FOUNDATION of Residence:

Slab on Grade:

One of the easiest, least costly, most trouble-free, and, potentially most comfortable foundations is a concrete floor poured over a settled gravel base: a slab-on-grade. Unfortunately, too often this relatively simple design is oversimplified with disastrous results.

DEPENDING UPON ORIGINAL SOIL CONDITIONS, the gravel grade base should be between 1-1/2 and 2-1/2 feet in depth. It is always advisable, and mandatory in cooler climates to insulate the pad. Seldom done, this minimal cost component makes the difference between a floor which is often cold --- and may become damp, and one which is warmer and always dry.

WITHOUT INSULATION, temperature and dampness stress cracks can form. One of the most important health considerations for any human is to have warm feet. Cold feet place a negative stress on the remainder of the body. The insulation used can be a solid self-draining form of fiberglas and should be between 4 and 6 inches in thickness. Placed on top of the gravel, the concrete is poured over it.

STEEL REINFORCING ROD MESH may be left at the bottom of the concrete, or, pulled too close to the surface. The intent is that it be in the middle of the thickness of the pad. Anywhere else not only removes the strengthening properties it is being used for but may actually diminish the strength of a pad below that of one with no reinforcing at all. This can happen because the closer the steel is to the surface, the more it can be influenced by moisture, condensation, and air. So influenced, the steel rusts and rusting expands the space occupied by the steel. Since the concrete is rigid at that point, the rusting steel actually prys open the concrete resulting in cracks, flaking and more damage. You need an excellent construction crew to use steel mesh.

FIBERMESH, a fiberglas reinforcing product, can be added to the concrete rather than using steel reinforcing rods. Fibermesh is easy to work with, is easy to provide bonding strength throughout the concrete, and cannot rust or expand. For the hypersensitive person, it also removes the steel grid which would also be continuously interrupting the energies of the Earth from one's feet. Some persons are sensitive negatively to steel and many people benefit from exposure to the natural energies or frequency of the Earth in subtle health ways.

THE DESIGN of the slab is also important.
Provide an increased depth allowance around the edges.
That is, the depth of the concrete around the edges, depending upon the size of the floor and the topography, should be at least 3 or 4 times the thickness of the main surface. This provides a sort of floating footing at the edges which also serves to contain the gravel grade under the slab and assist in deflecting moisture away from the gravel bed.

ALLOWING FOR HEALTH CONCERNS, the concrete should not have chemicals added to it. Chemicals are added to concrete to both keep it from freezing and to speed up the curing time, especially in northern and cool climates.

HYDRONIC HEATING is a good option to add in cooler climates.
This ensures comfortable foot warmth and body comfort regardless of weather conditions. The heating of the solution circulating through rust-proof non-metal channels can be achieved in one or a selection of alternatives. These range from solar, electric, natural gas, fireplace, to oil or wood furnace ... and the heating source can be situated apart from the house.

Basement:
A buried or partly buried below grade floor or storage area supporting the main structure of the house has long been the more popular housing foundation style in North America. There is a tremendous variation in the quality of such designs with the finished product offering anywhere from comfort, to hypersensitivity development. Basements are essentially deep wall footings with the space inside cleared of all the dirt or fill (full basement), part of the fill (half basement), or little of the dirt (crawlspace).

OLDER BASEMENTS may have dirt or mud floors and no drains.
Used primarily as a root crop storage cellar and/or for other storage, they are susceptible to rain flooding and snow melt periods. Dampness promotes mildew and fungus growth, with spores drifting upwards into the living areas. Sensitivities to such high concentrations of spores sometimes develop and can encourage those living in the house to have symptoms which range from depression to headaches to fungal diseases. For health, a dry basement is imperative.

DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS for a dry basement include sloping the land around the house down and away from the house to encourage water to drain away from the house. Attaching eavestrough to the lower edges of the roof can aid in collecting and draining rainwater and meltwater away from the house structure. Laying drainage tile in a gravel trough at the outside base of the basement wall can assist in conveying water away from the wall --- be sure to have the tile slanted in depth such that it actually drains away and not just collects the water. The exit of the drainage tile system should either be into a "dry well" or out into a part of the property which is at a lower elevation.

A DRY WELL is a hole dug into the ground to below the depth required to receive the draining tile and then filled below the tile with gravel. The top is then covered. The water drains into the dry well and seeps into the surrounding soil through the gravel bed. Rigid fiberglas self-draining insulation can be attached to the outside of the basement wall to collect water and drain it down to the drainage tile. The added benefit of insulation helps keep the basement warm and reduce the potential for condensation.

CONDENSATION forms when warm moist air meets a cool surface.
Water in the air condenses into water on the surface. Constant moisture on surfaces encourages the growth of fungal spores on the surface. It is normal for such spores to be present in most air. Basement walls are usually constructed of concrete block or poured concrete and a moisture resistant insulative sealer can be added to both reduce the degradation of the concrete into fine dust and to reduce moisture penetration into the house.

HIGH HUMIDITY COMPONENTS installed in a house with inadequate air transfer will result in increased condensation and mildew buildup. Such sources include pools, fountains, showers, humidifiers, hot tubs, and large aquariums. The intent in a healthful home is to maintain or reduce the degree of spore presence by air filtration and/or good design.

BASEMENT FLOOR STYLES can range from mud to hardwood flooring depending upon the degree of finishing. For drainage purposes, many floors slope down to a drain near the middle of the floor. In regions where the bedrock is near the surface and/or the intervening soil is porous and gravel-based, radioactive radon gas may be continually released from the rock and diffuse to the surface. Houses in such regions which have floor drains can experience a collection of radon gas in their house.

A FLOOR DRAIN should always be fitted with a non-return value.
This will prevent radon seepage into the house as well as preventing excess water from backing up the drain into the house when levels are high outside. As a final step, a sealing cap can be added for times when drainage from within the house is not required. This prevents the harmful radon gas from seeping into the house. Once one is sure of a dry floor, additional concrete, wood, ceramic tile, or other finishes can be added.

Perimeter Wall - Footings:
One of the simpler forms of foundation is to simply dig down to the bedrock or undisturbed clay, and pour concrete pads connected by concrete pillars to a short concrete foundation wall at the surface. All of these structures are stronger if reinforced with Fibermesh or iron reinforcing rod. The components can also be formed from wood or concrete blocks but this is seldom the case because of inherent problems with these materials. This can be the best style of structure in regions where a large amount of fill has been added to the surface in order to level it, or, where large deposits of peat or other vegetation are beneath a top layer of dredged up clay.

A FULL BASEMENT WALL provided in such areas may present difficult drainage problems and could result in toxic fumes resulting from the decay gases of the vegetation seeping through the walls into the house. A slab on grade may also not be advisable if the soil or fill beneath it may not have settled, or, may continue to settle as the vegetation or refuse continues to degrade.

CONCRETE COLUMN PADS are round or square depending upon whether Sonotube or wood forms are used. As an example, 2-foot square footings with a thickness of 8-inches may be connected to 1-foot diameter columns which in turn connect to a continuous short concrete wall measuring 2 foot high and with an 8-inch thickness. These may all be connected by strands of 1/2 inch or larger steel reinforcing rod. This provides a stable platform on which to build the first floor and support the walls. Additional pads and columns can be positioned within the perimeter wall area to provide a strong base for major support beams on which walls within the center of the structure are going to be added.

A CRAWLSPACE can be made and utilized within the perimeter wall structure for below floor installation of plumbing and electrical lines and minimal storage. It is a benefit to either lay 6-mil black plastic over the ground and provide above ground screened ventilation openings at the top of the perimeter wall, or to seal the remaining house structure from the crawlspace. This prevents potentially toxic fumes from seeping into the house from the ground below. Wall vents should be installed to allow for cross-ventilation in the summer. They will need to be closed and insulated for the winter.

WALKWAYS and PATIO:

Low Maintenance:
For the health conscious or hypersensitive person, outdoor areas are best planned to require a minimum of requirement for herbicides, insecticides, fungicides, preservatives, and chemical fertilizers. Walkways are often overlooked in this manner yet are areas which we usually like to appear neat and clean.

RAISED, WELL-DRAINED, LEVEL PATHWAYS on a base of gravel and crushed stone are the least likely of the options available to encourage grass and weed growth. Concrete pavers set in a bed of sand over a gravel base edged with concrete curbing provide another low-maintenance option.

ASPHALT PAVED AND CONCRETE WALKWAYS have a tendency to crack and split, weather, and settle. Asphalt also gives off toxic hydrocarbon fumes in warmer weather and frequently requires recoating with toxic fume producing substances. The oils which provide flexibility to the asphalt evaporate to leave a harder, brittle surface which is prone to cracking. Re-application of substances designed to replace the oils softens the surface and assists in repelling water penetration. It also provides a renewed source of toxic chemical vapors.

WOODEN FORMS, PATHS, and STEPS when not elevated, require intensive treatment with outgasing toxic chemical preservatives in order to resist the natural decay of the now dead wood. Dead wood on the floor of any forest attracts insects and moulds which function to convert the wood back into soil. Placing wood directly on the ground encourages the same process. Only the application of deadly chemicals before and after its placement prevent or delay this process. Such chemicals often bother hypersensitive persons.

Safety:
Walkway safety is often ignored when idealistic persons seek to create a "more natural" scene by using stones to form a pathway. Stones are typically smoothed and become slippery when dampened with rain. Stones are always of uneven and unmatching contours and when laid as such they provide ideal protected areas for the growth of weeds and grass. Stones are not usually carved to be flat for such would detract from their natural appearance. Uneven and potentially slippery surfaces encourage falls.

PATIOS CONSTRUCTED ON STONE BASES or supports are prone to a loss of secure balance when any of the stone supports settle further into the ground, shift, or crack. Without a design which easily sheds water, constant puddling of water on the wood surface and heating by the sun encourage wood finishes to degrade, peel, or discolor -- requiring re-application of chemical preservatives.

A CEDAR DECK which has not had a sealer or paint applied to it and which remains open to the drying influence of sun and wind, or, is fully enclosed requires the least chemical maintenance. Wood which is not finished will attract a mould which turns the surface of the wood to a grey-silver color. This is generally not harmful. If removal is desired, a solution of 20% bleach and 80% water can be used to scrub the wood with a medium stiffness bristle brush. An organic vapors mask can be worn to avoid the fumes. The wood will look like new when finished and the scrubbing requires a minimum of effort when the suggested solution is used. Be sure to brush WITH the grain of the wood and not across it.