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All I know is most homes don't have basements because it's not cold enough for long enough.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KathrynAragon
Most houses in Texas don't have basements because of 1) the frost line and 2) the type of soil that's common here. The frost line is the biggest issue though.
Wait. You don't know if most of Texas has a frost line but you do know that the frost line is the main reason most of Texas has no basements?
What does air temperature have to do with having basements?
The last house had a basement. It was 3/4 finished. Most of it was a workout room. The rest was HVAC/water heater and storage. I would love to have a basement again.
Wait. You don't know if most of Texas has a frost line but you do know that the frost line is the main reason most of Texas has no basements?
What does air temperature have to do with having basements?
It has to do with the foundation. If you were to build a house, say in NE Montana on a slab, the soil frost heave would more than likely wreck your foundation in short order. It's fairly pronounced in that area. The frost line is between 60-70". That's almost 6 ft. In areas with little frost line- you can build slab on grade which is cheaper.
That's why most homes in states that experience colder winters generally have at a minimum a crawl space - to get the foundation below the frost line.
The conventional approach to the design of foundations to prevent frost damage is to place the foundation beyond the depth of expected maximum frost penetration so that the soil beneath the bearing surface will not freeze. This prevents most of the vertical upheaval from frost heave, although the foundation will still experience additional horizontal pressures. The remaining pressures can be further reduced with well drained soils for backfill.
It has to do with the foundation. If you were to build a house, say in NE Montana on a slab, the soil frost heave would more than likely wreck your foundation in short order. It's fairly pronounced in that area. The frost line is between 60-70". That's almost 6 ft. In areas with little frost line- you can build slab on grade which is cheaper.
That's why most homes in states that experience colder winters generally have at a minimum a crawl space - to get the foundation below the frost line.
I guess you missed the part where the discussion was about what happens in Texas, not Montana.
I guess I don't understand your question then? The OP was illustrating why there are few basements in TX. They literally have no frost line thus no frost heave.
I was simply explaining why they don't and why we do.
I guess I don't understand your question then? The OP was illustrating why there are few basements in TX. They literally have no frost line thus no frost heave.
I was simply explaining why they don't and why we do.
She said they have a frost line which was the main reason for no basements, not a lack of one; that's why it made no sense to me.
A lot of Texas has lousy soil too, but that's a different problem. I don't know if a more substantial footing would solve the problem of their slabs coming apart but that would also be applicable to a house with a basement. Sometimes, it's simply custom that prevails.
Wait. You don't know if most of Texas has a frost line but you do know that the frost line is the main reason most of Texas has no basements?
What does air temperature have to do with having basements?
I would guess it has more to do with water tables....
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