A foundation is the base that your house or building is built upon. A poured concrete slab establishes a strong and leveled area to build and bear the weight of a house or building. It protects the structure from rot or damage from moisture that’s in the ground. It gives the structure a stable base to prevent it from moving with the land due to earthquake, erosion, flooding, and frost. A concrete slab also prevents animals and insects from crawling under the house.

Pouring The Foundation

Before the foundation is poured we’ll make sure that the ground has been graded; that means leveled. If the ground isn’t leveled then the foundation won’t be leveled. It will affect the entire building process and you might end up with a house that isn’t square. A crooked house will always have problems and need constant repair. We will grade the ground and add sand or gravel to help with water drainage. Next, a wooden form will be built to contain the poured concrete and give a perfect shape designed specifically for your build. A grid of rebar will be added to the framework to strengthen the foundation. Once the site has been prepared, we will pour the concrete and smooth it out. The framework will be removed once the slab can hold its own form. We recommend giving the foundation at least one week to cure/dry before building upon it. Building on top of it any sooner can lead to the concrete cracking. It can take up to a full month before the foundation is completely cured. It will be its strongest after the curing is finished.

The same process goes for a commercial building foundation except that it may need to be thicker and have more rebar for strengthening. You might also want to use the foundation as the floor of your building. If you do, let us know ahead of time and we can provide different finishing options for you. We can add stains for a splash of color, stamp it so it looks like wood, brick and other materials, acid stain it, or give it a high finishing polish. Check out our Decorative Concrete page for more ideas.