Foundation Worksheet

Foundation Worksheet

Now let’s take a look at the foundation of your green home project.  Here are some questions for you and any building partners to consider.

Research your answers as much as possible and if you do not know at this time choose option 3.

Is your land you will build on flat?

1. Completely flat
2. Slight slope
3. Moderate slope
4. Extreme slope
5. Side of a cliff

Your Numerical Score:                     ____

Is this home site easily accessible from the nearest street?

1. Driveway is complete with gravel
2. Driveway is visible with dirt road
3. Clear path of undisturbed grass
4. Unknown path with trees and obstacles
5. Bridge or other infrastructure needed

Your Numerical Score:                     ____

Does the local building department require the foundation to have an engineering seal or stamp?

1. No
2. Probably Not
3. Maybe
4. Probably So
5. Yes

Your Numerical Score:                                      ____

Are you building a slab, piers, crawlspace, or a basement for your foundation?

1. Slab
2. Piers
3. Crawlspace
4. Combination of two of the above
5. Basement

Your Numerical Score:                                      ____

What will your subfloor system be constructed with?

1. Conventional Wood or Lumber
2. Manufactured Glue Laminated Timbers
3. Pre-built floor trusses
4. Heavy Timbers
5. Concrete or Steel

Your Numerical Score:                                      ____

What will your foundation’s wall system be made of?

1. No wall (Slab or Piers)
2. Concrete Block
3. Poured Concrete Walls
4. Pre-insulated Foundation System
5. Insulated Concrete forms

Your Numerical Score:                                      ____

What portion of the foundation area will be finished during construction?

1. 0%
2. 25%
3. 50%
4. 75%
5. 100%

Your Numerical Score:                     ____

Calculations:

Add up your total score from the previous questions and place it in the blank.  Range: (7-35)

Your Total Numerical Score:                        ____

Divide your score by 7

Total Score Divided By 7:                ____  (Round the number up)

Find your approximation on the scale below.

1. $30-$45
2. $46-$61
3. $62-$77
4. $78-$93
5. $94-$109

Your Price Range:                      ____

Now take your price range and multiply it by your desired foundation’s square footage.

Your Budget Range:                         ____

      To help you with your process I have created a fictional couple, Tom and Eva.  They are building a green home in Tennessee.  They chose to use Green Home, to help them gain a better understanding of the green home construction process. Tom and Eva are creating worksheets separately.   Over the next few chapters we will follow Tom’s worksheets as a guide to help you create your own.

For example:

Tom is building his new green home in Nashville, TN on a lot that is extremely flat (Numerical Score 1).  His site is accessible to the nearest road by a driveway that exists but is currently a dirt path (Numerical Score 2).  The building department is flexible on residential structures and as long as a professionally designed set of blueprints is presented they typically require no engineering stamp (Numerical Score 2).  His needs require a full basement (Numerical Score 5) that will have a subfloor built with conventional lumber purchased from his local lumber yard (Numerical Score 1).  He plans to use a poured concrete wall system (Numerical Score 3), and finish ¾ of the basement for additional living space (Numerical Score 4).

Tom’s worksheet would look like this.

Calculations:

Add up your total score from the previous questions and place it in the blank.  Range: (7-35)

Your Total Numerical Score:  1+2+2+5+1+3+4 =  _18_

Divide your score by 7:        18/7 = 2.57

Total Score Divided By 7:    2.57 Rounds up to 3

Find your approximation on the scale below.

1. $30-$45
2. $46-$61
3. $62-$77
4. $78-$93
5. $94-$109

Price Range:  $62-$77 per square foot

Now Tom and Eva will take their price range and multiply it by their desired foundation’s square footage.

Tom has a need for 1,100 square feet in his basement so he takes the $62 and multiplies it by 1,100 for a low range of $68,200.  He then takes the $77 and multiplies it by 1,100 for a high range of $84,700.

Foundation Cost Range:  $68,200 -$84,700 

Before moving on to the next chapter go ahead and calculate your foundation budget range.  Then it is time to move onto the main floor.