As I’ve previously mentioned, we decided very early on to excavate under our garage and take advantage of the 200 sqft that would have otherwise sat unused. Our original intention was to use a product called Insul-Deck to support the garage floor, however we’ve since had to abandon this approach in favor of a straightforward concrete & rebar structural slab.
I was actually quite keen on the Insul-Deck product, mainly because it provided the same structure and insulating benefits of an ICF wall. However our engineer didn’t exactly feel the same way. I don’t know if he’s ever worked with the product, but he certainly wasn’t sold on their engineering claims. Everything I’ve read says it should be suitable for our needs, but he remained unconvinced it would actually standup to the weight of our car. And not being someone who wants to see their car fall into their basement, I can’t say I put up much of a fight.
Building a structural slab that met our engineer’s demands apparently requires quite a bit of concrete and rebar. 10’ x 20’ isn’t a huge space, but I’m convinced we used enough rebar to hold the weight of a small fleet of tanks. Granted, I don’t exactly have a degree in engineering, so what do I know? Hopefully it’ll hold the weight of one car and a lowly motorcycle.
Another change we made was with the windows. Our original drawings called for a large window in the room below the garage, however we decided to remove it once we realized how large the window well would have been. There isn’t a great deal of room between our house and our neighbor’s, and I quickly realized that ¾ of that distance would have been eaten up by a large hole in the ground. I suppose we could have built a grate of some sort to prevent people from stepping in it, but that didn’t exactly seem like the ideal solution. I’m glad we now have a clear pathway to the backyard, but in retrospect we probably should have kept the window and simply made it shorter. By reducing the height, we would have kept the window above ground and eliminated the window well altogether. Regardless, I actually enjoy working in a dimly-lit room so I think it’ll still work out fine… even if Jess has already named it ‘the cave’.
Having been a structural engineer who specialized in reinforced concrete (my first degree anyway) and looking at the picture it seems like the rebar you have is not overkill. How thick is the slab?
As for your structural engineer nixing the Insul-Deck product, I am not surprised as many structural engineers are very risk averse to using anything they are not familiar with. I think it would have worked fine.
As for the window well, many custom home builders, when space is at a premium, simply engineer the window well to have a grate over it. It is a very good solution and close to ideal. No one would ever fall in the window well. Light is one of the most important things in a home (especially a basement) and it’s really to bad you didn’t go the trouble of putting that window in. I think you will forever regret it.
Hi, there
This is actually a question for Scott, the person who posted on Oct 5 or any structural engineer. I had my house built by a custom home builder a year ago. My garage is at ground level. However, the builder excavated eight feet of soil below the garage ground and surounding area for the foundation and footing of the house. They back filled the garage ground without mechanically compacting the soil. The builder kept saying it would be fine and just poured the concrete with a sheet of metal net added. Should I be worried about the concrete floor falling a few inches in the years to come? I would really appreciate an answer to my question. Thanks!
I just read your article in the Globe & Mail and recommend you get off that couch and start shopping. If you want your project to stay on track, you need to choose every finish (and actually need to order some) now! Everyone complains of construction delays, but we managed to add close to 3,000 feet of finished space and finished ahead of schedule.
Also, please consider adding a laundry shoot from bedroom to basement floor. If you have kids, this will be invaluable!!! Also, re-consider the amount of closet space you are alocating in those kids rooms. They will need space for toys, desks, and reading chairs. Hate to tell you, but they won’t be hanging clothes till they are close to teenagers.
Good Luck!
Hi Cindy!
Indeed, we’ve already started shopping… although I must admit, we haven’t purchased much yet. I’m curious – where did you store everything that you bought? Oh, and we actually have a laundry shoot! It was something we wanted right from the beginning, and it was something we needed to design around (as crazy as that sounds).
Hey guys!
Anyways, all the best of luck with the work and I will look forward to more updates, be it in Globe or online!
So, I opened Globe and there you are on the first page of the Real Estate section! Sweet! I was telling my spouse – wait – I totally know these people and the house. Well, I guess not “totally”, but since I do check your blog daily and have read and seen pretty much everything you have said about the project, it does feel like I know it
Truly,
J.
Looking at the cardboard mock-up in today’s Globe I was struck by how similar the proposed structure is to the American Embassy in Hanoi at the end of the Vietnam war. So similar in fact that I wondered how you might take advantage of that in an artistic sense. Perhaps a sculpture of a lumbering, overloaded helicopter plucking the last vestiges of desperate, clinging humanity from that runway/pergola thingy on the roof. Or maybe twenty-ton concrete bollards ringing the street in front. As long as you’re going for a modernist, unfriendly institutional look anyway -why not go all the way? The hell with tradition and symetry and all that enriching gracefulness claptrap, eh? Hell, it’s your house isn’t it? Why should you care what the neighbours think?
Dan, did you just compare the aesthetic of a home to the atrocities that occurred during the Vietnam war? Seriously? That’s how you’re going to play it, eh? I’m not going to argue the arbitrary appeal people have (or in this case, have not) for certain aesthetics, but comparing a house to such an event is entirely tasteless.
All of our neighbours were made aware of our intentions, all of them saw the drawings well in advance, and all of them were very encouraging. To think that we don’t care what our neighbours think is simply ignorant.
Look again Jeremy. He compared the building to the building, (the former American Embassy in Hanoi) NOT to the atrocities that occurred there. I’m sure that I can speak for Dan and anyone else that may not share your aesthetic in comfortably declaring that we are fairly confident that any atrocities here will go no further than an assault on taste. On the brighter side, it seems that you’ve at least decided to build amidst other like-minded architectural poetasters. Kudos.
Indeed, he did compare it to the American Embassy, but he clearly referenced the events as well. Honestly, I just don’t understand his anger. He doesn’t like the aesthetic, which I can fully appreciate, but his sentiment is entirely uncalled for.
Jeremy,
You misquoted me.
I wasn’t concerned it wouldn’t support the load, I was concerned that it wouldn’t stand up well to the tests of time and salts from your car because the concrete profiles are so narrow with quick chloride penetration times.
Christopher
Hi Chris,
You had expressed concern about the amount of concrete used (the narrowness of the profiles), and you had called for additional rebar (albeit in the ICFs), so my impression was that you were concerned about the load. Regardless, I apologize if I misrepresented you… that wasn’t my intent!
Jeremy,
I’m following the project, very exciting. I’m planning something similar in a couple of years, so the experience you’re sharing is valuable as well. Thanks.
Regarding the grate you would have had to install, my girlfriends family home has one – made of clear plexiglass. It’s about 3/4” thick, never scratches, and lets in all the light available. It’s actually got a kind of cool futuristic asthetic to it. It’s nicer than looking up through a grate too.
For Jill, I’m a civil engineer, and your question is tough to answer yet. You need to know what kind of soil was used to backfill, whether there was any compaction at all or whether it was just loosely filled, what was beneath the 8’ excavion limit, whether there was any snow/water/ice included in the backfill etc. I suggest talking to an engineer who knows the soil conditions in your neighbourhood.
No worries Jeremy,
I am enjoying having this forum.
Christopher
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