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Concrete Pad, Unheated building, Cold Climate

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UP Oliver

Member
I am putting up a pole barn and want to have a concrete pad in there. How can I keep the pad from heaving in the cold? I plan to put 2 feet of sand under the 6 inch pad, but I am wondering if I need something under the pad like foam board or something to keep the cold from penetrating too deep. Any information would be appreciated.

Thanks.
 
Put Styrofoam directly under the concrete. Be sure to use a product that won't crush like beadboard does. Same thing we do when we build freezers except thicker insulation.
 
I put in 2 inch blue styrofoam in the house basement, with floor heat. Cold outbuildings no one here uses anything but a sand base, and usually only about 6 inches thick. Certainly not 2 feet.
 
We have been putting 1 inch blue board under our concrete. Outside and inside cold or warm. First time I saw it done we put it under the concrete in a office building. The girls in the old part had heaters under their desks. In the new part didn't need one. Then put blue board or green. under the slab in front of our twp building. The old slab had heaved and couldn't get the front door open. Insulated the new pad 10 yrs ago and still hasn't heaved. We are in Southern Il.
 
I did the same thing your planning only 5 inches of cement, sand,rebar 24" squares. I did that 4 years ago... No problems Wisconsin..... I would suggest a floor drain.
 
Paul is right,keep it dry underneath by maintaining good drainage.
I don't believe styrofoam would help. Actually,it would likly make it freeze sooner if the building is heated at all because syrofoam prevents heat reaching below slab.
 
I have a 6 inch 30x40 slab, on clay, no sand, nothing underneath. Pole barn is the highest point on property. All the dirt around pole barn is angled away. No water stands, no heaving, no cracks. I hired a friend to put the floor in. He does it for a living. Old school guy who likes wire. The floor was done in one pour, no forms, he used nails in the the outside walls to level with. I put the nails there with rotating self leveling dewalt laser. The laser paid for itself on just that job. For every 1/4 inch I was off, it cost me $100, a yard, in concrete. So I got the ground perfect before the pour. Used laser when concrete poured for the finisher to get center level. The finisher did a great job.

I also have 1 ft vented eves to help keep the water away. Have vent-a-ridge and power vent too. Not the first hint of moisture problems, no heaving, no heat. I live In Terre Haute, In.
 
I have a pole shed that has since been enclosed, but has nothing but rebar. Not so much as a crack in it. It isn't even in the best drainage spot as the farm is all pretty level. I keep meaning to put gutters on it to shoot the water away but never have. It's 8 inches thick so anything can be driven on it. I parked my school bus at one end for years and no problems. Those front tires were within six inches of the edge every night.
 
One thing about sand is that its all one sieve size aggregate, dry or even with moisture, it's not going to compact, like a gravel with composite and or various sieve size aggregates, at optimum moisture levels. Just something to know if its structural, or will have significant weight imposed on it. If so the sub-base material needs to be something that is suitable, will compact 95% or better to the undisturbed soil below it, which needs to be suitable as well. If its a housekeeping pad for say a compressor or something, likely not an issue, but if this is a slab to work on, heavy vehicles, equipment etc., the above is something to consider.
 
Agreed. Nothing mentioned is going stop the heaving if water gets underneath it and freezes. The more water, the more heave.
 
I think styrofoam helps as there is natural heat in the ground . Styrofoan keeps the cold from going down
and freezing the ground below yore slab. I used 2" styrofoam under my unheated barn floor. No cracks, no heaving. I would do it again in a heartbeat.
 
If you want something that won't crush use POLYSTYRENE . The pink or blue one that makes a loud snapping sound when you bend it and break it.
 
(quoted from post at 17:10:02 09/27/14) Drain the snot out if it, keep it REALLY dry underneath and build it up with clean rock.
Click to expand...

Build up your pad/building site up to grade and use pea gravel/pea rock or inch minus rock under the slab I say at least 6 inches thick. Rock when compacted still has voids in it that will allow water to drain/weep out.

If you really want to go crazy build up the pad, put runs of drain tile in, cover with pea rock and pour your slab.
 
Thanks for the responses. I appreciate the information from everybody. My site is in a good spot. I put a few holes in this past weekend for poles and don't have any wetness in the bottom of the hole, which will be almost 5 feet below the floor inside. So hopefully I will be OK. But there is a lot of clay there that worries me.

Anyway, thanks again.
 
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