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Posts Tagged ‘Steel building foundation’

Steel Buildings – Frequently Asked Questions About Prefabricated Steel Buildings I

Thursday, July 1st, 2010

Q: Which is the best foundation?

A: The best foundation for a prefabricated steel building is one that is level and fits the dimensions of your steel building. A well-constructed foundation gives the steel building strength and stability. Concrete slabs and pier, footing, and grade beam are two types of foundations used for prefabricated steel buildings.

If you prefer a plywood floor finish, there are foundation kits available which are suited for this purpose. However, take note that the plywood material is not included in the steel buildings foundation kit.

Q: How do I prepare the building site before the foundation is poured?

A: The land must first, be surveyed by a professional to ensure that it is level. The surveyor will also mark the exact boundaries of the plot where the steel building will be erected. Next, the building site is graded or physically leveled. This will ensure that the height and shape of the land conforms to the surveyor’s stakes.

When the site has been leveled, excavation for the steel building foundation can begin. Your steel building manufacturer’s representative, is the best source of information regarding the type of foundation excavation required for your steel building.

For minor excavations, hand tools such as pickaxe, shovel, and steel rake are used. Typically, a 2 ft. to 3 ft. deep excavation is enough for a poured concrete foundation.

Q: I want to assemble my prefabricated steel building, what tools do I need? Can I do it alone?

A: The usual tools needed to assemble a prefabricated steel building are #2 Philips screwdriver, pliers, work gloves, and a stepladder. The height of the stepladder should make you reach the highest point of the metal structure comfortably. If you want to make things easier and faster, use a cordless screwdriver with magnetic tip.

Assembling a prefabricated steel building requires at least 2 people but more warm bodies would make the work much faster.

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YOUR STEEL BUILDING’S FOUNDATION (continuation)

Tuesday, June 15th, 2010

Even if you hired a foundation engineer to build your steel building’s foundation, you should also be aware of the process and everything that’s going on during the construction of the foundation.

There are two components to a foundation – the walls and the footings. The foundation walls are load-bearing walls that serve as supports for other walls and columns. Portions of these walls are placed below ground level. The foundation footings are structural units that distribute the weight of the load-bearing components of the building.

Actually, the steel building’s foundation should be designed to withstand very high horizontal loads that tend to push outwards. These loads must be properly accounted for to ensure that your foundation and the framing members do not encounter structural damage.

One way of distributing horizontal loads is through the use of steel tie bars. To evenly distribute the loads, the building columns are tied together using reinforcing bars that are connected to the anchor bolts. Sometimes, when the horizontal load is not that great, hairpin ties that transfer the load directly to the rebar, are used in making the concrete floor.

Increasing the size of the footings is a more expensive way of distributing the horizontal loads. However, a bigger footing counteracts the force of the horizontal load, thereby ensuring that the foundation will not shift.

Prior to pouring the concrete foundation, forms must be placed to hold the concrete together until it dries up. The shape of the forms dictates the shape of the foundation.

Forms are usually made from either wood or metal. They must be firm enough so as not to yield to the pressure of the concrete and tight enough to keep liquid concrete in and rainwater out.

Ensure that the concrete is exposed to the best conditions in order for it to set properly. The weather must be dry and the temperature must be between 50°F and 90°F during the first 72 hours, for strong concrete to dry. After 72 hours, the concrete should now be strong enough to allow the construction of your steel building to start.

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YOUR STEEL BUILDING’S FOUNDATION

Friday, June 11th, 2010

Before even planning your steel building project, you should have clearly defined its purpose because this will be the basis of the type of foundation for the metal structure.

The foundation is the most important part of a pre-engineered steel building because a poorly laid foundation gives rise to problems such as, unsettled or shifting walls which can lead to structural damage over time.

Broadly speaking, there are two types of foundations – the portable foundation and the permanent foundation. Under each type, there can be a lot of variations.

Portable foundations are generally used for portable steel buildings like cabins. The steel building is assembled on top of a base plate, which is then connected to the concrete perimeter using anchor bolts.

The biggest advantage of this type of foundation is that it provides mobility to the steel building. Also, the height of the building remains the same. In addition, building a portable foundation takes less time and is much simpler when compared to a permanent one.

For applications such as homes and industrial buildings, the permanent foundation is the obvious choice because the structures don’t have to be moved. Also, the higher amount of loads for these buildings requires permanent foundations.

It is of primary importance that the construction site, be surveyed by a professional, before pouring the foundation. This ensures that the land is level and that the exact boundaries of the plot are defined and marked. The latter information is very important for the building erector.

After the construction site is surveyed, grading or physical leveling follows. The purpose of grading is to make the land conform to the height and shape of the surveyor’s stakes.

Once the construction site has been leveled, excavation can begin. Included in your drawing package is the proper bolt-setting plan with reactions. Based on these reactions, your foundation engineer will design a suitable foundation for your steel building. You can also consult your steel building supplier’s representative for the kind of excavation your building requires.

Minor excavations are for simple and small steel buildings while deeper general excavations are for the more complex ones.

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