Don't bury your money in the ground! How builders cheat at the stage of backfill

Construction is a science and as in any science, only 10% of people understand it. The remaining 90% of the population pretend to understand, and for this reason, they become victims of deception by unscrupulous contractors. This is a fact and it is confirmed by the fact that half of private housing is being built in violation of technology. Most often, tricks are turned where it is difficult to detect: in the foundation and the foundation pit. How not to bury money in the ground - read on.

Pit

All sorts of machinations take place here, both with building materials and with works. If you order construction services, try to carefully control the process and ask uncomfortable questions. If there is no competent friend-builder who can tell you how to build the foundation correctly, see the list of "chips" that empty your wallet and lead to serious problems in the future.

Builders do not ram the bottom of the pit

The trick is that the sand is filled up at once, and not layer by layer with a rammer. Not everyone wants to walk with carts, sprinkle sand in layers of 10 centimeters, pour water on it and carefully go through with a rammer. It is much easier and faster to fit the dump truck to the pit, dump the entire volume at once, level it and walk from above with a rammer.

The result will look similar to the one that needs to be obtained, but the consequences are found out later, when, under the weight of the house, the sand begins to compacted unevenly, and therefore the foundation is deformed. As a result: cracks in the base and walls. This also applies to the precast foundation trench. This moment must be immediately negotiated with the contractor and, if possible, controlled by being present at the facility during the work.

Poor quality sand

Nowadays, it is not difficult for cunning builders to draw any accounting documents for the purchase of building materials. And bulk materials are a builder's gold mine: the exact volume cannot be determined; you can save on quality in your favor.

Sand for the pit can be brought with an admixture of clay, and this is fraught with a serious problem. The fact is that sand belongs to non-porous soils, that is, it does not change its volume during freezing and defrosting cycles. The sand cushion stabilizes the foundation: prevents it from moving when heaving soils freeze; cuts off and drains water from the base.

If there is an admixture of clay in the sand, it will cease to be non-porous soil and, therefore, will lose the above qualities. Sand with clay impurities will change in volume during freezing, which will lead to foundation movements. The result is the same as in the first case: cracks in the walls and base are possible. To avoid this, you need to declare to the contractor - if the sand arouses suspicion, the sample will be submitted for examination with the ensuing consequences.

Geotextile is not laid at the bottom of the pit

Geotextiles are necessary so that the sand cushion does not mix with clay and other heaving soils under the house. If mixing occurs, the sand will simply lose its useful properties. And as it was written above, heaving soils tend to change the volume when freezing, which will result in shifts in the foundation with all the consequences... It is not enough to control the presence of geotextiles, you also need to monitor its high-quality installation.

Backfilling of the pit sinuses is done with earth mixed with construction waste

After the construction of the house, the tricks with the pit do not end: the backfilling of the sinuses can be done with soil mixed with construction debris. Of course, this is much cheaper than buying high-quality sand, with its layer-by-layer filling and tamping. Sometimes this type of backfill may seem like a rational idea that saves money, but you should not do it.

The consequences of a violation of technology will not keep you waiting for a long time: soon the drainage will stop working, if it was done at all; further, from frosty heaving, the blind area around the house will collapse, partially hooking the lower part of the basement finish. Care should be taken to backfill the sinuses with clean sand.

What methods of cheating in the pit are familiar to you? Write in the comments!

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