Building a stick frame house in the woods in 90 days

[pclausen]

Thanks catdozer. I'll be sure to talk to the builder about what to back fill with 1st thing in the morning. So even though these are waterproof walls, you still think back filling with something that will hold water will be a problem? Recall that there are drain pipes along the outside perimeter as seen here:

They are not going to back fill anything until the basement is poured and the floor is in.

 

[dave1949]

I second the don't back fill with clay thought. Gravel or course sand would be my choice, something that water moves through quickly and down to the perimeter drain. I second the sand fill for the garage area too.

My garage has a floor drain that is tied to my perimeter tile. It is nice in a snowy area when the giant slush globs drop off and melt. We have a lot of sand used on our roads in winter. When the slush is melted, then you have little rafts of sand. I have to seep that up on a regular basis.

The slope in the concrete is "generally" in the direction of the floor drain. Couple of dips to sweep water out of and push it toward the drain. I have the standard floor drain with holes around the outside that drain into a sunken ring. That allows the grit to settle in that ring and the water overflow goes down the 4" drain hole in the center. I've not had a problem, but it really isn't that much water involved in terms of gallons.

You can use hardware cloth and a big hose clamp on the exposed end of a drain tile, or bury/cover it with 1" - 1.5" washed gravel which is a better choice IMO. The gravel allows the water to seep through and keeps critters out. The stone is too heavy, deep and course for mice/rats and snakes to work through. The hardware cloth eventually rusts away.

Looking good Pete.

 

[catdozer]

Thanks catdozer. I'll be sure to talk to the builder about what to back fill with 1st thing in the morning. So even though these are waterproof walls, you still think back filling with something that will hold water will be a problem? Recall that there are drain pipes along the outside perimeter as seen here:

They are not going to back fill anything until the basement is poured and the floor is in.

If water sits, it will always find its way in somehow. Ive seen water go at least 50 feet into the water line in the wall just from the ground being wet. Most people say yep its been water proofed, but water will find its way. If you have clay and still a perimeter drain the water wont flow, it will hold up and basement can condensate pretty bad sometimes. thats where the sand is good to allow the water to flow to your drain and keep the dirt around the basement dry. Usually its 3-10 years before you start to notice problems.
Do you have any sandy ground on your property? Dig that up and haul that in. We mostly do 3\4 sand and top it off with a sandy loam.

Thats good that they will wait until the floor will be done

 

[woodlandfarms]

We have two fun things in our area, lots of clay and over 50" of rain a year. Our neighbor just completed his build. I am sure that he had 5 feet of gravel backfill around his entire basement, plus the drain pipes were like 9" or something crazy, but in a good rain, it is like a river coming out of those pipes around his house. He also did use water proof concrete, but added a layer of rubberized paint as well. I guess in your case the gravel will add to the cost but it is also how I would procede.

 

[Tororider]

If water sits, it will always find its way in somehow. Ive seen water go at least 50 feet into the water line in the wall just from the ground being wet. Most people say yep its been water proofed, but water will find its way. If you have clay and still a perimeter drain the water wont flow, it will hold up and basement can condensate pretty bad sometimes. thats where the sand is good to allow the water to flow to your drain and keep the dirt around the basement dry. Usually its 3-10 years before you start to notice problems.
Do you have any sandy ground on your property? Dig that up and haul that in. We mostly do 3\4 sand and top it off with a sandy loam.

Thats good that they will wait until the floor will be done

The saying I always heard was water always wins.

 

[pacerron]

I also enjoy a floor drain in my 3 car basement garage. You should check your local code but most states don't have a problem with an "open to the air" drain on rural property. It does need a cap with holes in it to keep varmits out and you should flush the pipe out periodically to get any mud or salt out.
Your french drain will likely clog in time or the netting above it will from the clay. 2-3 feet of gravel, or even your blue crushed stone will help delay the clogging for a long time. Sooner or later if water builds up along the outside of your wall it will find a place to leak in. If you have well pipes or holes for other purposes coming through the walls below grade they really need sealing from the outside before backfilling.
Your builders should know the capability of your walls to not be bowed by backfilling before the main floor is put on to support it,
just hope the guy on the dozer is having a good day.

 

[mjncad]

I have no idea if your clay is like our Bentonite laden claycrete as I call our expansive stuff; but I agree with others to use washed stone, etc as backfill. If need be, you can always put 6" or so of the native soil over the stone backfill.

I also agree with comments on being careful about any compaction being done carefully, especially if the floor joists haven't been installed to keep the foundation aligned during backfilling and compaction.

 

[Scooter78]

It's better to spend the money now and know you did it right than having to go back and dig out around the house later because it is getting water into the basement.

 

[murphy1244]

Why drain it if the water can't even get to it. That builder is going to hate us vey much by the time this is over.

 

[catdozer]

Why drain it if the water can't even get to it. That builder is going to hate us vey much by the time this is over.

How are you going to keep water out?