A slab-on-grade means no basement, no basement walls, just one slab of concrete on which you build your house.
A slab foundation is a large, thick slab of concrete that's used as the substructural base of a home, which is the lowest load-bearing part of a building and extends below ground level. It is usually at least four inches thick in its center, although it can sometimes be up to six inches thick.
One of the most significant disadvantages to not having a basement is when you sell it. Basements tend to be a huge asset when selling your house. If you live in an area where basements are popular among buyers, it may be challenging to sell your home.
Even minuscule amounts of moisture can cause serious cracks in a slab foundation, which makes them a slightly risky option in colder climates. Hard to Access: Slab foundations are low-maintenance compared to basements and crawl spaces, but it's much more of a hassle to work on when things go wrong.
Built directly on the ground, there is no space under slab foundations for wires, pipes or storage. Often, water and gas lines are embedded into the slab foundation, which can increase costs if you need to access those lines.
When it comes to modern home construction, concrete slabs may be the norm, but they actually make homes more vulnerable to termite infestations in the long-run. This is because concrete slabs eventually develop cracks that termites can easily travel through in order to access structural wood above.
Basements built in California are often below sea level, so extra measures must be taken to prevent flooding and other water-related issues. Most contractors working in California try to reduce expenses wherever possible, and excluding basements from homes fulfills this goal.
90% of homes north of the line have basements, and less than 1% of those to the south do. Partially this is due to climate, although in most cases it is due to the conditions on which the house is built. This centers on two main factors: the soil content and the water table.
Basements serve as ideal locations for utilities, including furnaces and water systems. If you live in a house with a crawl space or on a slab, you may have a difficult time accessing ducts, as well as important pipes and wires.
Concrete Slab Foundations
A slab foundation, sometimes called a monolithic or monoslab foundation, is a flat concrete slab that rests on the ground and is poured in one single piece. The main advantage of a monolithic foundation is that they're less expensive and quicker to construct.
Poured concrete block bases and slab foundations will last for a lifetime, 80 to 100 years or more, given they have been constructed with precision. The termite proofing of the base, 12 years, provided the chemical barriers remain intact.
When adding a bathroom on a concrete slab, you first need to consider the current layout of your house. You will need determine whether you are going to connect to existing waste management lines; through cutting through the concrete slab or. using in-wall electric solutions that mean you do not need to cut your slab.
Poured concrete is the strongest type of foundation for a house. Concrete is incredibly strong and durable, and it can be poured into any shape. This makes it ideal for supporting the weight of a house. Block foundations are also very strong, but they are not as flexible as poured concrete.
Like anything else in this world, slab foundations can move, break, crack, or be damaged over time. Three main conditions lead to foundation settlement and damage to your home: expansive clay soil plus climate inconsistency, under-slab plumbing problems, and poor initial construction.
1. Concrete Slab Foundation. A concrete slab is one of the most common types of house foundations, requiring the least amount of lot prep to begin building. Installation is simple compared to other house foundation types, making slab foundations popular among homeowners for their relatively low price tag.
In some parts of the state the water table is too near the surface of the ground, making leaking and flooding an issue. In other areas the bedrock is too near the surface, making digging a basement difficult and costly.
Wet Soils. Damp soil is the major culprit in most cases of missing basements in the southern states. Most parts of Florida, Louisiana, and eastern Texas have swaths of wetland or swamps or significant coastlines. So, there's just too much water underground to make basement construction feasible.
Because the ground doesn't freeze in Phoenix, you only have to dig 18 inches below the surface to pour concrete footing for a house.
A slab-on-grade means no basement, no basement walls, just one slab of concrete on which you build your house.
California homes don't have basements because of climate conditions, traditional architecture, and the perceived risk factors of adding a basement in an earthquake-prone area.
Which States Are Basements Allowed In? Of the 50 states in the US, only in 7 are basements commonly found. These states are known as being a part of 'Tornado Alley'. That doesn't mean there aren't basements in any of the other 43, only that you're less likely to find them there.
It makes sense that a slab would fend off termites but this is simply not the case. Termites are quite efficient at their job of destroying wood and they have found ways to bypass a layer of concrete and still find access to wood structures.
There is a myth or just misinformation out there that a concrete slab home shouldn't get termites because it has a cement foundation/floor. This couldn't be further from the truth. Many times we see termites and termite damage on slab homes in Raleigh/Durham during our termite inspections.
Homeowners often assume that if their home sits on a concrete slab, they don't need to worry about termites. While termites may not be able to eat through concrete, they can still find ways into your home. It takes only a crack (the thickness of your credit card) in your concrete foundation for termites to enter.