Moisture Barrier Wall
A foundation system is disclosed that is used when building a structure on expansive soils. The foundation system includes a vertical wall that prevents moisture from migrating beyond the vertical wall into the zone of influence under the foundation. The prevention of the moisture migration into the zone of influence precludes damage to the foundation and structure caused by expansive soils.
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This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/626,144, filed Nov. 25, 2009, which is incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates generally to structural foundations, and more particularly to a vertical wall that prevents moisture from migrating into the zone of influence of the soil under a foundation of a residential or commercial building built in expansive soil areas.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONSeveral techniques have been used in the past to solve structural problems caused when buildings are built on expansive soils which shrink and swell with moisture. Specifically, below-grade barriers can be installed after construction and after distress manifests itself in a building. These after the fact barriers are very expensive and intrusive. Moreover, these barriers are placed several feet beyond the existing building slab or footing thereby necessitating an additional barrier to prevent moisture from migrating between the below-grade barrier and the existing building slab or footing. Repairs after the fact are extremely costly depending on the amount of damage associated with the foundation movement due to the expansive soil below. Other similar barriers used to repair damage after the fact include cutoff walls of concrete or synthetic membranes.
The use of after the fact remedial approaches to repair damages to structures caused by expansive soils is more costly and time consuming than installing a vertical wall to prevent moisture seepage at the time of initial construction. With after the fact remedial procedures, landscaping is destroyed, mechanical units are relocated, patios and driveways are torn up, and owners and occupants of the property are displaced for weeks at a time to allow time for the repairs.
In the prior art methods, post-tensioned concrete slabs have been used to deal with expansive soils. This type of construction, however, is expensive and requires extensive engineering and specialized construction techniques. Additionally, the floor plan designs are limited due to the constraints inherent in post-tensioned slabs. The current invention eliminates these constraints, is simple to install and will prevent the distress in buildings caused by foundation movement associated with both expansive and collapsible soils. Therefore, it is desirable to have a vertical wall that extends into the soil and is integral with the building foundation in order to prevent moisture from migrating into the zone of influence under the building foundation.
Various techniques have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. U.S. Pat. No. 4,015,432 (H F Ball), U.S. Pat. No. 4,534,143 (Goines et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 5924251 Jalla), U.S. Pat. No. 4,508,472 (Handy), U.S. Pat. No. 3,269,126 (Freeman), U.S. Pat. No. 1,746,918 (Webster), U.S. Pat. No. 7,131,239 (Williams), U.S. Pat. No. 7,003,918 (Williams), U.S. Patent Application Nos. 20080304919 (Coyle), 20030233798 (Berkey et al.), 20030188496 (Williams), and International Publication No. WO 2005021874 (Bashford) to overcome the problems with building on expansive soils. However, these disclosures suffer from one or more of the following disadvantages. First, none of these inventions include a vertical wall that extends deep below the surface of the soil and is integral with the building foundation. Second, none of these inventions are simple and inexpensive designs. Third, most of the inventions above are remedial in nature rather than including a design that prevents foundation problems at the time of initial construction.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONA structural foundation for use in expansive or other soil comprises a foundational element. The foundational element is made of a vertical wall and a slab on a soil surface. The vertical wall is poured integral to the slab and the top of the vertical wall contacts the foundation. The bottom of the vertical wall extends a distance below the soil surface and prevents moisture from migrating beyond the vertical wall under the foundational element.
In an alternate embodiment, a foundation appurtenance for use in expansive soils comprises a vertical wall and a foundation. The foundation further comprises a slab on a soil surface and a footing below the soil surface. The vertical wall is poured integral to the footing and the top of the vertical wall contacts the footing. The bottom of the vertical wall extends a distance below the soil surface and prevents moisture from migrating beyond the vertical wall under the foundation.
The present invention is directed to a foundation used in expansive soils to prevent water migration beyond a vertical wall into a zone of influence under a building foundation.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a foundation with a vertical wall that is poured integral with the foundation.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a foundation with a vertical wall that is installed at the time of initial construction.
The novel features that are considered characteristic of the invention are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its structure and its operation together with the additional object and advantages thereof will best be understood from the following description of the preferred embodiment of the invention when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Unless specifically noted, it is intended that the words and phrases in the specification and claims be given the ordinary and accustomed meaning to those of ordinary skill in the applicable art or arts. If any other meaning is intended, the specification will specifically state that a special meaning is being applied to a word or phrase Likewise, the use of the words “function” or “means” in the Description of Preferred Embodiments is not intended to indicate a desire to invoke the special provision of 35 U.S.C. §112, paragraph 6 to define the invention. To the contrary, if the provisions of 35 U.S.C. §112, paragraph 6 are sought to be invoked to define the invention(s), the claims will specifically state the phrases “means for” or “step for” and a function, without also reciting in such phrases any structure, material, or act in support of the function.
Moreover, even if the provisions of 35 U.S.C. §112, paragraph 6 are invoked to define the inventions, it is intended that the inventions not be limited only to the specific structure, material or acts that are described in the preferred embodiments, but in addition, include any and all structures, materials or acts that perform the claimed function, along with any and all known or later developed equivalent structures, materials, or acts for performing the claimed function.
As described above, several techniques have been used in the past to solve structural problems caused when buildings are built on expansive soils 455 which shrink and swell with moisture.
In contrast, the preferred embodiments of the present invention shown in
In
In the current invention, the vertical wall 200 acts to prevent moisture from migrating through the expansive soil 455 into the zone of influence 350. As explained above, the zone of influence 350 is the area of soil that when introduced with moisture could cause the foundation 300 to move and damage the structure 400.
The depth of the slab 320 and footing 340 below the soil surface 450 depends on the elevation above sea level of the area where the structure 400 is being built. In the embodiment shown in
The vertical wall 200 extends a distance below the footing 340 such that moisture is prevented from migrating beyond the vertical wall 200 into the zone of influence 350 under the foundation 300. In the preferred embodiment shown in
To create the foundation 300 shown in the preferred embodiment of
Moreover, if it is determined that the soil 455 where the foundation 300 and structure 400 are being built has a swell potential greater than 2%, a liner 500 is placed on the outside 230 of the vertical wall 200 that faces away from the slab 320. The liner 500 provides slippage of the vertical wall 200 in the soil 455 thereby eliminating friction that could cause the entire foundation 300 to move, thus causing damage to the structure 400. It is preferred that the liner 500 is made of high density polyethylene with a thickness of 15-40 millimeters, but any material with similar properties can be used.
In the embodiment shown in
In this embodiment of the current invention, the vertical wall 200 acts to prevent moisture from migrating through the expansive soil 455 into the zone of influence 350. As explained above, the zone of influence 350 is the area of soil that when introduced with moisture could cause the foundation 300 to move and damage the structure 400.
In this embodiment, the depth of the slab 320 and footing 340 below the soil surface 450 depends on the elevation above sea level of the area where the structure 400 is being built. In the embodiment shown in
The vertical wall 200 extends a distance below the footing 340 such that moisture is prevented from migrating beyond the vertical wall 200 into the zone of influence 350 under the foundation 300. In the preferred embodiment shown in
To create the foundation 300 shown In the preferred embodiment of
If it is determined that the soil 455 where the foundation 300 and structure 400 are being built has a swell potential greater than 2%, a liner 500 is placed on the outside 230 of the vertical wall 200. The liner 500 provides slippage of the vertical wall 200 in the soil 455 thereby eliminating friction that could cause the entire foundation 300 to move, thus causing damage to the structure 400. It is preferred that the liner 500 is made of high density polyethylene with a thickness of 15-40 millimeters, but any material with similar properties can be used.
The embodiment in
The vertical wall 200 extends a distance below the footing 340 such that moisture is prevented from migrating beyond the vertical wall 200 into the zone of influence 350 under the foundation 300. In the preferred embodiment shown in
To create the foundation 300 shown in
If it is determined that the soil 455 where the foundation 300 and structure 400 are being built has a swell potential greater than 2%, a liner 500 is placed on the outside 230 of the vertical wall 200. The liner 500 provides slippage of the vertical wall 200 in the soil 455 thereby eliminating friction that could cause the entire foundation 300 to move, thus causing damage to the structure 400. It is preferred that the liner 500 is made of high density polyethylene with a thickness of 15-40 millimeters, but any material with similar properties can be used.
The embodiment in
To create the foundation 300 shown in the preferred embodiment of
If it is determined that the soil 455 where the foundation 300 and structure 400 are being built has a swell potential greater than 2%, a liner 500 is placed on the outside 230 of the vertical wall 200. The liner 500 provides slippage of the vertical wall 200 in the soil 455 thereby eliminating friction that could cause the entire foundation 300 to move, thus causing damage to the structure 400. It is preferred that the liner 500 is made of high density polyethylene with a thickness of 15-40 millimeters, but any material with similar properties can be used.
The embodiment in
To create the foundation in the preferred embodiment shown in
If it is determined that the soil 455 where the foundation 300 and structure 400 are being built has a swell potential greater than 2%, a liner 500 is placed on the outside 230 of the vertical wall 200. The liner 500 provides slippage of the vertical wall 200 in the soil 455 thereby eliminating friction that could cause the entire foundation 300 to move, thus causing damage to the structure 400. It is preferred that the liner 500 is made of high density polyethylene with a thickness of 15-40 millimeters, but any material with similar properties can be used.
The preferred embodiment of the invention is described in the Description of Preferred Embodiments. While these descriptions directly describe the one embodiment, it is understood that those skilled in the art may conceive modifications and/or variations to the specific embodiments shown and described herein. Any such modifications or variations that fall within the purview of this description are intended to be included therein as well. Unless specifically noted, it is the intention of the inventor that the words and phrases in the specification and claims be given the ordinary and accustomed meanings to those of ordinary skill in the applicable art(s). The foregoing description of a preferred embodiment and best mode of the invention known to the applicant at the time of filing the application has been presented and is intended for the purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed, and many modifications and variations are possible in the light of the above teachings. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical application and to enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.
Claims
1. A device for preventing moisture from migrating into a structure's zone of influence in expansive soil, the device comprising in combination:
- a structure, and
- a vertical wall located below the structure and located at least partially underground, the vertical wall placed contemporaneously with or prior to construction of the structure;
- the vertical wall configured to form a vertical skirt around the expansive soil underneath the structure;
- the vertical wall comprising at least some structural connection to a perimeter of the structure; and
- the vertical wall configured underneath the perimeter of the structure so that an outside face of the vertical wall and an outside face of the structure form a single vertical plane.
2. The device of claim 1, further comprising a liner on the outside face of the vertical wall.
3. The device of claim 1, the vertical skirt extending at least 18 inches below the soil surface.
4. The device of claim 1, the vertical wall comprising concrete.
5. The device of claim 1, wherein the structure is a concrete slab.
6. The device of claim 1, the vertical wall comprising grout or a slurry mix.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 2, 2014
Publication Date: Jul 31, 2014
Applicant: Alternative Construction Techniques, LLC (Fountain Hills, AZ)
Inventors: Amil Fornatora (Scottsdale, AZ), Philip Coppola (Fountain Hills, AZ)
Application Number: 14/243,109
International Classification: E02D 19/00 (20060101); E04B 1/66 (20060101);