FASTFOOT®
Sustainable Formwork for an 'Imagination Home'
Sawatzky's Imagination Corporation is a small family company that specializes in the design and creation of dimensional signs and environments. They tackle projects of any size from small signs to entire theme parks. Their work has garnered numerous national and international awards.
Dan Sawatzky is and has been a creative force in the sign industry, a visual storyteller spanning over forty years. He and his crew host Sign Magic Workshops in their studio a number of times each year with attendees coming from around the world.
Building Design
The Sawatzky's new home is designed to accomodate large gatherings of family as well as host a number of workshops each year. The rooms are large and spacious.
Dan is enthusiastic about building with concrete. He'll be using the Logix® Platinum block for higher thermal performance right up to his truss plate.
Click on the image to the right to go to Dan's house blog.
Screed Board Installation
Dan is not an experienced machine operator, so the elevation differed about 5" from one side of the excavation to the other.
The forming contractor is Harold's Contracting of Abbotsford BC. Harold Esau and his crew quickly set up the screed boards using a laser level and 1x2 stakes 6 to 8' on center.
Fastfoot® Installation
Fastfoot® is adjusted to uneven grades using specially marked footing width lines and letting the fabric out in deeper sections.
Fastfoot® is stapled to the top of the screed boards using a hammer tacker with 3/8" staples.
Harold's team quickly got on to folding corners. They cut an 'inverted T' on the inside of the corner, folded the fabric 90 degrees and then continued in the new direction.
Fast-Tube™ Setup
The engineer specfied 16" diameter columns to support the artistic front porch.
"I like Fast-Tube™", confirmed Dan. "They're fast to cut, and easy to setup once you understand how to staple the alignment tab to the 2x4."
Placing Footing Concrete
Fastfoot® prevents all concrete leakage and reduces concrete consumption.
Notice how the fabric prevents the concrete damage to the lumber.
Placing Concrete in Columns
Dan filled the column pads first, then filled the regular footings. Then he came back and filled the columns. This prevented the column concrete from leaking out the footing.
Rising Damp Protection
Abbotsford gets 60 inches of rain a year, so ground moisture is a major issue. Fastfoot® is a vapor barrier, preventing ground moisture from entering the concrete.
Harold's crew pulled Fastfoot® from the top of the screed boards and taped the edges together.
Logix® blocks will be placed on top the fabric to ensure it stays in position. Once the wall has been poured, a 12" width of Peel and Stick will overlap the Fastfoot® to ensure all staple holes are properly covered. Then the dimple membrane will run down the wall and over the top of the footing, providing complete protection to the bottom side and top of the footing.
No Concrete Damage
Note this photo: not a drop of concrete on the 2x6s. All will be used to build the house.
