How to make a screed on a strip foundation. Strip foundation, floors on wooden logs - why is there nothing worse for a chopped bath? The final decision on the organization of the floor

And you lay the floors directly on the ground - you cannot avoid negative consequences. The floor must be raised off the ground. Since the beginning of the 60s of the twentieth century, houses have been common in which the floor was laid directly on the ground. Due to this, moisture, bad smell and mold began to appear in many homes.

In the 90s of the twentieth century, principles were developed according to which it was recommended to build houses:

Set up houses only on suitable soils

Before proceeding with the elimination of shortcomings and shortcomings, it is necessary to identify their cause. Here are some tips:

Insufficient cut-off of capillary moisture is very difficult to eliminate. This is due to the fact that the insulating material is not accessible, as it is under the slab. It is necessary to lay the drainage pipes deeper and see how well they function.

The next method of protection is as follows - you need to remove the entire floor covering, then lay a synthetic material with an air gap on the concrete. Then lay the flooring again, either removed or new. Thus, penetrating moisture is removed through the air gap. Skirting boards also need to be ventilated, this can be done with gaskets.

Clinker tiles are an excellent material for the floor, as they allow moisture to pass through from below.

Install underfloor heating if possible

Improve ventilation in the house

Budget option floors strip foundation is a ground floor technology. This design solves the main problems - inadequate underground ventilation, high heat losses, and the release of harmful radon gas. Concrete has four times the resource of wooden floor beams, has no restrictions on facing materials / floor coverings. Underfloor heating circuits are easily integrated into it, reducing the energy consumption of heating systems.

Advantages of the floor on the ground

Incorrect plate name floors due to the external similarity of these structures. In fact, the screed is floating, separated from the foundation by a damper tape. This eliminates the opening of cracks in wall junctions from internal stresses. The advantages of the design are:

The significant advantage of this floors is the lack of load on the power frame of the dwelling. It is not connected with the walls, it has its own support on inert backfill materials, allowing to reduce the bearing capacity of the foundation.

Manufacturing technology

For creating floors it is necessary to fill the underground with non-metallic material (budget sand), shed each layer or compact it with a vibrating plate. After that, it is enough to make a screed by laying two reinforcing meshes, providing a protective layer of concrete. Less commonly, the slab is connected by a reinforcing cage with a foundation tape (only on rocky, gravelly soils). Waterproofing is carried out with a polyethylene film, membrane, hydrostekloizol.

Communications

Most developers are sure that only water supply and sewerage are introduced into the cottage. After that, problems arise - it is necessary to run an electric cable, a ground wire, a gas line. If you provide for the presence of sleeves for each engineering system before backfilling, you will not have to open the screed when finishing the premises. Grounding under the stove floors is made as follows:

The water supply (usually a polyethylene pipe) runs in a corrugation (depth 1 - 1.5 m), the vertical part of the line is insulated with polystyrene shells. The drainage system is usually not insulated - drains always have a positive temperature, as they leave the heated building. A slope of 3 - 7 degrees is a prerequisite for gravity; without it, forced sewage pumps will have to be installed.

Electricity is introduced at a depth of 0.5 - 0.7 m, thermal insulation is not required. The gas line usually passes through the air, is introduced through the walls of the first floor. To protect against electric shock, a signal tape (red) is laid over the electrical cable, which excludes cutting it with shovels and crowbars.

backfilling

Rules SP 31-105 prescribe a minimum sand layer of 10 cm. However, with a significant height of the base part of the tape, it is not advisable to fill the internal cavities with earth, then with sand. The presence of organic matter guarantees subsidence after 3-5 years of operation, even with high-quality ramming. Therefore, developers often use sand, since this material is inexpensive. Experts recommend a large river product with a minimum percentage of clay to increase strength overlap.

The most difficult case is hydrostatic pressure (high GWL). Double film waterproofing is recommended under the footing, on top of it. In addition, the film layer reduces the adhesion of the slab/footing while maintaining its floating properties. Recommended characteristics of the cake:

• film 15 microns minimum
• footing 5 cm (mixture grade B7.5)
• polyethylene 15 microns
• slab 5 cm (concrete B15 - B22.5)

In SP 29.13330, the minimum screed thickness is limited to 12 cm, regardless of operational loads. The required layer of non-metallic material is usually obtained by default.

The sand is compacted in layers (10 cm) or wetted abundantly before laying. Spilling it with water is not recommended - you can wash out the lower dusty soils. Crushed stone is relevant at high GWL, since when wet, the sand loses its bearing capacity and turns into a shapeless mass.

Manual tamping to the state of "no footprint" takes several days, with a vibrating plate - several hours. It can be assembled with your own hands from any obsolete equipment (you only need an engine). The plate is made from a massive billet, an eccentric is attached to the shaft.

concreting

The floor pie on the ground is multi-layered; first, a footing (5 cm) is poured, which solves the following tasks:

• protection of the waterproofing layer (relevant for crushed stone bedding)
• reduction of the protective layer of concrete slab (up to 2 cm)
• surface leveling

It is not necessary to reinforce the screed, the edges of the lower waterproofing carpet are launched onto the walls. The damper layer is created in several ways:

For floors, connected with the MZLF tape, two reinforcing meshes are required. For a floating slab, one mesh of 6 mm rods or wire is sufficient (if the spans are small). Recommended cell 20 x 20 - 30 x 30 cm, U-shaped clamps for tying belts at the ends are not required.

Insulation over the entire surface is required exclusively for unheated premises (seasonal, periodic operation of a country house). Any foil waterproofing material reliably protects from radon. In addition, aluminum foil prevents heat loss. The concreting sequence looks like:

• overlap associated with MZLF - two-layer reinforcement with bars 12 mm of a periodic profile, welded meshes (10 mm, cell 20 x 20 cm) in accordance with SP 52-101
• floating screed - single layer steel mesh reinforcement, two layers of glass mesh on either side of it

In any case, the reinforcement is displaced downwards, since tensile forces occur near the sole. Unlike the foundation, expanded clay concrete is allowed (class B12.5). British regulations are stricter for low-rise construction:

• thickness of the slab (floating) 15 cm minimum, but there is no footing, the lower protective layer increases (5 cm minimum)
• 6 cm heat insulator (only XPS high-density grades)
• top screed (usually with TP contour) 7.5 cm minimum, cut off from walls by 2 cm with an extruder layer

A similar scheme of the floor on the ground was called the "Finnish plate", although it has nothing to do with foundations. Domestic technologies involve laying insulation exclusively under the contour of a warm floor. Here it allows you to keep warm, not to heat the entire thickness of concrete in vain. By default, the geothermal heat of the bowels is stored by the very sole of the building, lateral freezing is excluded by warming the blind area.

Radon protection

According to the regulations of MGSN 2.02, radon protection is required in residential buildings. Similar instructions are present in SP 31-105 (single-family house), SP 2.6.1.2612 (sanitary standards), SP 50-101 (foundations). Concrete screed floors together with a waterproofing layer (membrane, polyethylene film) partially solve the problem. Premises need natural or forced ventilation.

Communications enter through a floating plate, so the input nodes must be sealed with mortar, sealant, and caulking. The sleeves are cut off from the pipelines with damper tapes, embedded in concrete during pouring. The nodes of the rigid mates of the foundation, the floors are insulated with special compounds (impregnation).

The use of penetrating agents solves the problem in a complex way. Concrete acquires water-repellent properties, joints do not let gases into the living space. It is much more difficult to isolate the overlap along the beams due to the numerous pairings of lumber.

Thus, the technology is considered in detail floors strip foundation floor on the ground. This is the most economical option for a private developer, able to protect against harmful radiation. Built-in underfloor heating is guaranteed to reduce energy consumption (usually gas) heating systems. The number of heating registers will be reduced, and the layout of the premises will be improved.

The strip foundation has become popular for the construction of low-rise buildings due to the simple technology and low cost of work. It is a closed contour of reinforced concrete, which is located along the perimeter of the bearing walls.

But if you decide to make a concrete floor in the house, you will be faced with a choice of how to arrange it: pour the concrete floor on the ground or make strip foundation slabs self-supporting structures.

Panel ceilings

To save money on internal backfill, many use prestressed slabs with round voids for floors. This is the best option in terms of price / quality ratio, but if you put them on a strip foundation and tightly clog the space inside, then over time moisture from the soil will accumulate there.

Therefore, it is necessary to provide in this case through ventilation. To do this, the foundation should protrude above the ground to a height of 40-50 centimeters, so that in winter the snow does not block the ventilation openings.

The photo shows an example of ceilings after 6 years, made using this technology without ventilation. As you can see, rust from the reinforcement is visible at the junction with the foundation, since this is the most vulnerable part of the slab.

It should be borne in mind that more often the base is at a much lower height, and you will not be able to make ventilation holes, or they will be closed in winter.

Ground floor

If a basement is not planned in the house, then a more reliable, but expensive option would be to make a floor on the ground. Roughly speaking, a monolithic slab will be poured into the foundation. In this case, the floor in the house will be durable and it will be possible to make heating.

It is important to make sure that the strip foundation or slab is not rigidly connected to each other. Otherwise, over time, one of the bases will shrink, cracks and height differences will appear.

It can be implemented using the following technology:

• and sprinkled outside and inside to the same level.

Note!
Internal backfilling of the soil must be done in layers of 20-30 cm.
Only such a thickness will make it possible to compact the layer well with the help of a tamper of 100-150 kg.

• To compact the soil, it is necessary to apply a layer of crushed stone with a fraction of 40-60 mm on top of it. If there is a high load in the room, then you need to use fine gravel with a fraction of 10-20 mm. Be sure to then walk with a rammer on it so that the lower layer of rubble enters the ground.

• The next layer will be concrete preparation. It is needed as a basis for hydro-vapor barrier. If you put it directly on the rubble, then during the work the builders will damage its tightness.
• The vapor barrier must be laid with an overlap on the walls. If you do not make this layer, then moisture from the soil will enter the structure of the finished floor and condense there.
• Next fit. Extruded polystyrene foam is well suited for this, due to its low water absorption, high durability and compressive strength.

Advice!
To protect against the penetration of cold from the ends, you need to fix the insulation with an overlap on the walls.
It will serve as a damper for the screed.

• The floor screed is made with reinforcement with a welding mesh 100 * 100 with a section of 3 mm. If the screed is made in a highly loaded room, for example, in a garage, then the mesh should be 50 * 50 with a section of 4 mm, and the thickness of the screed should be at least 10 cm.
• The last step will be finishing the floor. It can be any material: tiles, porcelain stoneware, laminate, linoleum, etc.

To better understand this technology, we recommend watching the video in this article.

Is it possible to save

Such a strip foundation with a slab inside will be expensive, but following this technology, you will provide your home with high durability and reliability.

How can you save on construction?

First of all, you can replace the vapor barrier with a conventional plastic film. But be sure to lay it in two layers. However, it should be borne in mind that polyethylene is a rather delicate material, and it is easy to damage it during construction work.

If your backfill layer is less than 20 centimeters, you can compact the soil with clay. So the probability of tearing the film on rubble during installation will disappear.

Note!
It should be borne in mind that polyethylene will not give good vapor barrier, and moisture will still penetrate inside.

Popular Mistakes

The most common mistake is the violation of the order of the plate cake or the use of other materials. Many simply do not understand the purpose of each layer.

For example, if you first lay a layer of geotextile, and then a layer of rubble, such a layer will not be of any use. Geotextiles will not allow the soil to be well compacted with crushed stone due to its density, while it will not provide vapor and waterproofing.

It is also impossible to use expanded clay in this case as a filler to increase the level. It has high water absorption, and when you fill it with concrete screed, it will absorb moisture, and the concrete will dry much longer. For the same reason, it cannot be used as a heater. There are much more effective materials that do not absorb moisture.

Conclusion

Thus, you can make a reliable concrete floor in your house with your own hands, which will rest on the ground. For this, a low foundation 20-30 cm above the ground will be sufficient. This is especially true if ready-made low FL strip foundation slabs are used.

There are three options for building a floor base in a house built on a strip foundation. The first is wooden floors laid on load-bearing beams or logs. The second is the floor on the ground on a strip foundation. The third is a floor slab in a finished factory form or poured over a reinforcing frame made of steel reinforcement.

All three structures are often used today, but if we talk about the field on the ground, then it is usually used with a low basement part of the foundation, because the space from the ground to the upper ends of the tape must be filled up, leveled along horizontal planes.

What is ground floor

From a purely structural point of view, the structure is a multi-layer cake made of different building materials. Each of them has its own purpose. And the absence of one of them entails a decrease in the quality of the overall design. If we consider the cake from the bottom up, then here is the sequence of the layers:

Rules for the technology of pouring the floor on the ground

A sand cushion is not only a leveling layer, it is an opportunity to cut off the negative impact of underground water on a concrete floor. Sand has the property of capillary raising of water only to a height of 30 cm. If you fill it under any building structure with this particular layer, then water simply cannot reach it.

Attention! It is necessary to fill up the sand in layers of 10-15 cm with a rammer of each. If the groundwater level on the site does not exceed 2 m, then the sand layer can be laid with a thickness of 15-20 cm.

Sub-base and waterproofing layer

The sub-base serves as both the base for the following layers and the waterproofing barrier. It is poured with concrete grade M100 or M150 without reinforcement. There are no strict requirements for the evenness of its surface, but there should not be strong drops. It is recommended to pour the screed in one go without long breaks, so that later cracks do not form at the joints. It is better to load this layer in a couple of weeks, when the concrete dries well.

The waterproofing layer is assembled from rolled materials. It can be a traditional roofing material or roofing felt, today polymer films and membranes are increasingly used. The best solution is to lay a waterproofing.

Here are some styling requirements:

• rolled material is laid in strips with an overlap of edges of 10-12 cm;
• the edges are fastened with construction tape, if roofing material is used, then it is smeared with hot bitumen or bituminous mastic (cold);
• floor waterproofing on the ground - these are two layers laid in strips perpendicular to each other;
• the material is laid on the foundation tape to the height of the floor to be poured, that is, the device of the floor base itself is a floating structure that does not come into contact with the foundation.

Thermal insulation layer

The next layer is insulation. The thickness is selected based on the selected thermal insulation product. If these are polystyrene foam boards, then 10 cm will be enough. If expanded clay, then at least 25-30 cm, perlite can be laid with a thickness of 15-20 cm.

Attention! If polystyrene foam boards are chosen as insulation, then they must be laid with offset sheets, preferably in half of the panel, like brickwork. This makes it possible to evenly distribute the loads acting from the floor.

A few more points regarding waterproofing and floor insulation.

1. Expanded clay or perlite layers must be covered from above with a waterproofing film. Expanded polystyrene boards do not need to be closed, because they practically do not change their properties when interacting with moisture.
2. If expanded clay is used as a heater, then there is an option to combine the base and heat-insulating material into a single layer. That is, expanded clay is added to the concrete solution as a filler. And this mixture is poured over the pillow with a thickening of up to 20 cm.
3. If the groundwater level is below 2 m and the foundation structure itself has already stood for 3 years, then the subbase can not be poured.

Finishing screed

The last layer that forms the floor on the ground is a concrete mortar of the M200 brand, laid with a thickness of at least 10 cm. from a wire with a diameter of 4-6 mm, by connecting the bars with a knitting wire or by welding.

Attention! It is necessary to ensure that the steel reinforcing frame is located inside the body of the concrete screed. Therefore, the grid is laid on supports in the form of stones or metal profiles, cut into small pieces. Pieces of grids are interconnected with a knitting wire.

Now you need to set the level of the filled layer. To do this, several threads are stretched between the opposite walls of the foundation with a step of 1-2 m between them. It is at their level that it will be necessary to pour the concrete solution, forming the floor.

If a warm floor heating system is planned in the house, then plastic pipes must be installed before concrete is poured. The latter are attached to the reinforcing mesh or knitting wire, or special metal or plastic clamps.

Video: Do-it-yourself floors on the ground during the construction of a cottage

Alternative Solutions

Floors on the ground in a private house on the ground floor can be built differently. There are many technologies offered, among them there are quite unique ones that require minimal costs and not very much experience in construction operations. One of them - super floor from Knauf. In another way, this technology is called dry screed.

The start of work is associated with three layers, as in the usual technology of building a floor on the ground. I.e:

• pillow backfill,
• base fill,
• waterproofing installation.

The rest of the technology differs greatly from the previous one.:

The company Acoustic Group, which produces soundproof materials, offers almost the same floor construction. Only instead of expanded clay, it includes mineral wool mats, which are factory-glued to GVL sheets. These panels are called ZIPS - soundproof panel systems. Basically, such slab material is intended to improve the soundproofing properties of the structure on which they are installed. But mineral wool is an excellent insulator, therefore, ZIPS panels laid on the floor insulate the base, increase its noise insulation characteristics, and level it.

The only point to be taken into account is the low bearing capacity of such a floor. Therefore, on GVL sheets, it is recommended to additionally lay plywood with a thickness of at least 16 mm.

For low grillages and strip foundations, the installation of a concrete floor on the ground allows you to save the construction budget and get rid of the underground, harmful radon emissions. The floor on the ground is a rough screed, it cannot serve as a finishing layer, it requires decoration with floor coverings. But in the pie of this design, insulation and waterproofing are laid, operating costs for heating are reduced, and the operational life of the building is increased.

The cheapest lower level option after the earth floor, which is currently not used anywhere, is the floor on the ground. The building codes SP 31-105 indicate the installation of floors on the ground with three minimum layers:

• crushed stone bedding with a minimum thickness of 10 cm;
• polyethylene film 0.15 mm;
• concrete slab with a minimum thickness of 10 cm.

To ensure the mobility of the structure, the junction with the wall is organized through a damper layer, which solves several problems:

• damping of vibrations and structural noise;
• lack of a rigid connection with the elements of the foundation or basement to avoid destruction;
• providing an air gap to compensate for the linear expansion of the material.

During possible subsidence and swelling of the foundation soils, the floor slab moves freely along the ground in a vertical level without destroying the plinth, grillage or MZLF.

The need for the remaining layers of the floor cake on the ground is due to the improvement in the performance of the structure:

• footing - a screed of lean (B7.5) concrete to ensure a flat surface when laying rolled waterproofing and sealing joints, protecting the material from multiple punctures with sharp edges of crushed stone;
• thermal insulation - a carpet made of extruded high-density polystyrene foam allows you to keep the heat of the bowels under the building, due to this, completely get rid of frost swelling, increase the operational life of the foundation and reduce heat loss in the floors;
• reinforcing belt - perceives tensile loads in the lower level of the screed;
• underfloor heating contours - increase the comfort of living, reduce heating costs.

Important! When using wire mesh to reinforce the screed and the contours of the warm floor, it is necessary to increase the thickness of the structure - the diameter of the pipes + 2 cm.

Assignment of the floor on the ground

A concrete screed is necessary to provide a rigid base when installing floor coverings. This slab is not a supporting structure; it is forbidden to support stoves, stairs and partitions on the floor on the ground. However, the manufacture of a foundation under internal non-bearing walls is expensive, so the following technology is used:

• a stiffening rib is made under the partition along the entire length;
• a gap is created in the upper layer of insulation, into which a reinforcing cage is laid, connected to the floor grid along the ground.

Floor stiffener on the ground under the partition.

Important! This option is not suitable for supporting internal stairs made of reinforced concrete, rolled steel.

In baths and showers, the screed allows you to create slopes for gravity removal of drains. In other ways, it is more difficult and expensive to do this.

Manufacturing technology

Before pouring the floor on the ground, it is necessary to prepare the base and lay all the layers of the structure. It is advisable to lay the mixture in one go, use beacons and a fine fraction of concrete filler.

Underlayment

Before pouring the floor in the premises of the dwelling, one should take into account the nuances of the base soils:

• despite the fact that the floors on the ground are made of concrete of class B12 and higher, they are easily destroyed when the soil shrinks under them, so the fertile layer should be removed completely;
• the underlying layer of non-metallic material must be compacted in layers of 15 cm maximum with a vibrating plate or manual rammer;
• sand has capillary absorption of soil water, it is used only at low GWL from 1.5 m;
• crushed stone can be used on wet soil, since capillary rise is not possible in this material.

To reduce the construction budget and improve the quality of living, it is important at the initial stage to plan the level of the floor on the ground in all rooms of the building, taking into account the requirements:

• the step near the front door is extremely inconvenient to use, the flooring should be on the same level as the threshold;
• it is forbidden to rest the screed on the elements of the plinth or foundation protruding relative to the internal walls;
• when compacting sand, it is forbidden to spill it with water; a layer of watering can should be moistened.

Advice! With a limited budget, you can do without footing by leveling the crushed stone layer with sand. In this case, the film, membrane or rolled waterproofing will not be torn by rubble stones. However, in this case, the surface of the underlying layer must be shed with cement milk to form a crust, for the convenience of sealing the waterproofing joints.

Underlayment and waterproofing

The main requirement for a waterproofing layer is its continuity. Therefore, problems arise:

• rolled bituminous materials (Bikrost, TechnoNIKOL) and polymer films are difficult to lay on the ground properly, since when walking on them, the joints diverge in the future;
• heavy EPDM membranes have a large format, fit without joints, but are very expensive.

Therefore, at first, a footing 5–10 cm thick is poured, providing a rigid, even base for gluing a plastic film or fusing bituminous material.

Important! The footing is also forbidden to be rigidly connected to the elements of the foundation or basement. This layer does not need to be reinforced; lean concrete with a minimum cement content can be used.

It is not enough to know how to make a floor on the ground correctly, it is important to place the layers of the construction pie relative to each other in the right order:

• many individual developers lay insulation on the footing or on the underlying layer and cover it with waterproofing from above;
• or duplicate the film under the insulation and on top of it, increasing the cost of the construction budget.

Both options do not provide any advantages, since the membrane, film or roll material must prevent the extruded polystyrene foam and the top screed from getting wet with soil moisture, which can also be in a vapor state.

Under normal conditions (permanent heating), the temperature under the concrete slab and insulation is always lower than in the room. Therefore, the penetration of excessively humid air from the room into the floor along the ground is impossible according to the laws of physics. Vapor barrier inside this structure is not needed and even harmful.

Important! Bituminous roll materials are welded onto the footing in two layers with an overlap of 15 cm at least perpendicular to each other. Films are glued in two layers in any direction. The EPDM membrane is mounted in one layer.

More details: .

Insulation and damper layer

The floor on the ground performs the functions of an overlap, but does not have a rigid pinch along the perimeter. Therefore, the insulating properties of this technology are by default higher than in joist slabs and for PB, PC slabs:

• the lower layer of insulation reduces or completely eliminates heat loss at the junction points with the base;
• the floating screed is cut off from the walls with a damper layer, structural noise and vibration are not transmitted to the room;
• the quality of the concrete surface is higher than that of the slabs, there is no need for grouting and leveling screed;
• there is no underground, respectively, and harmful accumulations of radon gas from the ground;

Important! The damper layer is usually a special tape or strips of expanded polystyrene. Tape pasted over the perimeter of the base or foundation. Insulation strips are installed on the edge close to the walls along the entire height of the screed cake, starting from the sole of the footing.

The thickness of the heat-insulating material depends on the region of operation, it is 5 - 15 cm. Expanded polystyrene plates are laid apart, the joints are filled with mounting foam.

Communications and reinforcement

The floor on the ground built according to the specified technology is a floating slab. Therefore, before laying the mixture, it is necessary to bring into the premises risers of engineering systems - heating, cold water / hot water, sewerage. Electricity and gas lines are separated at the finishing stage, grounding - depending on the specific building project.

Advice! The maintainability of communication input nodes is zero by default. Therefore, it is increased by laying risers inside pipes of larger diameter, from which, if necessary, a clogged sewer or a rusted water supply pipe can be pulled out for replacement without destroying the screed.

In order for a warm floor made on its own to have a margin of safety in case of possible redevelopment, the structure is often reinforced in the lower third. For this, wire meshes Vr, corresponding to GOST 6727, produced in rolls and cards, are optimally suited.

Reinforcement is made in one layer, the overlap is at least one cell, meshes are laid to provide a lower protective layer on concrete or plastic gaskets.

Mixing and concrete care

The best option is to concrete the screed in one step with a mixture that is made at the factory and delivered to the building site by a mixer. The main difficulty when laying concrete is the impossibility of walking on a wire mesh. Therefore, fill options are applied:

• ladders - in the cells of the grid, gaskets suitable for the format are installed (pieces of brick, pieces of timber), on which the boards rest, as they move, they are rearranged to a new place;
• “paths” - since the pouring starts from the corners farthest from the doorway, concrete is poured in the direction of the master to the workplace, the mesh inside the concrete receives the necessary rigidity, you can walk along the resulting paths without mixing reinforcement in neighboring areas.

The installation of beacons increases the productivity and quality of the screed. Depending on the thickness of the layer, plaster beacons or a profile for GKL systems are used.

Important! If the project includes a warm floor, its contours are laid on top of the wire mesh before pouring. In this case, the thickness of the screed automatically increases. You can turn on the heating only after the strength of the structural material is 70%.

Technology nuances

According to the technology, partitions must be based on their own foundation. For flights of stairs and heavy heating appliances, slabs or grillages are poured on piles. However, individual developers often violate these technologies by erecting light partitions on the floors on the ground. In this case, the structure should be reinforced in advance with stiffeners towards the ground:

• in places where the partition passes, a gap is created in the insulation;
• a reinforcing cage is installed in the resulting cavity by analogy with a strip foundation.

If the thickness of the heat-insulating layer is insufficient, the base under the stiffening rib is additionally deepened by 20 - 40 cm. This allows you to ensure the continuity of the insulation layer and eliminate cold bridges.

Thus, the ground floor budget can be adjusted at the design stage depending on available funds and geological conditions. All works are available for self-execution for a home master with minimal construction experience.

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In this article, we will analyze in detail the design and construction of a monolithic concrete floor on the ground. Under the "floor on the ground", further in the article, we will understand the concrete floor, made inside the contour of the foundation, right on the ground. Let's take a look at common questions related to this floor and the structure itself from ground to finish.

With what types of foundations can you make a floor on the ground

A concrete floor along the edge can be used with a strip foundation, and with a columnar foundation (or a foundation using TISE technology). The slab foundation itself (by its design) is immediately a floor on the ground. With a strip foundation, the floor structure, as a rule, adjoins the foundation wall.

Rice. 1. Adjoining the floor on the ground to the strip foundation

Rice. 2. Adjoining the floor on the ground to the columnar foundation with a low grillage

With a columnar foundation or a foundation using TISE technology, the floor structure on the ground can be adjacent to the grillage (if the grillage is low), or located below the grillage (if the grillage is high).

In the case of a high grillage, the gap between the floor structure and the grillage is closed when the floor is filled, for example, with boards (can be unedged). These boards remain in the structure, they are not removed, Figure 3.

Rice. 3. Adjoining the floor on the ground to the columnar foundation in the case of a high grillage

The height of the floor device on the ground relative to the strip foundation

Rice. 4. Floor on the ground on the tape extension

Rice. 5. The floor on the ground is adjacent to the wall of the strip foundation

Rice. 6. The floor on the ground is located above the foundation tape

Rice. 7. Floor on the ground adjacent to the top of the tape

There are no constructive mandatory recommendations regarding the mark (height) of the floor device on the ground. It can be arranged at any height shown in Figures 4-7 above. The only thing you need to pay attention to when choosing this option is where the front door will be in height. It is advisable to attach to the mark of the bottom of the door so that there is no difference between the bottom of the door and the floor, as in Figure 8, or so that you do not need to then cut an opening in the tape under the door.

Rice. 8. Height difference between the floor on the ground and the doorway

Rice. 9. Floor on the ground flush with the doorway

Note: It is better (more correct) to provide an opening for the front door at the stage of pouring the tape. Just do not flood this place, insert boards or polystyrene there, so that an opening remains in the tape. If you forgot to leave the opening, then you will either have to make the entire floor higher (and this will increase the cost of backfilling), or cut an opening in the finished tape, cut the reinforcement in it, loosen it, etc.

Thus, if the opening under the front door is made correctly (at the stage of pouring the tape), then we arrange the floor on the ground so that the top of the floor is flush with the opening under the door (taking into account the finishing coating). In order to correctly calculate the thickness of the floor structure, and determine from what mark you need to start its construction, you need to understand what all its layers will be in thickness, what it depends on. More on this later.

There are no such cases. Even when the groundwater level is high, it is more correct to arrange a monolithic floor on the ground than a floor on logs, for example. The type of soil, seismic, freezing level - all this also does not affect the possibility of constructing such a floor.

Note: We do not consider situations when the house is raised above the ground on piles, it is clear that then such a floor is not suitable.

Floor construction options on the ground

Rice. 10. Floor construction on the ground at ground water level higher than 2 m (with waterproofing)

Rice. 11. Floor construction on the ground at low groundwater level, below 2m, with backfill

Rice. 12. Floor construction on the ground at low groundwater level, below 2m, without filling, with pouring instead of a rough screed

Rice. 13. Floor construction on the ground at low groundwater level, below 2m, without filling, with a rough screed

Rice. 14. Floor construction on the ground in combination with a warm floor

Note: Figure 14 shows underfloor heating pipes and a reinforcing mesh above them. Between the floor pipes and the reinforcing mesh, - no gap, just drawn for clarity.

Description of the main layers of the floor on the ground

Let's analyze the main layers (pie) of the floor on the ground. We consider the design from the bottom - up. We will describe all the layers that may be, without reference to a specific pattern.

• compacted soil- the basis for the device of a floor, has to be qualitatively condensed;
• Backfill layers(sand 7-10 cm and gravel 7-10 cm). Backfill layers can be made to protect against capillary rise of water and can be made as a leveling layer. Crushed stone in the bedding layer should be of a fraction of 30-50 mm (large). The sand in the bedding layer can be any, both river and quarry (ravine). It depends on the purpose for which the backfilling is done, whether it is possible to replace crushed stone with expanded clay, you can read about this in the paragraph Is it possible to replace crushed stone with expanded clay, in the same article, below. It is important that the layers of backfill are well compacted. There are conditions when a bedding device is mandatory, and when it is not. You can read about this in the paragraph What determines the design of the floor on the ground, in the same article, below;
• Rough floor screed on the ground. This is a layer on top of the bedding or compacted soil. It is carried out on a plastic film (it spreads on the ground or bedding), the thickness of the rough screed is 5-7 cm. It can not be reinforced. Sometimes a rough screed is replaced with a spill. About spilling - in the next paragraph, about when it is possible to replace a rough screed with a spill - in the paragraph Is it possible to replace a rough screed with a spill, in the same article, below. Crushed stone in the design of the rough screed should be a fraction of 5-10 mm (fine). The sand in the design of the rough screed must be river, not quarry (ravine);
• Spilling (filling) the floor on the ground. It is arranged by spilling a layer of bedding with a solution. The thickness of the pouring is equal to the thickness of the bedding layer. It is arranged without a plastic film;
• Waterproofing. It is arranged from roofing material, 1-2 layers. Roofing material can be taken the most common, without sprinkling. There are conditions when waterproofing is required. You can read about this in the paragraph What determines the design of the floor on the ground, below;
• . We recommend using EPS with a density of 28-35 kg / m 3, or polystyrene with a density of 30 kg / m 3 and higher as a heater for the floor on the ground. The thickness of the insulation is determined by calculation (depending on the climatic zone);
• Finishing screed. The thickness of the final screed is 7-10 cm. The crushed stone in the construction of the final screed should be a fraction of 5-10 mm (fine). The sand in the construction of the finishing screed must be river, not quarry (ravine). A finishing screed (unlike a rough screed) is necessarily reinforced. Reinforcement is carried out with a mesh with a wire diameter of 3-4 mm. How to choose, 3 mm or 4 mm, is written in the paragraph What determines the design of the floor on the ground, below;
• Finish coating. Finishing floor covering on the ground can be any. Accordingly, the details of the device are different for each type of coverage.

The presence and sequence of floor layers on the ground

What determines the design of the floor on the ground:

1. From the level of occurrence of groundwater;
2. From whether these floors will be with heat carriers (warm) or not;
3. From operational loads on the floors.

How exactly the construction of the floor on the ground depends on these factors, we will analyze below.

1. By the presence of waterproofing. Our recommendations: to arrange waterproofing from roofing material (1-2 layers) if the groundwater level lies closer than 2 m from the bottom of the floor along the ground. In addition, when the groundwater is located closer than 2 m, we recommend that you make sure to add sand and gravel, Figure 10. If the level is lower than 2 m, then you can make the floor without waterproofing. At a level lower than 2 m, sand and gravel filling is not required, Figure 11, 12, 13.

Note: You need to focus on the highest groundwater level that can be on a particular construction site. That is, to watch how high the water rises in spring, during floods, etc., and this is the level to take into account.

2. If there are heat carriers in the floor structure on the ground, it is necessary to make a gap between the walls and the floor, 2 cm. This requirement is the same for both water and electric underfloor heating. The gap is made at the level of the finishing screed (with coolant). All layers below the finishing screed are placed to the walls without a gap, Figure 14. You can read more about installing a water-heated floor in the article.

3. If it is planned that something heavy (heavier than 200 kg / m 2) will be placed on the floor on the ground, then we reinforce the finishing screed with a mesh with a wire diameter of 4 mm. If the load is up to 200 kg / m 2, then it can be reinforced with a wire mesh with a diameter of 3 mm.

Important points when installing a floor on the ground

I would like to analyze these important points on the basis of questions that, as a rule, readers of our portal have when installing a floor on the ground.

Can interior walls be placed on this floor?

Yes, on a 4 mm wire-reinforced screed, you can put internal walls made of brick (in brick), from a partition block (100 mm), and walls half a block thick. By "block" is meant any block (expanded concrete, shell rock, aerated concrete, foam concrete, etc.)

Can crushed stone in the bedding layer be replaced with expanded clay?

Backfilling is performed, as a rule, in order to break the capillary rise of water. Expanded clay swells from water, and, as a bedding material, is not suitable. That is, if the bedding was planned as additional protection against water, such a replacement cannot be done. If the backfill was planned not as a protection, but simply as a leveling layer, and the water is far away (deeper than 2 m from the base), and the soil is constantly dry, then crushed stone can be replaced with expanded clay for flooring on the ground.

Can crushed stone in the bedding layer be replaced with broken bricks, building materials waste?

It is forbidden. If the backfill was planned as an additional protection against water, then broken bricks and other waste will not fulfill their task in the backfill. If the backfill was planned not as a protection, but simply as a leveling layer, then we also do not recommend such a replacement, since these materials are of different fractions, it will be difficult to compact them with high quality, and this is important for the normal operation of the floor structure.

Is it possible to replace crushed stone in the bedding layer with expanded clay, pour more of it, and then not put insulation?

To replace 50-100 mm of EPPS (that's how much on average is needed to insulate the floor on the ground), you will need 700-1000 mm of expanded clay. Such a layer cannot be compacted with high quality, so we do not recommend doing this.

Is it possible not to reinforce the screed?

You can not reinforce the rough screed. It is imperative to reinforce the finishing screed.

Is it possible to reinforce the screed with a non-mesh? Is it possible to put just metal bars in the screed instead of a reinforcing mesh, without tying them together, or other metal parts?

No, in order for reinforcement to work, it must be performed by a mesh.

Can waterproofing be laid directly on the layers of backfill?

No, waterproofing must be laid on a flat and solid base (in our case, it is a rough screed), otherwise it will quickly become unusable due to uneven loads.

Is it possible not to make a rough screed and put waterproofing or insulation (if there is no waterproofing) directly on the layers of backfill?

For waterproofing dismantled in the paragraph above. Insulation must also be laid on a flat and solid base. This base is the rough screed. Otherwise, the insulation may move, and subsequent layers too, and this may lead to cracks in the floor.

Is it possible to do a spill instead of a rough screed?

Let's analyze what we mean by "rough screed" and "pouring". A rough screed is a layer on top of the bedding or compacted soil. It is carried out on a polyethylene film (it spreads on the ground or bedding), the thickness of the rough screed is 5-7 cm. The thickness of the pouring is equal to the thickness of the bedding layer. It is arranged without a plastic film. Now about whether it is possible to replace the rough screed with a spill. If the water is closer than 2 m, and the bedding (sand and gravel) was carried out as a layer that prevents capillary rise, then watering cannot be done. Because the spilled rubble will not cut off the capillary rise of water. If the backfill was carried out for leveling purposes, and the water is deeper than 2 m, then you can do the spill instead of the rough screed. If there is no backfill at all, and the screed is carried out directly on the compacted soil, then both a rough screed and a spill can be done. It only turns out that it makes no sense to do the pouring, since for it you still have to pour sand about 3 cm and crushed stone about 10 cm, and the sand in this case is river, and the crushed stone is about 10 mm fraction. In general, it is easier to perform a regular rough screed.

Does polyethylene under the rough screed replace waterproofing?

The function of this layer is to prevent concrete milk from going into the layers of backfill or into the ground. This layer is purely technological, it does NOT replace the main waterproofing (roofing material over the rough screed). If the water is deeper than 2 m, then waterproofing (roofing material) is not needed, but this does not mean that we “replaced” it with polyethylene. It's just that these layers have a different function, and do not replace one another. When installing a rough screed and water deeper than 2 m, a layer of polyethylene is still needed.

Where is it correct to place the reinforcing mesh in the finishing screed?

Does it matter where exactly the reinforcing mesh is located in the finishing screed layer (bottom, top or center)? If the screed is without heat carriers, then the mesh should be located 3 cm from the top of the screed (that is, approximately in the middle). If the screed is with heat carriers, then the mesh must be on top of the pipes, plus 2-3 cm of the protective layer.

Rice. 15. Finishing screed without coolants, reinforcement

Rice. 16. Reinforcement of the finishing screed with coolants

The most common version of the foundation for small private houses, when a non-buried strip foundation is made (there is no basement), and the base of the floor is created directly on the existing soil. This is done where there is no threat of high standing groundwater, and the relief of the site is homogeneous, lying approximately at the same level of the horizon. If the soil is located under a large slope, soil moisture during the year is excessive, it makes sense to make the base of the floor of the first floor of the house at a distance from the ground, leaving a ventilated space between them. Features of the device of both floor options in private homes will be considered in this article.

Features of the foundation device

The advantage of floors that rest directly on the underlying soil layers is that they do not carry an additional load on the foundation of a private house. The floors of the first floor, which are not in contact with the soil, provide for the device of a kind of floor slab, which is based on the foundation. Therefore, the second option requires taking these features into account when designing and calculating the required width of the base sole.

If the base of the floor of the first floor is a reinforced concrete slab, be sure to take care of the waterproofing of the foundation itself and the place of its contact with the overlapping structure, especially if this option is chosen due to the high soil moisture. A slab that is not insulated with a hydrobarrier will pull moisture from the foundation, which will lead to its premature destruction and loss of strength, as well as the penetration of dampness into the house. In addition, care should be taken to ventilate the space between the ceiling and the soil, thereby reducing the level of humidity here.

The device of the floor of the first floor on the ground

This method of arranging floors in a private house where there is no basement is considered the simplest in terms of execution and inexpensive in terms of material costs. There are two main options that apply in this case:

• installation of a concrete floor base (screed);
• installation of wooden floors on logs.

Each of the presented options has its own characteristics, both in terms of the complex of necessary works, and in terms of the final result. The choice often depends on what building material is the main one in the construction of the house itself. If the walls are made of logs or timber, a wooden floor will be more organic. In a stone or brick building, a screed is better. But this is not an absolute pattern, so there may be other combinations.

Concrete insulated screed

The base of concrete, which is poured on the ground, has long been used in all kinds of utility and technical buildings, such as garages, sheds, warehouses. On the first floors of private houses without a basement, concrete screeds have been used relatively recently as the basis for finishing flooring. Several factors influenced the popularization of this method, such as:

• the need to create smooth horizontal surfaces, which require some types of modern flooring;
• the emergence of affordable materials for effective thermal insulation;
• arrangement of systems of water heat-insulated floors for heating.

Now let's take a step-by-step look at how to properly create a concrete screed on the ground on the ground floor of private houses.

Preparation and rough filling

Savings factors

If you build your house on not too difficult soil, if it is more or less homogeneous in composition and there is no water backwater, and the house is not too big and heavy, there is a chance to save a little. The fact is that in this case, the maximum pressure of the house on the ground may not be too small and the slab can be made of different thicknesses. Thicker under the walls, thinner in the middle. In this case, you can save a cube of 3 concrete out of 10, which we have measured in the previous paragraph. The result is a kind of foundation on a pillow.

But something tells me that the pillow may well be superfluous. We read an article about the calculation of foundations and see for ourselves. In this case, the floor can be made in general "tap-blunder" or put the foundation tape directly on the ground, and do the floor later. In general, sometime, for example, when your spouse rebels that the basement is too dirty and when you return from there, you have to wash the floor every time. Personally, this process went like this for me.

Personal experience
The floor was made exactly "knock-off" of bad concrete. At first we swept it all the time. Dust rose into the air and settled on everything. Then we began to cover this floor. It didn't help either. And it all ended with the fact that we bought the cheapest tile, It turned out to be porcelain stoneware at 200 rubles per meter, and covered this dusty floor with it. Now it is clean and beautiful.

In all the diagrams given in this article, it can be seen that the walls of the basement are no thicker than the walls of the main house. And this is another way to save money. When building a foundation on a slab or on a pillow, the thickness of the walls is not critical. If you are building walls from logs, then I would generally advise you to use not full-bodied foundation blocks, but slotted ones, and additionally save on this. Obviously, the basement of the house must be laid out not from heavy concrete blocks, but from wall blocks. It is possible from slotted, it is possible from expanded clay concrete, and it is possible from gas silicate or foam blocks.

Making the walls thicker than the walls of the house is necessary only in the case when there is significant lateral pressure on the foundation. I personally have not seen this. But this can be. In this case, there is no time for savings and one must either hire specialists or consult with geologists. I do not consider the methods of building foundations in such difficult conditions in this article.

What is bad for saving

Don't skimp on waterproofing. It must always be done. The complexity of waterproofing is dictated by the qualities of your soil and the height of the groundwater. The answers to all these questions usually appear after the foundation pit is dug. Immediately becomes visible and the structure of the soil, and the degree of its incompressibility and the presence of groundwater and the amount of the latter.

But even in the case of a completely dry excavation, it is worth reinforcing a couple of layers of roofing material cross-on-cross onto the foundation walls from the outside. Do you have funds? Use durable and high quality special waterproofing materials. There are a lot of them in the store and on the market and there is plenty to choose from.

When installing waterproofing, pay special attention to the corners of the foundation. Corners flow first. That's why they are corners.

But what if you have a lot of groundwater and they are high?

There are several tricks to get along with these waters. Firstly, you can not dig deep into the ground and make a house with a high base. If the floor level of the basement floor is a meter underground, then the floor of the first floor of the house is one and a half meters above the ground, which is not very much. In principle, in a high base you can find your pluses and there is nothing wrong with that. In my life I have seen many houses with high plinths and this did not spoil them.

Secondly, you can raise the level of the site. Either everything that is more difficult, or only the place on which the house will be built. What do we get as a result? We can get a very spicy hill house. It can be beautiful and eye catching. Among the shortcomings of such a house are the following.

• the foundation of the house on the hill will freeze harder
• the house itself will be open to all winds and will also freeze more strongly.
• the embankment will cost a lot of money. We will have to pour more than a dozen KAMAZ trucks of soil onto the site, and then level it again. At the same time, perhaps, before the operation of the embankment, it is necessary to somehow save the fertile layer, and not bury it. The fertile layer is a valuable and expensive thing.

Thirdly, you can try to drain the entire area entirely. This is also difficult and costly. There is a separate article on the site about draining the site.

Fourth, you can try to divert water only from the foundation itself. For that. To use this method, the area must not be too wet. For such sites, global drainage and drainage should be undertaken. But if you are only worried about water in the spring, during the period of snow melting, or only one corner or side of the foundation gets wet, then the described method may well work.

To implement the idea in practice, we need to arrange drainage with water drainage in the immediate vicinity of the foundation or its problematic part. Drainage can be arranged by pouring a drainage layer of soil under the foundation walls. Washed river sand, preferably with pebbles, large crushed stone of any quality and crushed construction debris can act in its role. It is better not to use sand with clay, since clay, even its small inclusions, complicate the drainage process.

How it works

Foundation drainage works as follows. Water flows through the soil and reaches the drainage layer. This layer interrupts the calm flow of water sideways, since it is already easier for it to flow down the drainage. That's where it moves, getting into the pipe through the holes. So that the holes in the pipe do not become clogged immediately, large crushed stone should come into contact with the pipe. The pipe carries the water to the well. For this, the pipe is laid with a slight slope. Water is pumped out of the well by a drainage pump with a float switch.

Well, I think it makes no sense to repeat that in the case of a drainage device, it is necessary that the waterproofing of the foundation be (exist) and all work must be done carefully, since any good idea can be brought to absurdity by poor execution.

Let me remind you that in the article we read, we examined a number of proven and working techniques for building foundations with basement floors.

Having completed the construction of the strip foundation and walls of the future house, it is necessary to make the right decision by proceeding with the arrangement of the floor in the room, which must meet several requirements. It is necessary to create a structure that prevents the penetration of rodents and insects, does not allow drafts to appear and is able to prove itself as a strong, reliable and durable structure. The ideal solution is to build a concrete floor on a strip foundation.

Features of the technology of creating concrete floors

A concrete floor is called a floor on the ground. This is due to the peculiarity of its construction, which excludes the possibility of using wooden beams when performing work due to the excessive weight of the structure. The pouring of such floors requires the creation of an effective and reliable waterproofing, but in accordance with the requirements of the technological process, the construction of this structure is possible only in those areas where the groundwater level exceeds two meters. In exceptional cases, it is provided for the creation of a drainage system at the stage of building the foundation of a building.

Another prerequisite is the presence of high-quality backing. The lack of the required density of most soils requires backfilling directly under the rough screed, since the existing indicators make it impossible to lay the concrete floor directly on the soil. On the surface of such a structure, additional thermal insulation is constructed over its entire area. This is due to the high thermal conductivity of the material.

Keeping in mind possible ground movements and uneven shrinkage of concrete, in order to avoid cracking of the monolith, use technology using shrinkage joints.

The presence of a basement in houses where a strip foundation and concrete floors are equipped is excluded.

What is required to complete the work

Given the presence of groundwater, and observing the technology of creating a floor in country houses, the basis of which is a strip foundation, to start work you will need:

1. Waterproofing materials, the role of which is successfully played by a polyethylene film laid in several layers (at least two layers).
2. River sand, which, unlike clay, perfectly passes moisture.
3. Expanded clay.
4. Rubble.
5. Cement.
6. Foam glass, extruded polystyrene foam, mineral wool. These are materials that provide high-quality thermal insulation.

The use of expanded clay is allowed only on those soils that do not differ in high humidity. This material absorbs moisture, due to which it increases in size. When using crushed stone before pouring a rough screed, it is impregnated with bitumen and laid on top of river sand.

Work sequence

A concrete floor is a structure created for long-term use. Therefore, when carrying out work, it is necessary to strictly observe their sequence. The quality of the future design depends on how carefully all the manipulations are performed, the proportions of the materials used are correctly observed and the compliance with the stages of the technological process is exactly carried out.

Foundation backfill

Pouring concrete for floors on the ground is carried out after careful preparation of the foundation, the basis for further work. So, before pouring the concrete floor, it is necessary to remove a layer of soil from the entire inner surface of the foundation. The depth of the finished cavity reaches a meter. Backfilling is carried out only with river sand, which passes water well.

When creating a backfill, do not use the old soil or clay. These materials contribute to the accumulation of water, which leads to the destruction of the entire structure.

Concrete floors on a strip foundation begin with the creation of a sand cushion. It is poured in layers, carefully spilling water and ramming each layer. Such floors are usually built at the same time as the foundation is being built. Sand spilled with water must be carefully compacted to get rid of existing voids that cause cracking and destruction of the floor.

Now a filter pad is being created, for which a layer of gravel 1-15 centimeters thick is poured, rammed, and sand is poured on top of it, which is again thoroughly rammed.

Installation of waterproofing and insulation

Before proceeding with the filling of the rough screed, it is possible to equip the first layer of waterproofing with a plastic film. After checking the level of the foundation prepared for the floor, the film is laid on the entire surface in two layers. We must not forget that along the entire perimeter of the room in which work is being carried out, the film rises to the wall above the marked level. The most crucial moment is the implementation of waterproofing in the corners.

Now comes the moment of arranging thermal insulation. Insulation of the floor foundation is carried out using mineral wool or extruded polystyrene foam. Sheets of heat-insulating material are laid on the prepared surface, and covered with reinforcing mesh.

Screed

Before pouring the concrete foundation for floors on the ground, it is necessary to make sure that there is a distance of at least 10 centimeters between the reinforcing mesh and the thermal insulation. This is a kind of gap that allows the reinforcement to be in the middle of the structure and ensure its strength and long service life. The same gap should be between the walls and the poured concrete. To do this, formwork is constructed using boards 2.5 centimeters thick. After the solution has completely hardened, they are removed by filling the space with mounting foam. Watch the video on how to make a concrete floor screed with your own hands.

You can achieve the desired level with the help of beacons installed before the start of pouring. They are also removed after the rough screed becomes. Pipes are used as beacons. Traces of them are poured in the process of pouring the finishing screed. The entire finished surface is covered with a film, allowing the solution to gradually dry.

In order for the screed to settle, it will take at least 20 days. After that, a floor covering is laid on the settled concrete, creating a finish coating.