House construction: Footing poured without a form?

Factual Questions
1

I’m having a house builit, and the builder has just put the footings in. The footings under the lally columns are supposed to be 24" x 24" x 12".

One of these footings was apparently poured without a form. It looks like a flat blob. The other two footings on either side of it look like squares. Is this a problem, do you think?

My concern is not really cosmetic, but the chance of voids in the footing poured without a form.

Here is a link with pictures of the footings:

Thanks!

2

That “blob” footing doesn’t look like it’s a full 24 x 24. Ask the builder to redo it. There should be horizontal steel rebars in that footing and they may not have proper concrete cover, which should be 3" minimum.

3

CHtT
"There should be horizontal steel rebars in that footing "

Mind telling me how you know that without seeing the blueprint?

I have poured thousands of such footer blocks and never once put rebar in one. Occasionally the drawing will spec 6"x6" wwf. The most important thing is that they all are at the proper height.

That said, that is some sloppy looking work, call your general and ask him to get the concrete guy pack in there to square that thing up. Preferably before the framers show up.

I wouldn’t worry about voids, form or no, on small block pours like that we seldom vibrate the mix, usually just tamp it a bit to knock the air loose. Ill bet that was placed w/ a wheelbarrow. Likely solid as hell.

4

It’s acceptable to do a ‘form in place’ when conditions call for it, but it’s not common. The contractor probably screwed up on his estimate for forming material. I agree that it should be redone, for your peace of mind if nothing else.

5

ACI 318-99 “Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete”, by the American Concrete Institute; Chapter 15 - Footings.

Section 15.4.3 - In one-way footings and in two-way square footings, reinforcement shall be distributed uniformly across the entire width of the footing.

Section 15.4.4 - In two-way rectangular footings, reinforcement shall be distributed in accordance with 15.4.4.1 and 15.4.4.2.

Section 15.4.4.1… but you see what I’m getting at. You could also look it up in any civil engineering handbook.

6

OK, I talked to the site supervisor today, and he doesn’t think it’s a big deal not to use a form. He feels that it only results in them using more concrete than usual. Also, none of the footing are reinforced.

It looks to me like the foundation guys only have 4 spot footing forms. The house across the street has six spot footings, and 2 of the footings there are “blobs.” (They are bigger than mine, though.)

I measured the size of my footings as well. The square ones are 24" x 24", while the “blob” is about 28" in diameter.

I tried to find some more info online about the use of forms with spot footings, and did find these two links:
FASTBAG® FABRIC FORMWORK
Concrete Footing and Pier Forms

The first link seems to indicate that “blob” shaped footings are OK, but doesn’t address voids or consolidation problems that could be associated with not using a form at all.

Finally, I took some more photos today, including some close-ups. As you can see, yesterday afternoon they “buried the evidence”, filling the area surrounding the footings with crushed stone.

OK, all this being said, I need to decide by Monday whether to make a big stink about this. I can guarantee that they’re not going to want to replace this footing when they’ve been doing the same thing all over the development.

Thanks again!

7

I would suggest jumping in the jalopy and running down to the city planning office. The code guys there can tell you immediately whether or not this is to code.

8

What does the building inspector say about it? If it passes with him, which it sounds like it will, you have very little recourse. Unless you want to pay extra to have a nice square footing.

IMHO, you would be wise not to piss of the builders at this stage of construction, with a nit-pick like this.

9

I used to haul concrete,drove a mixer truck.
I’ve seen footings poured both ways.
If you just think about the physics of the process the footings poured without forms,just dig a trench, or in this case a square hole, should be stronger and more stable than those without.
Rebar is usually used but there is a new concrete strengthener made from poly threads that might provide the strength needed.

10

I though formless footings were used due to obstacles like boulders, etc.