Expert: Bruce E. Johnson - 9/12/2010

Question
QUESTION: I am building a camp house 30 x 55 feet on 10 by 10 post.The post are cocreted in 3 ft diameter holes 6 feet deep. How do I tie them together with rebar before poring concrete. The concrete is for the pad since the house is 11 feet off the ground. Thanks

ANSWER: Hi mark, not quite sure what you are talking about.  Okay, you have posts in holes filled with concrete.  But you lose me after that.  Are you going to pour a concrete slab at ground level? and you want to tie the ground slab to the post holes?  If that is the case then all you have to do is install some rebar angles that go down into the post hole and into the slab.  If you are installing rebar cages into the holes prior to setting the posts then you can also tie the rebar corner bars to the post hole cage, this will also help hold the corner bars in place during the concrete pour.  If you are pouring your post holes first then you can wet stick the corner bars in the post hole concrete while it is still wet.  I hope this information helps please feel free to write again regarding this or other matters, sincerely bruce e johnson..bejohnsonconsulting.com

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: The post are done and i am now going to pour the concrete pad on the ground level. Is it possible to connect the post together with rebar before pouring concrete?

Answer
Hi again mark, I'm not sure why you want the posts connected to the slab.  Generally we isolate columns from the slab so that when the columns (posts) move they don't break up the slab.  You can put reinforcing bar in a grid that incorporates the posts but if you haven't put any rebar in the post bases I don't see any reason to drill and epoxy dowels into the exisiting post base concrete to tie that in.  If you do a 12" x 12" rebar grid over the entire floor this will lock the slab to the posts but I would not recommend attaching the posts to the rebar. Is there some reason you want to do this?  I hope this information helps please feel free to write again regarding this or other matters, sincerely bruce e johnson..bejohnsonconsulting.com