The foundation is the support for your home or building. The foundation usually sits below ground and helps distribute the weight of the building onto the ground, which is the main purpose of your foundation. All homes and buildings have some type of foundation. Foundations can be different sizes and lengths depending on the building that sits on it.

You need a foundation for your home or building so that the home or building doesn't move with the earth. The foundation is a very important part of your home or building project. The foundation will take the load from the roof to the walls and the floors and transfers them into your soil. Without your foundation your house moves and can actually fall apart. All homes built need to have a foundation which is regulated by where you live and what type of structure you are building.

There are three main types of foundations that you can use for your building project. These three types of foundations will include:

• A basement as a foundation. Basements are common in many older areas because they provide additional space for the family. Basements being used as a foundation are perhaps the least expensive way to expand a home.


• A crawl space as a foundation. This foundation is mostly used in the middle part of the United States because of the frost lines are not so deep. A crawl space is actually a raised foundation and is very common in home construction. A crawl space gives you just enough room to crawl under your home and to install the mechanical systems needed in your building project.


• A slab as a foundation. This is a foundation that is widely found in the South part of the United States. Slab foundations are concrete poured directly on ground. A slab foundation is usually poured at the same time as your footings. If you are trying to cut costs a slab foundation is the best way to do it. Slab foundations are also used when soil conditions prevent you from using a basement foundation. Slab foundations differ from basement foundations and crawl space foundations because it uses concrete to support the weight of the home instead of wood.

Here are some things you need to do for laying your choice of foundation:

• The soil should be inspected in the area you wish to lay your foundation. This is because certain types of soil require a different foundation for strength and to decrease any problems you can have in the future. The soil should have been inspected by the building department, the builder and designer in order to advise you what type of foundation is best and where you should lay the foundation.
• Before you begin digging the foundation of your home or building you should also have your lot surveyed in order to determine the actual corners of your foundation. This will save you time and allow you to form the entire foundation.
• You can then begin to dig your foundation and then install the footings for your foundation. This can all be done by the excavator that either you or the contractor has hired.
• Once the concrete is laid you will then need to seal the footings to protect them from moisture. Use high quality sealer to give the best protection to your building project.
• If you are building a basement you will need to wait until the concrete has cured to build the stem walls.
• Treat the foundation walls with sealer also. This can be applied immediately after finishing the concrete to act as a curing compound and sealer.

There are many things to know about your foundation. Picking the right site and foundation for your building project will help it last a long time with very few problems.