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Site Clearing, Footings and Stem-Wall Foundation

Bob meets Buba Barrow of Barrow Construction, the general contractor for the container-built housing project, and Ray Price of SPNHS, the project manager for the job. Barrow, a former engineer turned builder, explains how the stem wall foundation is constructed first with 20-inch by 8-inch footings reinforced with rebar that are poured to support a concrete block wall reinforced with #5 rebar set 32 inches on center. The cells are filled with concrete in a continuous pour to make a monolithic slab and foundation. This type of foundation, known as a stem-wall foundation, is the sturdiest possible support for a home built in hurricane territory and subject to wind, storm surge, and uplift. Bob talks to Price about the site clearing on this shaded lot covered with Florida Live Oaks. Once the central oak and the brush were cleared, Price supervised the pouring of the footings during a challenging set of delays in Florida's rainy season. The rectangular foundation is ready for the intermodal steel building units (ISBU's) that will arrive on site and be welded to the steel plates set in the concrete as weld points around the perimeter of the foundation. More information