Habitat for Humanity
Installing the Superior Walls Foundation System
Behind the Scenes - Habitat for Humanity
In preparation for the Blitz Build kick-off, the Superior Walls of America crew arrived on site in Yonkers the week before to install their innovative pre-cast concrete foundation system. The panels are built with steel reinforced concrete studs, using a waterproof concrete mix of 5000 psi. The concrete for the panels is poured under factory controlled optimal conditions ensuring a strong foundation which resists cracks and leaks.
Because the panels are precast the foundation can be installed pretty much year round in most weather conditions. The panels are preinsulated with 1" of rigid insulation. Furring strips are pre-attached to the stud face so walls can be finished without additional work. Pre-formed 1" diameter holes allow for quick and installation of wiring.
The prefabricated, insulated wall panels were delivered to the jobsite on a flatbed truck. There they were lifted one at a time by a crane and carefully and precisely mnanuevered into place on a 4"-6" bed of compacted stone which acts as a bearing layer and facilitates draining. Panels were erected, sealed with a polyurethane adhesive and then bolted together with steel hardware at the top and bottom. An average sized rectangular foundation like the one in Yonkers can be erected in four to five hours. As soon as all the wall panels were bolted together, the crew was able to begin pouring the floor slab within the wall system.
Once the basement floor was poured, work began on the first floor joists, then the subfloor, and finally backfilling the foundation. With the Superior Walls system the whole foundation was installed in one day.
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