RAFT FOUNDATION (SHALLOW FOUNDATION)

RAFT OR MAT FOUNDATIONS

Raft Foundations, also called Mat Foundations, are most often used when
basements are to be constructed. In a raft, the entire basement floor slab acts as
the foundation; the weight of the building is spread evenly over the entire
footprint of the building. It is called a raft because the building is like a vessel that
'floats' in a sea of soil.

Mat Foundations are used where the soil is week, and therefore building loads
have to be spread over a large area, or where columns are closely spaced, which
means that if individual footings were used, they would touch each other.

Raft foundation is a thick concrete slab reinforced with steel which covers the entire
contact area of the structure like a thick floor. Sometimes area covered by raft may be
greater than the contact area depending on the bearing capacity of the soil underneath.
The reinforcing bars runs normal to each other in both top and bottom layers of steel
reinforcement. 

Normally structures on marshy land, soft clay and land that are made up of sanitary land
fill or other materials (like debris, unconsolidated soil and solid waste etc. where
differential settlement is suspected)-require raft foundation. Raft foundations are
preferred in the soil that are suspected to subsidence. Subsidence may occur from
different sources like change in ground water level due to climatic change specially in
case expansive soil or foundation in mining area.

In one words, where deep foundation like pile foundation are not economical and
feasible and isolated column footing is impracticable due to large footing size or over-
lapping of neighbor footing , raft foundation is the economical solution.
A raft foundation consists of a raft of reinforced concrete under the whole of a building. This type of
foundation is described as a raft in the sense that the concrete raft is cast on the surface of the ground
which supports it, as water does a raft, and the foundation is not fixed by foundations carried down into the
subsoil.

Raft foundations may be used for buildings on compressible ground such as very soft clay, alluvial deposits
and compressible fill material where strip, pad or pile foundations would not provide a stable foundation
without excessive excavation. The reinforced concrete raft is designed to transmit the whole load of the
building from the raft to the ground where the small spread loads will cause little if any appreciable
settlement. 
The two types of raft foundation commonly used are the flat raft and the wide toe raft.

The flat slab raft is of uniform thickness under the whole of the building and reinforced to spread the loads
from the walls uniformly over the under surface to the ground. This type of raft may be used under small
buildings such as bungalows and two storey houses where the comparatively small loads on foundations
can be spread safely and economically under the rafts.

The concrete raft is reinforced top and bottom against both upward and downward bending. Vegetable top
soil is removed and a blinding layer of concrete 50 mm thick is spread and levelled to provide a base on
which to cast the concrete raft. A waterproof membrane is laid, on the dry concrete blinding, against
moisture rising into the raft. The top and bottom reinforcement is supported and spaced preparatory to
placing the concrete which is spread, consolidated and finished level.

When the reinforced concrete raft has dried and developed sufficient strength the walls are raised as
illustrated in Fig. 12. The concrete raft is usually at least 150 mm thick. 

Fig. 12 Flat slab raft.

The concrete raft may be at ground level or finished just below the surface for appearance sake. Where floor
finishes are to be laid on the raft a 50 mm thick layer of concrete is spread over the raft, between the walls,
to raise the level and provide a level, smooth finish for floor coverings. As an alternative a raised floor may
be constructed on top of the raft to raise the floor above ground.

A flat slab recommended for building in areas subject to mining subsidence is similar to the flat slab, but cast
on a bed of fine granular material 150 mm thick so that the raft is not keyed to the ground and is therefore
unaffected by horizontal ground strains.

Where the ground has poor compressibility and the loads on the foundations would require a thick,
uneconomic flat slab, it is usual to cast the raft as a wide toe raft foundation. The raft is cast with a
reinforced concrete, stiffening edge beam from which a reinforced concrete toe extends as a base for the
external leaf of a cavity wall as shown in Fig. 13. The slab is thickened under internal load bearing walls.
Vegetable top soil is removed and the exposed surface is cut away to roughly form the profile of the
underside of the slab. As necessary 100 mm of hardcore or concrete is spread under the area of the raft and
a 50 mm layer of blinding concrete is spread, shaped and levelled as a base for the raft and toes. A
waterproof membrane is laid on the dried concrete blinding and the steel reinforcement fixed in position and
supported preparatory to placing, compacting and levelling the concrete raft.

The external cavity and internal solid walls are raised off the concrete raft once it has developed sufficient
strength. The extended toe of the edge beam is shaped so that the external brick outer leaf of the cavity wall
is finished below ground for appearance sake. A floor finish is laid on 50 mm concrete finish or a raised floor
constructed. 

Fig. 13 Edge beam raft.

Raft Foundations
Raft foundations (sometimes known as Mat Foundations) are a large concrete slab which
can support a number of columns and walls.
The slab is spread out under the entire building or at least a large part of it which lowers
the contact pressure compared to the traditionally used strip or trench footings.
Because of the speed and volume of houses required after the second world war, the
raft foundation was widely used. The raft foundation was cheaper, easier to install and
most importantly, did not require as much excavation as the usual strip foundations.
When the Building Regulations were introduced in 1965 there were no generic rules for
raft foundations as there were for strip foundations.
This meant that to use a raft foundation, it had to be designed and approved by Building
Control. This made the entire operation much more difficult and time consuming so raft
foundations became less widely used almost overnight.

When Are Raft Foundations Used

Rafts are most often used these days when the strata is unstable or (because of this) a
normal strip foundation would cover more than 50% of the ground area beneath the
building. There are also situations (usually in areas where mining has occurred) where
there may be areas of movement in the strata.
They are much more commonly used in the construction of commercial building in the
UK that they are for domestic homes, but can be used very successful in both
situations. To understand when it is better to use raft foundations, you need to
understand how they work.
How Do Raft Foundations Work?
A raft foundation spreads the weight of the building over the whole ground floor area
of that building. The raft is laid on a hardcore, or scalping bed and usually thickened
at the edges, especially in very poor ground. Rafts are most suitable when the ground
is of good load bearing capacity and little work is required to get a solid foundation.
Raft Foundations are built is this following steps:
1. The soil removed down to correct depth

2. The foundation bed is then compacted by ramming

3. Lay reinforcement on spacers over the foundation bed

4. Pour the concrete over the reinforcement

The foundation may stiffened by ribs or beams built in during construction which will
add extra strength and rigidity.
When Raft Foundations Are Used?
A raft foundation is usually preferred under a number of circumstances:
 ● it is used for large loads, which is why they are so common in commercial
building which tend to be much larger, and therefore heavier, than domestic
homes

● The soil has a low bearing capacity so the weight of the building needs to be
spread out over a large area to create a stable foundation

● The ratio of individual footings to total floor space is high. Typically if the
footings would cover over half of the construction area then raft foundation
would be used

● If the walls of the building are so close that it would cause the individual
footings to overlap, then raft foundations should be used

Advantages and Disadvantages of Raft Foundations

Raft foundations tend to be cheaper and quicker to use than traditional footings. There
are a number of reasons why this is the case:
● The foundation and floor slab is combined, which saves time and materials

● Less excavation is required

Other reasons that make raft foundations preferable to footings are due to their
engineering benefits. They are ideal for poor ground condition where normal footings
would not cope well as they cannot spread the load as effectively.
Related to this is that raft foundations can reduce differential settlement, where
settlement occurs at different rates across the ground surface of the building, which
reduces cracking and other more serious problems.
The main disadvantage is that they can prone to edge erosion if they are not treated
properly. They are not effective is the load of the building is going to be focused on a
single point, although this is rare in domestic construction, so this isn't generally of
concern.
Don't fancy doing this project yourself? We work with Check a trade to ensure that
we recommend only reliable and trustworthy tradesmen.

RAFT FOUNDATION
The foundation consisting of a thick R.C.C slab covering the whole area of a mat is known as
raft foundation.
Method of construction of Raft Foundation:

1. The whole area is dug out to the specified depth and 30 cm more wide than the area
to be covered.
2. The bed is compacted and sprinkled over with water.
 3. Then a layer of lime concrete or lean concrete ( 1: 8 : 16 ) is laid to a suitable
thickness to act as a bottom cover.
4. After this, the reinforcement is laid. The reinforcement consists of closely spaced
bars placed at right angles to one another.
5. Then the cement concrete (1 : 2 : 4 ) is laid and compacted to the required thickness.
6. The concrete slab so laid is then properly cured
7. When loads are excessive, thick concrete beams running under the columns can
also be constructed.

SUITABILITY :
This type of foundation is useful for public buildings, office buildings, school buildings,
residential quarters etc, where the ground conditions are very poor and bearing power of the
soil is so low that individual spread footing cannot be provided.
Raft foundation
Raft foundations are used to spread the load from a structure over a large area,
normally the entire area of the structure. They are used when column loads or
other structural loads are close together and individual pad foundations would
interact.
A raft foundation normally consists of a concrete slab which extends over the
entire loaded area. It may be stiffened by ribs or beams incorporated into the
foundation.
Raft foundations have the advantage of reducing differential settlements as the
concrete slab resists differential movements between loading positions. They
are often needed on soft or loose soils with low bearing capacity as they can
spread the loads over a larger area.