Comprehensive Information on types of Foundations

1. @Civil_engineering101
This is any structural element
that distributes the load from the
building to the ground and prevents
overturning, uplifting, sliding and
sinking of buildings into the soil
strata.
FOUNDATIONS

2. @Civil_engineering101
1. Shallow Foundations
(width>2*depth, depth <3m)-
suitable for strong/stiff compacted
soils.
(a) Pad Foundation
(b) Combined Foundation
(c) Raft Foundation
(d) Strip Foundation
TYPES OF FOUNDATIONS

3. @Civil_engineering101
2. Deep Foundations (width<2*depth,
depth >3m)- used in soft/compressible
soils e.g fills, peat, alluvial deposits.
(a) Pile Foundation
(i) Pile walls
(ii)End bearing piles
(iii) Settlement reduction piles
(iv) Tension Piles
(v) Laterally loaded piles
(vi) Piles in fill
(b) Piers
(c) Caisson's
(d) Drilled Shafts
TYPES OF FOUNDATIONS

4. @Civil_engineering101
1 (a). Pad Foundation- this is a
designed for point loads (e.g
columns ). They can be square circular
or rectangular and are either stepped
or haunched.
TYPES OF FOUNDATIONS
1 (b). Combined Pad Foundation- this
is used where the columns are closely
spaced to one another, but there are
not many columns

5. @Civil_engineering101
1 (c). Raft Foundation- this is a slab
foundation that takes the load over
the whole are of the building. They
are used where many columns are
close together and individual pad
foundations would interact. They can
be stiffened with beams. Used in
loose soils with low bearing capacity.
They reduce differential settlements
as compared to other foundations.
TYPES OF FOUNDATIONS

6. @Civil_engineering101
1 (d). Strip Foundations- they are
designed for a line of many point
loads (columns) or a load bearing wall
(UDL).
2 (a). Piles- Long slender members
that transmits loads for weak surface
strata to deeper soils or rocks. Good
for resisting lateral or overturning
forces.
TYPES OF FOUNDATIONS

7. @Civil_engineering101
2 (b). Piers- they are used to carry
large structural loads and are mostly
used to support bridges. Tapered
piers are mostly Post Tensioned at
the top. They are used in
compression.
TYPES OF FOUNDATIONS

8. @Civil_engineering101
2 (c). Caisson's- this is a huge cage
constructed onshore and sunk into the
ocean. Once at the bottom of the
ocean, it is further lowered into the
ground by workers in the caissons.
Once work is completed, it is filled with
concrete. It could be made from
timber, steel or Reinforced concrete.
TYPES OF FOUNDATIONS

9. @Civil_engineering101
2 (d). Drilled Shaft- Cylindrical holes
excavated into the ground either
supported by contiguous piles or by
concrete spraying. They are used in the
construction of sewage tunnels e.g the
Thames tideway project in London.
TYPES OF FOUNDATIONS