Significance of using isolated footing technique for residential construction on expansive soils

Abstract

Expansive soils cause problems with the founding of lightly loaded structures in many parts of the world. Foundation design for expansive soils is one of the most discussed and problematic issues in Australia as expansive soils were responsible for billions of dollars’ worth of damage to man-made structures such as buildings and roads. Several studies and reports indicate that one of the most common and least recognized problems causing severe structural damage to houses lies in expansive soils. In this study, a critical review has been carried out on the current Australian standards for building on expansive soils and they are compared with some techniques that are not included in the current Australian standards for residential slabs and footings. Based on the results of this review, the most effective and economical method has been proposed for construction of footings on all site classifications without restriction to 75mm of characteristic movement. In addition, it has become apparent that as design procedures for footings resting on sites with extreme characteristic movements are not included in the current Australian standards, there is a strong need for well-developed and simplified standard design procedures for characteristic soil movement of greater than 75mm to be included into the Australian Standards.

Keywords

expansive soils / residential slabs / isolated footings / Australian Standards

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