From your picture I would dig in, it will be the cheapest and the most stable. If you are concerned about water you can make a shallow trench around the high end and the sides to keep the water going in a direction that you want or add a french drain to that. I personally try not to build pole barns as the bottoms will eventually rot, probably not in your lifetime, but I like to build to at least 200 years life expectancy. The wider your roof overhangs the better for keeping water away from your walls and footings.
Help getting land ready for Garage
- Thread starter pccarroll
- Start date
PineRidge
Super Member
Pccarroll your grade really doesn't look as bad as mine did. I ended up with the ground about 3 to 4 foot high in the back of the pole barn but it has caused no problem for me since I dug a drainage ditch and filled it with large stone to divert the water away from the pole barn. It works since the floor is bone dry even in a hard downpour.
The contractor came in with a BobCat and moved all the dirt in a matter of about an hour and a half to level the pad location. I had him clear an extra 3 foot on all sides of the barn. I'm now enlarging the side cleared area to accommodate parking a car or trailer on each side.
If you are concerned about water problems maybe you can use a few of Henro's ideas. It's amazing what some guys can do with an idea and an empty beer bottle and Henro had 2 empty bottles, one for each of the two beers that he is holding in his picture. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
The contractor came in with a BobCat and moved all the dirt in a matter of about an hour and a half to level the pad location. I had him clear an extra 3 foot on all sides of the barn. I'm now enlarging the side cleared area to accommodate parking a car or trailer on each side.
If you are concerned about water problems maybe you can use a few of Henro's ideas. It's amazing what some guys can do with an idea and an empty beer bottle and Henro had 2 empty bottles, one for each of the two beers that he is holding in his picture. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
JimR
Elite Member
From what your picture looks like, I would dig in. Use the fill from the foundation to raise the floor height and level off that area. There may even be enough to bank the sides a little with the leftover. If not, bring in a little more fill.
EddieWalker
Epic Contributor
I would hire somebody who's been around your area for awhile and knows the ground. From your picture it looks like a little cutting from the high side could be used to fill on the low side. Depending on the type of soil you have, compaction can be easily obtained with a dozer, or you might need a compactor.
Just hoping that rain and time will do the job isn't going to work.
Hoping to get it close and filling in the difference with concrete is just throwing money away. A 30 by 40 pad 4 inches thick is going to take 15 yards. Thats without any footings around the edges to support the walls. How deep does your footing have to go? Concrete runs about $65 a yard in East Texas.
I'd guess your minimum expense for just concrete and rebar is going to be around $1,200, and if you want to fill in the slope double that number and be ready go even higher.
A competent crew will cut your pad, slope the surrounding ground for run off in a day. They will have a lazer level, several tractors and when the day is done, your pad will be perfect.
You're also going to need a crew to pour the concrete. Don't try this on your own without experience and lots of good friends.
Pay for these two things, and the rest is fairly simple. Screw up the pad and slab and you have a night mare!
The french drains are a necessary evil. If you don't absolutley have to have one, DONT! From your picture, your land has a nice gentle slope that is perfect for building on.
Good Luck
Eddie
Just hoping that rain and time will do the job isn't going to work.
Hoping to get it close and filling in the difference with concrete is just throwing money away. A 30 by 40 pad 4 inches thick is going to take 15 yards. Thats without any footings around the edges to support the walls. How deep does your footing have to go? Concrete runs about $65 a yard in East Texas.
I'd guess your minimum expense for just concrete and rebar is going to be around $1,200, and if you want to fill in the slope double that number and be ready go even higher.
A competent crew will cut your pad, slope the surrounding ground for run off in a day. They will have a lazer level, several tractors and when the day is done, your pad will be perfect.
You're also going to need a crew to pour the concrete. Don't try this on your own without experience and lots of good friends.
Pay for these two things, and the rest is fairly simple. Screw up the pad and slab and you have a night mare!
The french drains are a necessary evil. If you don't absolutley have to have one, DONT! From your picture, your land has a nice gentle slope that is perfect for building on.
Good Luck
Eddie
Nasty135
Veteran Member
pccarroll, Something I would also use to help make my decision is grade of garage to grade of drive? If grade of driveway is higher in elevation to garage you may get run-off in garage,in which case I would build-up. Unless you put a culvert drain across the entrance to the garage. If the run-off will not be a factor (hard to tell from a picture)then I'm for the virgin ground method..Oh the excitement of construction! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif Mark S.
Soundguy
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If you cut it in.. just contour the existing land around it so that you don't get standing water. Looks real flat there.. so shouldn't be a problem.
Soundguy
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The "fill" was from my neighbor digging a pond. It was a mixture of dirt from various depths.
Not sure how you do slabs in TN. Here we cannot do a basic flat slab because of the contracting and expanding of the soil as the moisture content changes. If they are any size at all, they are poured with perimeter beams and, if large enough, additional beams criss-crossing the slab thru the center. Mine has extra deep beams with 6 (or was it 8?) runs of 1/2" rebar in each. After 4 years, there are only a very few spider web cracks, none of which show any signs of opening up.
Not sure how you do slabs in TN. Here we cannot do a basic flat slab because of the contracting and expanding of the soil as the moisture content changes. If they are any size at all, they are poured with perimeter beams and, if large enough, additional beams criss-crossing the slab thru the center. Mine has extra deep beams with 6 (or was it 8?) runs of 1/2" rebar in each. After 4 years, there are only a very few spider web cracks, none of which show any signs of opening up.
Wow,
Thanks guys. You all seem very sharp about this kind of stuff. You all have made me feel a lot more comfortable with beginning this project. Like I stated before, I had a slight fear of even beginning this, but you all have eased a little of the fear.
I think that I am going to do like you all suggested and cut into the slope a little bit. Once the garage is there, if there is any water problems, they can all be fixed with a little backhoe work. I like the thought of putting the slab on undisturbed soil a lot better that having to bring in fill and pack. I know that in the end, both are great but I am looking for the easiest/fastest route possible.
I think my next step is to start hunting for a crew to tackle the job. I have priced a few builders, and man things are high. The ones that have quoted me prices are big time commercial dealers. That is probably why the price is so high. I am about to start looking for local builders in the area, maybe even the Amish.
I had planned for this to be my spring project but plans changed this weekend per the Wife. Now it looks like my garage will be more of a fall project since our deck got moved up to the top of the list.
Thanks again for all of the help and If I ever see any questions on here that I may lend some advice on I will definetly try my best to help.
Thanks
Thanks guys. You all seem very sharp about this kind of stuff. You all have made me feel a lot more comfortable with beginning this project. Like I stated before, I had a slight fear of even beginning this, but you all have eased a little of the fear.
I think that I am going to do like you all suggested and cut into the slope a little bit. Once the garage is there, if there is any water problems, they can all be fixed with a little backhoe work. I like the thought of putting the slab on undisturbed soil a lot better that having to bring in fill and pack. I know that in the end, both are great but I am looking for the easiest/fastest route possible.
I think my next step is to start hunting for a crew to tackle the job. I have priced a few builders, and man things are high. The ones that have quoted me prices are big time commercial dealers. That is probably why the price is so high. I am about to start looking for local builders in the area, maybe even the Amish.
I had planned for this to be my spring project but plans changed this weekend per the Wife. Now it looks like my garage will be more of a fall project since our deck got moved up to the top of the list.
Thanks again for all of the help and If I ever see any questions on here that I may lend some advice on I will definetly try my best to help.
Thanks