This invention relates to the manufacturing assembly and method using flowing concrete or other cementous material to form poured concrete foundations and walls. This invention also relates to the concrete/cementous material flow through and accumulation on the lattice grid panel of a concrete form to create an adequate concrete layer on the external surface of the panel for effective smoothing and decorative finish. This invention further relates to insulated poured concrete walls.
The process of constructing a poured concrete foundation and wall has conventionally required forms to be created on site, wherein the concrete forms may consist of wood, metal, plastic or wood/metal panels erected and maintained in spaced, parallel relationship with other panels. Fluid concrete is then poured within the concrete forms, which are removed after the concrete has set and hardens. In most foundation concrete pourings the base of the foundation or footing and the foundation wall are performed in two separate concrete pours. Problems associated with these processes include higher labor costs, higher equipment costs, lack of uniformity, and expense associated with the removal and disposal of the forming panels. Also the difficulty of adding insulation within the concrete forms and the ability to perform exterior decorative treatments while maintaining a durable concrete exterior surface has been problematic in these concrete forming processes.
Most building structures require a foundation element customarily called a footing that gives base support to the structure. Footings are customarily made of poured concrete and are usually wider than the structures load bearing walls to give adequate base support. The footing width and thickness often depends on the soil or ground load-bearing capacity and may vary in residential structures from approximately 6 to 12 inches in depth to 12 to 24 inches in width, with commercial footings usually larger in size.
The footing cavity where concrete is poured may vary from a trench dug into the ground, boards holding either side of the poured concrete to manufactured special metal footing forming system. The foundation of a structure may include the footing and then a poured or concrete block wall built upon the footing. Many times much of the foundation is below ground where termite are a concern in certain geographies and a solid exterior concrete surface is required. Most footing construction methods currently used are two-stage foundations where the footing is poured at one pouring, allowed to dry for a certain period of time (usually at least 24 hours) and then the foundation wall is formed by a concrete wall form being placed on the dry footing and poured. The foundation/exterior wall forms may be made of wood, metal, composite and plastic.
A monopour foundation is one where concrete in the footing and wall forms is placed and poured at the same time. The biggest disadvantage of a two-stage pour is that it is more expensive than a monopour. A two-stage pour takes about two days longer than a monopur and the cold joint, space between poured wall and footing, is a weak point in the foundation and may allow moisture to weep through the space.
Two-stage foundation pouring does have advantages in that the wall forms and bracing will not shift or settle by movement of the hardened dry footing. Concrete pouring is the minimization of risk, cost and time and if monopouring is less expensive and faster than a two-stage pour then risk of significant lifting and settling would need to be eliminated.
There have been recent advances and the need for poured concrete walls that have insulation as part of the concrete form assembly such as insulated concrete forms (I C F's) and rigid foam insulation being placed within wooden and metal concrete forms. Tilt-up insulated poured walls have made recent improvements in combining foam insulation where concrete is formed on either side of the rigid foam insulation. The insulation helps reduce heating and cooling costs while at the same time providing the durability and strength of concrete.
Decorative and finish treatment on the face of the poured concrete can give increased value and attractive looks to a structure. Time and expenses can be saved in troweling and decorative treatment of concrete walls when these activities can be performed at the same time as pouring and there is an adequate workable concrete layer on the exterior face of the poured concrete wall. An example of exterior facial treatment in one segment of the poured concrete wall industry is in tilt-up construction. In tilt-up wall construction walls are poured as a horizontal concrete slab, cured and then a crane is used to place the panel in place. In most pours the exterior face of the panel is poured first, face down. Tilt-up surface finishes include single and multi-use form liners, placed on the pouring surface or “bed” before the panel is poured, creating various patterns and textures to the exterior concrete surface. Also there are many color variations of stains and epoxy paints that can be applied to the exposed facial concrete surface. The speed to erect walls and to provide decorative facial finished in tilt-up construction enables tilt-up to be very competitive in larger “Big Box” style structures such as lager stores, warehouses or distribution centers. The cost to crane lift the tilt-up slab wall in place is expensive and the architectural style and look of tilt-up structures is fairly limited due to the nearly flat repeated slab panel construction.
This invention is a poured concrete foundation and wall forming manufactured assembly, method and forming system utilizing flowable concrete or cementous mixture to construct the foundation and wall. The foundation and wall forming assembly and methods are used in various concrete pouring applications which may include insulation within the concrete and exterior facial smoothing and decorative treatments such as stamping or stenciling that require an adequate exterior concrete layer.
A preferred embodiment of the foundation forming assembly comprises a first lattice framework panel having a plurality of openings throughout and a second lattice panel where the two panels are spaced apart in a parallel relationship. The two lattice panels are connected together and held spaced apart by a number of cross connecters. The forming assembly would usually have other spaced apart lattice panels connected end to end held spaced apart by a number of cross connection members and are placed on the construction surface that the base of the structure will be built. The footing form assembly is designed so that the concrete footing form assembly can be “stepped” up or down which allows vertical adjustment in horizontal surface changes of the surface being poured upon, such as a sloping building site.
Rebar or other reinforcing may be placed on the connecting cross members of the concrete footing form. Driven or attached stakes may be placed on either outside surface of the lattice panels and may be attached to the lattice panels. The stakes give lateral resistance to the footing forming assembly helping to hold the footing form in place.
Concrete is poured into the cavity between the two spaced apart lattice panels. The concrete flows around and through the cross member connecters and also through the opening of the lattice panels such that the concrete extends beyond the external surface of the lattice grid panel exterior surface. Grid fingers or exterior extensions of a section of the vertical lattice protrude outward on the exterior face of the vertical grid approximately ⅛th to 3/16ths inch to assist in holding the flow through concrete out past the lattice grid face of the panel, accumulating an adequate layer of concrete for smoothing and decorative treatment. Screeds extending out approximately ¼ inch from the exterior face of the lattice grid panel assist in smoothing out and allowing the layer to be adequately thick and away from the exterior face of the panel. Concrete on the upper surface of the poured footing cavity may be smoothed out usually level with the top parallel edges of the spaced apart lattice panels.
Another preferred embodiment of this invention is to have a poured concrete wall forming assembly placed upon the lattice panel foundation footing assembly before any concrete is poured into the footing or wall forming assembly. Various different wall forms may be placed on the lattice panel footing assembly such as a wood, metal, plastic or composite poured concrete wall forms, and may include lattice grid panel concrete forms.
A running board or bar may be used to hold the wall forms from moving laterally and vertically from the footing assembly where the running board is fastened to the cross members of the footing form and then fastened in some fashion to the wall concrete form. The running board may be placed on both or one side of the wall form. Stakes, either driven or fastened to the poured upon surface and attached to the footing form, may be used to give lateral and vertical resistance when placed on either side of the footing form assembly. The combination of the attached running board and the stakes on the side(s) holds the footing and wall assembly from too much movement (lifting and settling) during concrete pouring. Flowable concrete is poured into the wall form and flows down into and filling the footing cavity. Usually during the pour the concrete in the footing cavity will be allowed to set for a short period of time during the pour before continuing the pour up into the wall form. By letting the footing concrete slightly set before continuing to pour helps control form lift. The foundation footing and the poured wall become a one monolithic structure with no cold joints between the wall and footing.
A third embodiment of this invention is a center insulated concrete wall form that may be placed upon the lattice panel footing form where the center insulated wall form is a manufactured assembly of a lattice panel attached to one side of rigid insulation foam with connecting cross members keeping the wall form lattice panel kept spaced apart and connected parallel to the rigid insulation foam. Either both wall form cavities can be poured at the same pouring with the footing form or one wall form lattice panel cavity can be poured with the footing. When the first poured wall cavity(s) is poured the footing cavity will be filled first with concrete and then allowed to sit for a short period of time during the pour to help reduce form lift. Then the wall cavity(s) will be filled to the desired height desired. Any bracing can then be removed from the non-poured cavity side and the remaining cavity poured. The structure interior facing or inside cavity of the center insulated foam concrete form is usually wider than the exterior cavity and the interior cavity when poured is usually load bearing though both poured cavities together add tension and compression strength to the wall.
Here again grid fingers or extensions of a section of the vertical lattice protrude outward on the exterior face of the vertical grid approximately ⅛th to 3/16ths inch to assist in holding the flow through concrete out past the lattice grid face of the panel to accumulate an adequate layer of concrete for smoothing and decorative treatment. Screeds extending out approximately ¼ inch from the exterior face of the lattice grid panel assist in smooth troweling and to create an adequate layer of concrete out from the lattice grid panel exterior face.
One advantage of being able to pour the wall form cavities at separate pours when using the center foam wall concrete form is that bracing can be put on the face side of the wall that is not to be poured. Then the wall bracing can be removed and the other cavity of the lattice wall form can be poured without the need for bracing since the first cavity poured and set gives enough strength to keep the wall straight in the second pouring. Also there is no bracing to get in the way of finishing the exterior surface of the second pour.
A second advantage of being able to pour the two cavities in separate pouring with a center insulated rigid foam wall concrete form is that an adjacent slab floor can be poured with the first or second pouring of the cavities of the wall form. Usually the slab would be poured with the same pouring as the wall cavity that is the exterior cavity (other side of center insulated foam concrete form) from the poured slab and both are usually the second pouring so that the usually wider interior cavity would fill the foundation footing cavity more efficiently.
Referring now in more detail to the drawings in which the numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views,
In a cross-sectional view
This application is a continuation-In-Part of application Ser. No. 12/198,973 filed Aug. 27, 2008.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 12198973 | Aug 2008 | US |
Child | 13385676 | US |