDATION CRACKS & DAMAGE GUIDE ADVANCED INSPECTION METHODS AGE of a BUILDING - how to determine BASEMENT HEAT LOSS BASEMENT LEAKS Moisture or Mold BASEMENT WATERPROOFING BEST CONSTRUCTION PRACTICES GUIDE CHIMNEY INSPECTION DIAGNOSIS REPAIR Cracks, Checking or Splitting Beams & Log Homes CRAWL SPACES DECK & PORCH CONSTRUCTION DECK COLLAPSE Case Study DECK FLASHING LEAKS, ROT Case Study DEFINITIONS of Mobile Home, Doublewide, Modular, Panelized DEW POINT CALCULATION for WALLS DEW POINT TABLE - CONDENSATION POINT GUIDE DISASTER BUILDING INSPECTION & REPAIR SAFEY EARTHQUAKE DAMAGED FOUNDATIONS ENERGY SAVINGS in BUILDINGS FLOODS IN BUILDINGS-priorities FLOODS IN BUILDINGS-mold FLOOD DAMAGE ASSESSMENT, SAFETY & CLEANUP FOUNDATION BULGE or LEAN MEASUREMENTS FOUNDATION CRACKS & DAMAGE GUIDE EARTHQUAKE DAMAGED FOUNDATIONS FOUNDATION CONSTRUCTION TYPES FOUNDATION INSPECTION METHODS FAILURES by FOUNDATION TYPE & MATERIAL FAILURES by FOUNDATION MOVEMENT TYPE BUCKLED FOUNDATIONS due to INSULATION? Insulation's Role in Foundation Damage Foundation Damage Generally Involves Water Ice Lenses, Frost Heaves vs. Frozen Soil Pressure Frost-Lens-Push-Proof Structural Pier Wet, Frozen Soil Expansion Data Main Cause of Foundation Failures in Clay Soils How Avoid Foundation Cave-Ins BULGED vs. LEANING FOUNDATIONS COMBINATIONS OF FOUNDATION MOVEMENT HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT IN FOUNDATIONS VERTICAL MOVEMENT IN FOUNDATIONS FLOOD DAMAGE TO FOUNDATIONS FOUNDATION DEFECTS OF OMISSION FOUNDATION CRACK EVALUATION FOUNDATION BULGE or LEAN MEASUREMENTS FOUNDATION DAMAGE SEVERITY FOUNDATION DAMAGE REPORTS FOUNDATION INSPECTION STANDARDS FOUNDATION MOVEMENT ACTIVE vs. STATIC FOUNDATION REPAIR METHODS SITE FACTORS AFFECTING FOUNDATIONS SLAB CRACK EVALUATION FOUNDATION WATERPROOFING FRAMING DAMAGE, INSPECTION, REPAIR FRAMING DETAILS for BETTER INSULATION FRAMING DETAILS for DOUBLE WALL HOUSES FRT PLYWOOD HOUSEWRAP AIR & VAPOR BARRIERS HOUSEWRAP - TYVEK INSTALLATION DETAILS ICE DAM PREVENTION INDOOR AIR QUALITY & HOUSE TIGHTNESS INSULATION & VENTILATION INSPECTION & IMPROVEMENT INSULATION CHOICES INSULATION FACT SHEET- DOE INSULATION IDENTIFICATION GUIDE INSULATION LOCATION for BASEMENTS INSULATION LOCATION for CAPES, CRAWLSPACES INSULATION for GREENHOUSE or SOLARIUM INSULATION MATERIAL IDENTIFICATION GUIDE INSULATION MOLD LOG HOME GUIDE PANELIZED CONSTRUCTION & KIT HOMES MODULAR HOME CONSTRUCTION MOBILE HOMES, DOUBLEWIDES, TRAILERS MOISTURE CONTROL in BUILDINGS ROOFING INSPECTION & REPAIR ROT, FUNGUS, TERMITES ROT, TIMBER FRAME SHEATHING, Gypsum board SHEATHING Homasote & Other Board SHEATHING, OSB SHEATHING, Plywood SHEATHING, FOIL FACED - VENTS SINK HOLES SLAB CRACK EVALUATION SLAB INSULATION, PASSIVE SOLAR Splits in Structural Wood Beams STAIRS, RAILINGS, LANDINGS, RAMPS Straw Bale Construction THERMAL EXPANSION of MATERIALS THERMAL MASS in BUILDINGS THERMAL MASS in UPSTAIRS VENTILATION in BUILDINGS WATER ENTRY in BUILDINGS WIND TURBINES WINDOWS & DOORS WINTERIZE A BUILDING More Information InspectAPedia Blog - News Updates Air Conditioning & Heat Pumps Bookstore Electrical Environment Exteriors Heating Home Inspection Insulate Ventilate Interiors Mold Inspect/Test Plumbing Water Septic Roofing Structure Accuracy & Privacy Policies Contact Us |
This article continues our discussion of the the main causes of foundation cracks, buckling, or collapse in areas of freezing weather, clay soils, or wet soils. We provide suggestions for avoiding foundation damage or collapse in areas of freezing climate, and we discuss the proper foundation insulation locations and materials for use in problem areas. In this article series we include solar energy, solar heating, solar hot water, and related building energy efficiency improvement articles reprinted/adapted/excerpted with permission from Solar Age Magazine - editor Steven Bliss. Photo (above) shows a new foundation constructed below a New York home after a catastrophic foundation collapse caused by wet soils. Readers who need to diagnose the cause and decide on the cure for foundation damage should start at FOUNDATION CRACKS & DAMAGE GUIDE. Readers should also see BASEMENT HEAT LOSS for a discussion of basement and foundation insulation. Contact us to suggest text changes and additions and, if you wish, to receive online listing and credit for that contribution. © Copyright 2009 Daniel Friedman, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use links at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website. What is the Main Cause of Foundation Failures in Clay Soils?Most foundation failures in clay soil have nothing to do with freezing. The culprit is more often the expansion of the soil when it absorbs water. In Fargo, said housing engineer Lambert Vogel, when the soil dries out and shrinks, it can pull away from the foundation as much as two inches to a depth of three feet or more. Either the wind or the homeowner is likely to fill this crack with loose soil. When the clay soil gets wet again and expands, crack goes the wall - if it is weak. In some areas of expansive clay soils such as portions of Colorado, builders install a soil watering system below the building's foundation and slab in order to prevent this clay soil shrinkage during dry weather. Recommendations to Avoid Foundation Wall Cave-Ins in Cold ClimatesVary rarely do foundation walls cave in from insulation, except possibly in Duluth, Minnesota, where all the conditions are ripe for foundation failure: lots of rainfall, clay soils, very cold winters, and building practices that often do not include foundation drainage to assure that soils close to the building foundation are not water-saturated. But you can prevent all frost-related foundation damage problems by following standard good building practices:
Given basically sound foundation and site work, it is acceptable to insulate a building foundation inside (giving up the thermal mass benefits to the building) or outside, and to install foundation wall insulation half-way, full-height, or flared-out - anywhere in the continental United States. In foundation insulation retrofits in very cold climates, life is not so simple. What if you have an un reinforced concrete block foundation, a frost-susceptible soil (clay or silt), and poor site drainage? Then we would be reluctant to install any foundation insulation without first correcting the site - at the very least by conducting surface water and roof spillage well away from the building foundation. Where the integrity of the foundation wall is in doubt, there are compromise solutions. We might install half-height insulation on the inside of the foundation wall, or half-height insulation n the outside of the foundation wall with the addition of at 2- to 4-foot flare. But don't expect good thermal performance with half-height interior foundation insulation on an open-core concrete block foundation wall. Convection in the concrete block cores will carry heat right past the insulation. Also consider the wintertime temperatures in the basement or crawl space. If the building owners have insulated the basement or crawl space ceiling, and are heating with a woodstove upstairs rather than a furnace or boiler in the basement, the basement walls, not to mention the water pipes (see WINTERIZE A BUILDING), could get very cold. Here we include solar energy, solar heating, solar hot water, and related building energy efficiency improvement articles reprinted/adapted/excerpted with permission from Solar Age Magazine - editor Steven Bliss. ... Technical Reviewers & References
Use links just below or at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website. FOUNDATION CRACKS & DAMAGE GUIDEADVANCED INSPECTION METHODS AGE of a BUILDING - how to determine BASEMENT HEAT LOSS BASEMENT LEAKS Moisture or Mold BASEMENT WATERPROOFING BEST CONSTRUCTION PRACTICES GUIDE CHIMNEY INSPECTION DIAGNOSIS REPAIR Cracks, Checking or Splitting Beams & Log Homes CRAWL SPACES DECK & PORCH CONSTRUCTION DECK COLLAPSE Case Study DECK FLASHING LEAKS, ROT Case Study DEFINITIONS of Mobile Home, Doublewide, Modular, Panelized DEW POINT CALCULATION for WALLS DEW POINT TABLE - CONDENSATION POINT GUIDE DISASTER BUILDING INSPECTION & REPAIR SAFEY EARTHQUAKE DAMAGED FOUNDATIONS ENERGY SAVINGS in BUILDINGS FLOODS IN BUILDINGS-priorities FLOODS IN BUILDINGS-mold FLOOD DAMAGE ASSESSMENT, SAFETY & CLEANUP FOUNDATION BULGE or LEAN MEASUREMENTS FOUNDATION CRACKS & DAMAGE GUIDE EARTHQUAKE DAMAGED FOUNDATIONS FOUNDATION CONSTRUCTION TYPES FOUNDATION INSPECTION METHODS FAILURES by FOUNDATION TYPE & MATERIAL FAILURES by FOUNDATION MOVEMENT TYPE BUCKLED FOUNDATIONS due to INSULATION? Insulation's Role in Foundation Damage Foundation Damage Generally Involves Water Ice Lenses, Frost Heaves vs. Frozen Soil Pressure Frost-Lens-Push-Proof Structural Pier Wet, Frozen Soil Expansion Data Main Cause of Foundation Failures in Clay Soils How Avoid Foundation Cave-Ins BULGED vs. LEANING FOUNDATIONS COMBINATIONS OF FOUNDATION MOVEMENT HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT IN FOUNDATIONS VERTICAL MOVEMENT IN FOUNDATIONS FLOOD DAMAGE TO FOUNDATIONS FOUNDATION DEFECTS OF OMISSION FOUNDATION CRACK EVALUATION FOUNDATION BULGE or LEAN MEASUREMENTS FOUNDATION DAMAGE SEVERITY FOUNDATION DAMAGE REPORTS FOUNDATION INSPECTION STANDARDS FOUNDATION MOVEMENT ACTIVE vs. STATIC FOUNDATION REPAIR METHODS SITE FACTORS AFFECTING FOUNDATIONS SLAB CRACK EVALUATION FOUNDATION WATERPROOFING FRAMING DAMAGE, INSPECTION, REPAIR FRAMING DETAILS for BETTER INSULATION FRAMING DETAILS for DOUBLE WALL HOUSES FRT PLYWOOD HOUSEWRAP AIR & VAPOR BARRIERS HOUSEWRAP - TYVEK INSTALLATION DETAILS ICE DAM PREVENTION INDOOR AIR QUALITY & HOUSE TIGHTNESS INSULATION & VENTILATION INSPECTION & IMPROVEMENT INSULATION CHOICES INSULATION FACT SHEET- DOE INSULATION IDENTIFICATION GUIDE INSULATION LOCATION for BASEMENTS INSULATION LOCATION for CAPES, CRAWLSPACES INSULATION for GREENHOUSE or SOLARIUM INSULATION MATERIAL IDENTIFICATION GUIDE INSULATION MOLD LOG HOME GUIDE PANELIZED CONSTRUCTION & KIT HOMES MODULAR HOME CONSTRUCTION MOBILE HOMES, DOUBLEWIDES, TRAILERS MOISTURE CONTROL in BUILDINGS ROOFING INSPECTION & REPAIR ROT, FUNGUS, TERMITES ROT, TIMBER FRAME SHEATHING, Gypsum board SHEATHING Homasote & Other Board SHEATHING, OSB SHEATHING, Plywood SHEATHING, FOIL FACED - VENTS SINK HOLES SLAB CRACK EVALUATION SLAB INSULATION, PASSIVE SOLAR Splits in Structural Wood Beams STAIRS, RAILINGS, LANDINGS, RAMPS Straw Bale Construction THERMAL EXPANSION of MATERIALS THERMAL MASS in BUILDINGS THERMAL MASS in UPSTAIRS VENTILATION in BUILDINGS WATER ENTRY in BUILDINGS WIND TURBINES WINDOWS & DOORS WINTERIZE A BUILDING
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10/07/2009 - 01/14/1986 - InspectAPedia.com/Energy/Buckled_Foundation_Insulation3.htm - © 2009 - 1988 Copyright Daniel Friedman All Rights Reserved - InspectAPedia® is a Registered U.S. Trademark