Concrete foundation without a cement truck

[dannoGT]

Talk to a tech Rep at the company that makes the bags ! I can't help but think that there is a good solution to this problem? Lots of different modifiers and additive to improve bonding. The other thing to look at is a mixer that attaches to the 3pt hitch and let tractor do the work!

 

[SJay]

Pressure treated wood foundation - research it - should solve all our problems.

 

[CalG]

Concrete is the best, But get lots of help.

My teen age son and I placed a 12X18 slab using about 100 sak-crete bags and an electric motor driven mixer.

It got old before the end. Two more youthful backs and arms would have been just right. One pair to load and mix, One pair to place and finish.

 

[boggen]

haul your portland cement in, sand in, rock in, then haul a"trailer concrete mixer" and then haul in a skid steer.
--use the skid steer to move everything to into mixer, then use skid steer again to possibly move the wet mix to were it needs to go.

i am with other folks. see about drill down, tossing in some concrete, and then build some posts on top of that. then run a wood flooring.
--if you need to run sewer lines, water lines, LP or natural gas lines, eletrical. you will have in essence a crawl space under the building to access stuff.
--placing the overall building say 2 to 4 feet off the ground. and then put some metal siding or like around the edges, to help keep the critters out from under it possibly. but more than likely to help keep the wind from blowing under it.

most likely you will need a backhoe up in the area. to deal with any sort of trenches, with rocks and tree roots. a chain trencher more than likely get stuck and not make it.

*rubs chin* backhoe + footer + concrete blocks down below ground to a couple feet or higher above ground = sounds better. keep more of the critters out. and give you a crawl space underneath.
--if lucky backhoe able to dig in trenches for water, sewer, electrical, gas. and perhaps a concrete floor. without a crawl space at all.

pending on ground, you might get away pouring say 4" to 6" concrete pad. directly on the ground. without footers or like. many sheds are done this way. "pole barns" and folks having a concrete area for there work shop area, or entire shed.
--if you are going concrete route for pad. you really should be contacting your local concrete companies. and let them bid it out.
--if going DIY route, higher concrete finisher = a must have, they person will have the tools and know how and more so the experience to get the pad level and no major dips / low spots / high spots and get it all nice and smooth.

 

[RedNeckRacin]

Differential settling would be a concern wouldn't it? I mean if you only loaded some of the pylons and then in later years loaded the others wouldn't the settling be uneven?

That's why they are over designed. If they are adequate, there should be minimal if any settling.

 

[Deere Dude]

We are planning a new cabin in the mountains. The existing cabin has been there almost 90 years now. The issue with building a new cabin is the footings. Is it possible with enough people to pour a concrete foundation with nothing more than a mixer and piles of ready mix? There is no way on earth a cement truck could make it to the site. There is about 9 miles of serious off-road to get there. Might be able to drag one in with a dozer but it would be dicey.

Is there any solution for the situation where cement trucks just can't make it?

And before I get a slew of "...no inspector would ever let you...." or "..building codes require..." This is unincorporated land and no building permit is required. Doesn't mean I don't have signed drawings or don't care about code. I'm just saying that limitations on pouring by hand that are based on legal issues are not relevant here.

Griz

I would buy a Harbor Freight mixer and haul in sand, gravel and Portland cement. A few 2x6s. rebar and stakes and away you go.

My wife and I, although younger at the time, poured footings that way for a 30x60 house with a 36x30 attached garage. Plus the house had about 50 feet of 4' concrete frost wall. She mixed almost every bit of it so a little cabin will be a piece of cake. We never considered premixed in the bag and the time and we were rookies so weren't sure of ourselves enough to try to get a concrete truck to scoot around the house as we had mountains of dirt all over. I think it was 20 yards or so if I remember.

The hardest thing would be to get 5-7 yards of dry sand and gravel concrete mix back there.

 

[Streetcar]

Ok I know I am going to catch some flame for this but am going to say it anyway. When i read "footer" or "foundation" i am thinking at or below grade. Why can you not pour in a dry mix right into the footing ? Adding some water and mixing it really well in the footing if you can would even be better. Believe it or not the dry mix will absorb water from the surrounding soil over a period of time. Please note that the stiffer you mix concrete (which means using less water) the stronger the end result will be. Excess water is a major no no. A shovel and mixing it really well in the footing as you pour it in fits this stiff mix requirement just fine. The concrete blocks on top of the footer suggested above will work just fine. Some may or may not agree with this idea but just to keep it short i do know a bit about what i am talking about.

Placing dry concrete and using wicking for hydration will typically result in concrete with varying strength. Depending on weather, hydration can take a long time.

 

[dougtrr2]

Just to be sure, there is adequate water available?

Doug in SW IA

 

[Rustyiron]

I know a guy with foundation of dry stacked sand bag's filled with concrete mix (not the paper bag's). His only problems are from improper drainage & water proofing, but that's only a big issue with finished space in the bsmt. It is a hay bale house, pretty interesting.

 

[LD1]

Certainly there are probably better ways to build this, but for the time, I am just going to talk about a concrete footer.

First, have you talked to a concrete supplier? Alot of them have smaller trucks that only haul 4-5 yds. Basically not much bigger than a single axle 10-ton dump. Think like an old chevy C60. Do you think one of them could get there?

IF thats out, I personally wouldnt use pre-mix bags. They are great for setting posts, or doing a sidewalk, or some stepping stones, but thats about where I draw the line. The aggregate is usually pea gravel.....too small IMO, and I just dont think they put enough portland in it. I can show you some old sections of concrete that were poured from a truck and some that were bags. There is no comparison. One can be busted up with a framing hammer. The other needs a sledge.

60# bags of premix are good for 1/2 cu ft. so thats gonna need 270 bags. Even the cheap $2.50/bag stuff is gonna cost you ~$700 + you hauling it. Getting stuff off the truck is usually only $100-$110 per yard and way better concrete.

If you indeed cannot get a truck in there, next best option is raw material and mix by hand. 5 yards would require about 4 tons of #57 limestone (3/4" stuff thats washed and screened, as the #57 might not be what its called there), and about 4 ton of sand. That will be a little more than you will ultimatly need on both sand and gravel, but better to have too much than not enough. IF you got a couple of pickups or a dump trailer, and can haul yourself if a quarry is near by, those should run about $20/ton. So ~$80 in stone and $80 in sand. Then you need 6 bags of portland per yard so 30 of those total. They are about $10 each for the 94# bags. So you will have about $460 in raw materials vs $700 buying premix bags, and the concrete will be alot better quality if you mix it properly.