After the foundation has been erected and the main construction has been completed, an important stage remains in finishing the base of the house - installation of the blind area. As a rule, this stage is not delayed for months or years, since the absence of such an important element can lead to the gradual destruction of the foundation. In this article we will figure out how to properly make a blind area around a house to protect its foundation from destruction.

The foundation blind area is a strip of concrete or other material located around the perimeter of the house with slight slope from the base. The main purpose of this structure is to drain rain and melt water from the foundation, insulate and strengthen it, as well as partially compensate for ground movements. The structure of the blind area also includes drainage.

As a rule, ordinary concrete is used for its construction, but a blind area lined with paving slabs or porcelain tiles will give the area around the house an aesthetically complete look.

Most often under country houses poured – a reinforced concrete strip on which the load-bearing and interior walls. Since concrete is a porous material, it actively absorbs water. This is fraught unpleasant consequences– the appearance of fungus on the base and loss of frost resistance of the foundation due to constant cycles of freezing and defrosting.

If during the construction of the foundation were not carried out or the materials have worn out over time, the base is waterproofed before installing the blind area. Sometimes this requires digging it out to its full height: a shallow foundation - within half a meter, a buried foundation - below the soil freezing line (at middle lane more than one and a half meters).

If the basement of the building is in use, in addition to waterproofing it is desirable . At high level groundwater Foundation drainage is required. To do this, perforated pipes are laid in a ditch prepared for waterproofing the base and making a blind area with a slope towards the sewer collector.

Before moving on to considering the types of blind areas, let's talk about the basic rules for installing such structures. The width of the blind area recommended by building regulations is at least 20 centimeters from the projection of the eaves overhang to the ground. On average, the width is selected within 1 meter. The slope of the blind area from the base is up to 10 degrees, this is quite enough to drain water from the foundation and for ease of walking.

The method of constructing a strip depends on the terrain, climatic conditions, soil specifics, type of foundation, stylistic design of the house and landscape design. There are about 20 varieties in total. Let's consider the main types of blind areas.

Blind area made of crushed stone or gravel

Such a blind area has an advantage in price and ease of construction, but loses in operational characteristics and service life. This option is designed for an average of 7 years of operation. A blind area made of crushed stone is not capable of providing a sufficient level of foundation insulation and acceptable drainage. In addition, such a surface is inconvenient to move on. The only advantages of a blind area made of crushed stone are ease of installation and low cost.

Below is the procedure for constructing a gravel blind area:

Concrete blind area

A concrete blind area is more complex than a gravel or crushed stone base, but it is the most durable and performs its functions better. Concrete base completely removes all water from the base part of the foundation, but has the only drawback that under strong mechanical stress, the concrete can crumble and wear out.

The procedure for pouring a concrete blind area is described below:

From the given instructions it is clear that a concrete blind area generally consists of a layer of sand cushion, a layer of insulation and a layer of reinforced concrete. The thickness of such a blind area is at least 25-30 centimeters. This is enough to prevent the foundation from freezing.

The process of installing a concrete blind area is clearly shown in the video:

Blind area made of paving slabs

Despite the fact that a blind area made of concrete will cost less than installation of tiles, paving slabs are much more attractive appearance, while maintaining high wear resistance.

When building such a blind area, there are two options. In the first case, a concrete strip is installed as a cushion for laying the tiles. The sequence of actions is the same as when installing a conventional concrete blind area. On final stage tiles are laid as finishing coating. This method is excellent in all respects, except labor intensity and price.

In the second case, a sand and gravel cushion is used as a base for such a blind area. We will analyze this method further.

After installing the blind area from paving slabs All that remains is to fill the seam between the tiles. To do this, you can use regular sand, or fill the seams with cement mortar.

After laying for several days, it is undesirable to apply heavy loads to the blind area. This is necessary for the final uniform shrinkage of all layers of the blind area and giving it strength.

For a better understanding, we offer you a video with step by step installation paving slabs around the house

Strips made from materials such as crushed stone, stone, paving slabs are perfect for columnar foundations, for example for . Such a blind area will remove most of the moisture from the piles and will not require a large construction budget.

Usually the blind area is considered as a continuation of the sidewalk covering, but does it have to be like that? Today we offer you the option of installing a soft blind area - what are its decorative and functional benefits, what materials are used - and, of course, instructions for the device.

What is the essence of the idea

Soft blind area - effective method add variety to the exterior of the house. Many people are tired of concrete and paved paths, and they do not look natural on all types of foundations. In particular, when building a house on a pile-grillage foundation, you will have to hide the inner edge of the blind area with a hinged plinth, closing the ventilated space under the floor.

A geomembrane is rolled out over the leveled surface, the bottom of the channel under the channel is lined with it, storm sewer pipes wrapped in geotextile are laid and collectors are installed. Then a layer of geocomposite 7-10 mm thick is rolled out on top of the geomembrane - it will allow even small accumulations not to linger in the embankment, but to flow freely into the channel. After this, a leveling layer of sand and gravel mixture about 30-40 mm thick is poured and easily compacted, and geotextiles are rolled out on top. Everything that is poured above this border can be classified as a decorative and protective coating for the blind area.

Protective coating options

The soft blind area is finally leveled with granite crushed stone of a fraction of 20-25 mm, creating a densely compacted layer of at least 60 mm. Separating the layers of the embankment allows you to compact the top embankment well, and your feet will not be loaded into it so much. Shifting the blind area lower by 10-15 cm will allow you to pour a small layer of turf on top of it and bring the lawn close to the house.

In addition to filling with crushed stone, the soft blind area offers big choice coatings and their combinations. These can be either loose slabs or ceramic piece elements, pebbles, large pebbles or paved brick paths.

As for covering with paving slabs, this is not a soft blind area in pure form. Most of the water is still drained along the surface protective coating, therefore, the requirements for the construction of the pie and the hydrobarrier are less stringent.

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Finishing the blind area around the house - 3 ways to suit every taste and budget

Many people, far from the intricacies of construction, mistake the beautiful and neat paths that encircle absolutely all houses as part of the decorative decoration of the facade of the building. Although in reality the blind area is intended primarily to protect the foundation. In this article we will talk about what materials are used to decorate the blind area of a house, and I will talk in detail about three ways to arrange a blind area with your own hands.

General requirements for all types of blind areas

Before finishing the blind area around the house, let's figure out what the requirements are for this path, why it is needed, and what types of structures there are in general.

Why do you need a blind area?

This structural element has several purposes and the decor of the building is far from the most important among them, although of course any owner wants his path around the perimeter of the house to look decent.

Functional purpose of the blind area
Functions	Characteristics
Building decor.	This path gives any landscape a finished look. IN in this case it acts as a transition buffer between the base and the ground, smoothly smoothing and decorating the border.
Hydrobarrier.	No matter how strong and massive the foundation is, but without protection from melt water sooner or later it will be washed away, as a result of which it will begin to sag and crack, with all the ensuing consequences. That is why absolutely everyone at home, from small dacha up to a skyscraper are equipped with such protection.
Thermal insulation.	Previously this function was not given of great importance, but after it turned out that heat loss with an uninsulated blind area reaches 20%, almost all owners began to insulate both the path around the house and the foundation itself.
Foundation protection on heaving soils.	If a powerful deep foundation is still able to withstand soil movements, then shallow concrete strips on heaving soils require the mandatory installation of an insulated blind area. This design prevents the soil from freezing; therefore, the shallow foundation does not squeeze out of the ground.

What designs exist

I would not argue that any of the options presented below are a priority. Often the choice depends on financial capabilities, and in the case of arranging a structure with your own hands, also on professional skills.

To the tough ones monolithic structures include tracks whose basis is self-leveling reinforced concrete slab or asphalt. In both cases, the price of such a structure is quite high, plus pouring reinforced concrete has always been a difficult and responsible task.

One of the most important advantages of such structures is their durability. Provided that it is properly arranged, such a path will faithfully serve its owners no less than the house itself. Personally, I always insist on installing just such structures.

If you are going to insulate your path near your house, then rigid structures are the only right choice. There is no point in installing insulation on semi-rigid or soft blind areas.

Semi-rigid structures are a multi-layer cake, the lower layers of which consist of sand and crushed stone, and some kind of material is mounted on top block material. Most often these are paving slabs; those with greater financial resources can afford natural stone.

Insulation is not provided in such structures, plus they are absolutely not suitable for installation on heaving soils. Although the semi-rigid blind area will cost less than the previous option. As for the ease of installation, a semi-rigid path is not much easier to install; in fact, there is only no concrete pouring.

Soft structures also cannot be insulated, but this is the most low-budget, fastest and easiest option to install. Such paths can be installed on any soil. A significant disadvantage is the low durability of the soft blind area; without repair, it can last no more than 7 years.

Most often, soft paths are installed as a temporary and inexpensive way out. As soon as you have available funds, you will remove the top layers during the day and begin the installation of a permanent, rigid structure.

What are the requirements for the arrangement of paths?

Since these tracks have always been installed, there are corresponding standards for them; it is usually customary to follow SNiP 2.02.01-83 (paragraphs 3.182 and 4.30). Overly meticulous owners can also familiarize themselves with SNiP III-10-75, GOST 9128-97 and GOST 7473-94, although the data in all these documents overlaps.

All standards say that the width of the path around the house must be at least 200 mm wider than the roof overhang, while the path itself cannot be narrower than 600 mm. But as a practitioner, I can tell you that the minimum for a normal blind area is 800 mm - 1 m;
For concrete structures with insulation, other standards are provided. If you follow them, then the width of the path should be equal to the depth of soil freezing in the given area, but it makes sense to comply with these standards only on wet, heaving soils; in other cases, a standard meter-long path is sufficient;

Regarding the length, everything is simple, since the path is designed to protect the foundation from moisture and freezing, which means it should be wherever there is a foundation. The only exception may be the porch, although under concrete porch the foundation is also laid;
According to the standards, the depth of the blind area should be half the depth of soil freezing in this area, but these standards were written more for high-rise, multi-story buildings. Based personal experience, for an ordinary private house with a height of 2 - 3 floors, the maximum is half a meter, and on stable soils generally 30 cm is sufficient;
In monolithic reinforced concrete structures, the minimum thickness of the reinforced concrete layer starts from 70 mm. But here a lot depends on finishing, so for the installation of paving slabs, 70 cm is really enough, and if the concrete is planned to be left “bare” or covered with some thin tiles, then the thickness of the reinforced layer should be about 100 mm.
Again, the standards require that in highly loaded areas, pour a 150 mm concrete slab, although, in my opinion, this is unnecessary, a 100 mm slab a car will withstand it, but you are unlikely to park the tank in your yard;

Naturally, any path around the house must have a certain slope for water drainage, according to SNiP III-10-75, this slope ranges from 1º to 10º, to make it clearer, in the area 1º is equal to 10 mm per 1 linear meter. Personally, I always try to make a slope of around 50 mm per 1m/p.
It is impossible to make a slope that is too small, especially on soft and semi-rigid paths, and if you make a large angle, then in winter it is easy to slip on such a path;
There are no strict restrictions regarding the installation of the curb; this sector of the structure is left to the discretion of the owners. But it is easier to install a blind area with a curb, since it is used as formwork, plus powerful curbs will protect your path from the roots of trees and shrubs, if any grow nearby;
The height of the structure above the ground also does not have clear regulations. Although since water should drain from the path, it is highly undesirable to make this path at ground level, otherwise after a good rainfall there will be puddles along the blind area. I always do it myself and recommend to others to raise the path at least 50 mm from the ground level, more is possible, less is not advisable.

Method No. 1: installation of a permanent concrete path

As I already said concrete structure Ideally, it is better to insulate, so the instructions below are designed for arranging a warm path.

Preparing the foundation pit and bottom bedding

The depth of the pit depends on the number of layers under the concrete blind area. Usually 30 - 40 cm is more than enough. After excavating the soil, you can treat the bottom of the pit with universal herbicides, so that later there are no problems with growth; “Tornado” or “Agrokiller” are well suited for this.

Remember, the concrete of the blind area should not be in direct contact with the foundation; a damping gap must be created between these two structures. It is best, of course, to mount the insulation on the foundation, but if this is not part of your plans, then at least fix 2 layers of roofing material on the foundation, otherwise the path will crack in a year.

Not everyone on the farm has a professional vibrating plate for compaction; if it is not possible to buy or rent one, then you will have to compact it the old-fashioned way. In other words, you saw off an even piece of log with a diameter of 25 mm or more, and nail it on top instead of handles wooden block, of course it’s hard, but it’s free.

If possible, it is better to pour and compact fatty clay as the first layer of 50–70 mm; it is known to be a natural water seal. If you don’t have clay at hand, then simply tamp the soil and fill it with crushed stone to a level of about 100 mm. Crushed stone is taken either small or mixed; large crushed stone is very difficult to level and compact.

A layer of sifted clean sand is poured on top of the crushed stone. In this case, sand is needed to create a slope and a soft cushion for laying insulation. Since we have agreed that our slope will be 50 mm, this means that at the lowest point the thickness of the sand layer is 50 mm, and near the wall 100 mm.

Some craftsmen make a layer of geotextile between crushed stone and sand, of course there is nothing wrong with that, but personally I think it’s a waste of money, especially if you have clay poured and compacted underneath.

Insulation boards are laid on an even layer of sand compacted at an angle. In this case, only extruded polystyrene foam can be used as insulation under the concrete slab; keep in mind that polystyrene foam or anything else cannot be installed here.

Under the blind area, 50 mm of insulation is sufficient. There are 2 options here: buy thin slabs and lay them in 2 layers with an offset between the layers, this will be more expensive, but it will be more reliable, or lay polystyrene foam with joint grooves, in which case you will have to perfectly level the sand cushion.

Although extruded polystyrene foam itself is a waterproofing material, a continuous layer of technical polyethylene should be laid on top of it.

Installing formwork and pouring concrete

Now we will need to arrange wooden formwork for pouring concrete. In order to use concrete curbs as formwork, you need to have some experience. For amateurs, it is better to fill the main structure, and after deciding on the finishing, install the border.

With the formwork, everything is as usual, pull the cord, drive stakes along it from the outside every 1 - 1.5 m and hem them with a wide board or strips of thick plywood.

Iron concrete blind area cannot be poured in a single monolith; transverse damper layers will need to be installed every 2 – 2.5 m. The cheapest thing, of course, is to install planks; by the way, they can be used as beacons when leveling the solution. Naturally, the boards are pre-impregnated with creosote or any other powerful impregnation.

Ideally, these meshes should be laid in 2 layers with a gap between the layers of about 30 mm, although most often people reinforce the blind area with 1 layer of mesh, but this mesh should be laid approximately in the middle of the slab and it is better that the bars of this mesh be at least 5 - 6 mm.

Both for breaking layers of reinforcement and for installing mesh over the insulation, I personally use pieces of broken brick, although now there are special plastic pyramids for this.

If you make concrete with your own hands, then usually the proportion is 1: 3: 4 (cement/sand/gravel). The cement used is grade M400 or M500. It is better to take quarry sand; it will look bright yellow, the color comes from the clay present in it. Well, gravel is the same crushed stone, only of a fine fraction.

First, dry cement and sand are poured into the concrete mixer. After thorough mixing, this is 3 - 5 minutes, water is added and as soon as the solution becomes homogeneous, gravel is added to it and again the whole thing is mixed.

If you order ready-made concrete, keep in mind that 1 m³ of concrete covers 10 m² of blind area 100 mm thick. But you shouldn’t take too much solution; I usually order the material with a reserve of about 10%.

There is no need to dilute the solution with water too much, it should be thick, because you still have to level it at an angle. To make it easier to level the solution, the formwork should be made exactly according to the dimensions of the future fill.

So, after filling the formwork with concrete, you can take the rule and make your blind area perfectly level in a few minutes. But before this, the poured concrete will need to be pierced (punched in several places to release air), although if possible, it is better to “shrink” the concrete using a vibropress.

According to all canons, a concrete monolith completely sets in 28 days, but at least for the first week after pouring it must be constantly wetted. To do this, the path is covered with polyethylene and periodically sprayed with water. If it is very hot outside, it makes sense to cover the concrete with wet burlap and polyethylene; the burlap will retain moisture better.

Concrete finishing options

How to pour it yourself concrete path We figured it out, now let's talk about how to finish the concrete blind area around the house.

Not the most beautiful, but the simplest and most affordable finishing option is reinforced concrete; it can be done using two technologies - dry and wet:

Dry ironing technique concrete is that you need to sprinkle freshly poured concrete with a layer of dry cement and rub it into the surface. You don’t need to sprinkle a lot, 1 – 2 mm is enough. After a few days, when the monolith has finally set, you simply sweep away the remaining dry cement from it and that’s it. Thus, the strength of the coating increases significantly;

Wet ironing This is done approximately 2 weeks after pouring. To do this you will need to dilute cement-sand mortar in a 1:1 ratio and add lime paste there 10% of the total mass of the solution. After this, moisten the path with water, take a wide spatula and use it to apply this improvised screed; on average, the thickness should be 3 - 5 mm.

You can protect concrete with folk or industrial water repellents. Popular options include a mixture of liquid glass, cement and water in equal proportions.

In some cases, owners prefer to cover the blind area with enamel, in other words, paint it. But it’s not simple here; polyurethane waterproof enamel, produced under the Elakor-PU brand, has proven itself so well; it now costs about 220 rubles per kilogram.

But personally, I like the tiled paths the most. Based on cost, there are 3 options:

Laying paving slabs is the cheapest:
- To install it, you do not need to fill a thick base; 70 mm is enough. After the concrete has hardened, you will need to install curbs; it is best to make them 5 - 10 mm below the future coating, so the water will drain better;
- The curb is simply installed, a trench of the appropriate width and depth is dug, a 100 mm sand and gravel cushion is poured down and compacted;
- Pour a little cement-sand mortar onto this cushion and insert a curb block; the block itself should fit snugly against the blind area, so you can hammer in several wedges from the ground side or fill the space with gravel;

Now you cover the base with primer, I take AURA Unigrund KRAFT for 90 rubles per can. And lay paving slabs on it. Previously, using this technology, tiles were laid on a cement-sand mortar; now tile adhesive is used. The layer thickness is about 10 – 15 mm;
The next day, when the glue has set, you need to mix cement and sand in equal proportions and generously sprinkle the paving slabs with this mixture. After that, take a broom and sweep your sidewalk until all the cracks between the tiles are filled;
But that’s not all; it’s impossible to fill the cracks well in one go. Therefore, after the initial filling, you need to sweep away the remaining dry cement-sand mixture and sprinkle the path with water, and repeat the procedure the next day.

Using the technology of laying paving slabs, any block material can be installed. In this case, it does not make much difference what exactly you chose as a finishing material: ordinary paving slabs, natural slate or granite paving stones.

The second option that is common today is tiling the path around the house with clinker tiles. Clinker tiles are a unique material based on clay; in fact, they are ordinary ceramics, only made using a special technology. It is great for outdoor work, but when choosing, pay attention to the number of firings, you need tiles with one firing, they are more dense;

And finally, to The elite finishing sector includes porcelain tiles. These tiles are made from feldspar and have excellent wear resistance properties, plus they are beautiful. Both clinker and porcelain tiles are laid using standard technology, just like tiles. That is, apply glue to the base and to the tile, and then lay the tile. The gaps are maintained using plastic crosses, and after setting they are filled with grout.

Method No. 2: semi-rigid paving slab path

A semi-rigid path lined with paving slabs is installed in a similar way, in fact, the only difference here is the absence of a reinforced concrete layer. The arrangement technique is approximately as follows:

We start, as usual, with digging a pit, average depth pit 30 cm. But in a semi-rigid structure, it is advisable to immediately place curbs so that the tiles do not slide down the slope;
We dig a small recess under the edges of the borders. On average, the dimensions of a curb stone are 1000x150x300 mm (length/width/height), plus there should be a sand and gravel cushion of 100 - 150 mm under the stone. The stones are placed immediately in the finishing room, on mortar and with spacers;

In a semi-rigid structure, it is very desirable to equip the bottom layer with rich clay. With good compaction, clay is a fairly dense material and must be immediately made with the designed slope;
A waterproofing layer is installed on top. I do not recommend using polyethylene here, it is too thin. In an economical option, you can use roofing felt; if you have enough money, you can take a modern roll waterproofing material, for example, TechnoNIKOL. If you can’t cover it with one roll, then lay it overlapping and coat the joints with bitumen.

The waterproofing should extend onto the wall just above the top edge of the blind area. Ideally, it is better to place it under the final finishing of the base and do not forget about the damper layer between the foundation and the path;

Waterproofing, no matter how good it is, is still not able to withstand large point loads, so a small layer of sand up to 50 mm is poured on top and leveled;
Now you can fill in the crushed stone. In semi-rigid structures, a layer of crushed stone of 50–70 mm is sufficient;
It is, of course, better to separate sand from crushed stone with geotextiles, but this is more a recommendation than a rule;
On top, the crushed stone is covered with another similar layer of sand, about 50 mm thick. Please note that this layer of sand must be compacted especially well and leveled at an angle, since we will be laying paving slabs on it;

The technology for laying tiles is not complicated. You will need a flat board about half a meter long and a rubber hammer. Insert the tile into place and tap it with a hammer. The next tile is laid side by side, but it will be slightly higher than the previous one.
So you will need to place your plank on top of both tiles and tap them with a rubber hammer until the second tile is in place, the plank serving as a leveling pad;
As in the first option, the gaps between the paving slabs will also need to be filled. They are filled using the technology already known to you in 2 stages, but cement is not used here, only clean, dry sand is used.

Method number 3: fast, simple and inexpensive

A soft blind area can be safely called an intermediate workpiece, because it is arranged in a similar way and, as I already said, if necessary, it can be transformed into any of the two options described above.

The trench for such a path is dug downhill and immediately filled up on top, leveled and a clay castle is compacted. It is advisable to make such a lock thicker, about 100 mm;
Soft blind areas are very susceptible to creep. Ideally, of course, it is better to buy a curb stone and install it according to all the rules. But if you don’t have enough money for it, make something like wooden formwork and hammer it into a compacted clay castle.
Such a barrier will hold back the onslaught of crushed stone and maintain the integrity of the structure. Plus, later you can easily dismantle it and put a real border there;
Waterproofing is laid on the clay, as in the previous case, and a layer of clean sand is poured on top of it;
Our top finishing layer is crushed stone or gravel; some owners use it as a finishing layer sea pebbles, which is much nicer.

Briefly about pricing

Not every owner wants to swing a shovel and pour concrete with their own hands; some prefer to pay the craftsmen and forget about the problem. Just for such people, I have compiled a small table with an indicative list of works and prices for these works from hired workers.

The cost of work on arranging the blind area.
Type of work	Price for invited workers
Dismantling old design, if there is one.	65 – 75 rub/m²
Marking the path around the house.	Up to 500 rub.
Excavation of soil with a depth of up to 600 mm.	300 - 350 rub/m²
Construction of a clay hydraulic lock.	100 - 120 rub/m²
Waterproofing or geotextile flooring.	40 - 50rub/m²
Arranging a layer of sand up to 50 mm thick with a tamper.	80 - 100rub/m²
Backfilling and compaction of crushed stone or gravel up to 100 mm thick.	80 - 100rub/m²
Installation of storm water inlet and installation of drains.	250 - 300rub/m/p
Pipe laying.	50 - 70 rub/m/p
Pouring imported, ready-made concrete.	300 - 350 rub/m²
Mixing concrete by hand and pouring.	650 - 700 rub/m²
Total estimated cost.	1200 – 1500 rub/m²

Conclusion

The blind area is necessary element, which performs protective functions and preserves the integrity of the foundation. You can build a reliable blind area yourself, without having any special skills or experience. During its construction, it is recommended to provide additional protection to strengthen the foundation of the building. In this article we will look at step-by-step instructions for building a blind area.

Construction of a blind area with your own hands

Blind area: how to build?

When constructing a solid concrete blind area, it is possible to almost completely protect the base of the building from the effects of a humid environment, temperature changes, mechanical damage due to the “movement” of the soil. The construction of a blind area smoothes out the negative impact environment and protects the foundation of the building from destruction.

It performs the following functions:

Drainage of rain and melt water from the foundation of the house. If you neglect its construction, the moisture will remain close to the foundation for a long time. Because of this, it will begin to collapse, the reinforcement inside it, which serves to strengthen it, will begin to corrode.
Suspension of soil displacement, namely the shift of soil layers, swelling, subsidence.
Maintaining technical indicators, preventing them from significant fluctuations.

Determining the parameters of the blind area

For the correct construction of a durable structure, they are guided by regulatory documents and SNiPs specially developed for this purpose. For example, when constructing a concrete structure, it is necessary to ensure that the end point of the protruding overhang roofing, was 20 cm less than the width of the slope. The parameters of the water supply system should also be included in the calculation. In addition, the width of the blind area also depends on the characteristics of the soil and its type. Most often, the width of the structure is about one meter, in which case it will serve not only to protect the foundation, but also as a path.

The depth of the blind area depends on the depth of soil freezing in winter period, and it must be able to move along with the movement of the soil. Otherwise, its purpose will only be to drain water. The minimum thickness of the blind area around the perimeter of the house is at least 10 cm. If there is a built-in garage, then the figure should be increased to 15 cm so that it can withstand heavy loads (for example, the weight of a car). The length of the protective strip depends on the size of the building. It is usually not built around the porch.

Fill rules

The blind area is poured at an angle directed from the base, and its value is about 10%. The exact parameters of the angle of inclination depend on the nature of the soil and the amount of precipitation. The most commonly used tilt angle is up to three degrees. The minimum height above the soil level is 5 cm, which facilitates the drainage of moisture and its removal from the edges. When constructing a rigid blind area, the height of the base part is at least 50 cm, and at least 30 cm for soft protection. Depending on the wishes of the owners of the site and financial capabilities, the decision is made to build a border or not, since it has a purely decorative value. But, a border is necessary if, next to the structure being erected, there are green spaces (blackberries, raspberries, poplars), whose root system capable of destroying the blind area.

Types of blind area. Concrete construction involves the construction of a reinforced strip along the entire perimeter and the use of two main elements:

An underlying layer formed from materials that prevent moisture from penetrating to the foundation. Clay, sand, fine crushed stone and geotextiles have proven themselves well in this capacity. You can combine the composition of materials.
A decorative element serving as a covering and decoration.

The construction of a blind area is carried out by analogy with the construction of a foundation, namely:

ditch preparation;
laying layers of sand and crushed stone to act as a shock-absorbing cushion;
construction of a frame from reinforcement;
directly pouring the blind area and final finishing.

The blind area is divided into three types: soft, semi-rigid, hard. They differ from each other in terms of service life, features of their design and the material used for construction. Most often, concrete protection is constructed, which is a monolithic sheet. Asphalt options also belong to this type. If it is intended to insulate a structure, then it should only be rigid. Otherwise, it is not practical to install insulation. The monolithic blind area has a long service life, similar to the main structure, but also has disadvantages:

the process requires high labor intensity and a lot of time;
considerable financial investments;
laying asphalt in a small area is not worth the investment.

Semi-rigid protection is a multi-layer cushion, the upper part of which is formed from several options: concrete slab, cobblestone, porcelain stoneware, paving slabs. Such a system is less expensive both financially and resource-wise, but it is not used on heaving soil. Unity in design can be achieved if the blind area is laid out from the same material from which the rest of the paths are made.

Advantages of semi-rigid design:

long service life, subject to installation technology - up to 30 years;
there are no restrictions on climatic conditions;
low cash costs, easy to carry out routine repairs.

Most a budget option– production of soft blind area. But she also has more short term service, about 7 years. During its construction, a cushion of several layers is formed and covered with fine crushed stone or gravel on top. When constructing a blind area, it is recommended to complete all work before the onset of frost, so that the structure can harden properly (if it is concrete) and settle.

Before starting work, prepare the area for the construction. First of all, they make markings, which will facilitate further work. After this, they dig a trench with a depth of at least 15 cm, and on heaving soil - at least 30 cm. We should not forget about creating a bevel, making different depths at the points of inclination for this. The bottom of the dug trench is carefully compacted using a log. Before constructing the blind area, wooden formwork is installed, fastening the boards from the outside. If it is not planned to dismantle it in the future, then the boards must first be treated with an antiseptic and wrapped in waterproofing material (roofing felt).

17.03.2016 2 Comments

The basis of any house is the foundation. The durability of the building depends on its strength, so this structural element needs protection. And it can be threatened by moisture entering the soil along with precipitation and flood waters. They are required to protect the foundation of every home. And the blind area can help with this.

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Markup first

Before making a blind area from concrete, which is the most common building material for these structures, you should mark the area around the house. The minimum width of the blind area is 60 cm. But it is worth remembering that the width of the strip should be greater than the roof overhang. The difference should be 20 cm so that falling drops of water do not fall on open ground, but were extinguished by a concrete blind area and moved further from the foundation.

Roulette;
Stakes;
Lace.

The width is taken from the corner parts of the foundation and pins are driven in at these places, the role of which can be played by metal reinforcement or wooden cuttings. As soon as the entire perimeter has been passed, a string is pulled, marking the location of the excavation for the installation of a concrete blind area. And a new stage of work begins.

Excavation

Excavation of soil for a concrete blind area is carried out only manually. You need to dig to the depth of fertile soil. If this layer is small, then at least 40 cm is removed in order to be able to place layers of sand and crushed stone cushions and a concrete strip. The soil should be taken away and distributed around the site, as it will no longer be needed.

The base of the future concrete blind area must be level. A layer of geotextile should be laid on it so that the plant roots remaining in the ground cannot germinate and damage it over time. hydraulic structure. The material is distributed over the entire area of the trench with an overlap onto the foundation and the opposite side.

As soon as the trench is completely prepared, you need to backfill and compact construction sand and granite or limestone crushed stone. It is important to remember that the pillows should not contain any impurities, which can significantly reduce the quality of the work done. The sand is sifted before use, freeing it from any inclusions. But crushed stone is cleaned with normal visual inspection.

The thickness of the bedding ranges from 15 to 20 cm. Materials should be laid in small portions. Wherein Each layer must be compacted. For this purpose an electric professional tool or a simple wooden “block”, that is, a piece of log or timber with a handle.

An alternative to compacting sandy substrates is to use water. By evenly distributing the flow, you need to thoroughly moisten the pillow. Water will begin to seep into the sand, causing these small particles to adhere more tightly to each other.

After the stage where the sand and crushed stone cushions were backfilled, it is necessary to perform reinforcement so that the concrete blind area around the house with your own hands does not become covered with a huge number of cracks after a couple of years. But fastening with reinforcing rods will avoid troubles. In addition, the metal will add rigidity to the blind area, which will have a positive effect on the durability of the structure.

To work, you will need a metal rod (flat or notched), with a diameter of 8 to 16 mm. A reinforcing mesh is also used, laid in a trench and then filled. If a rod is used, it is distributed perpendicular to each other, forming cells ranging in size from 10 to 20 cm. The reinforcement is fastened using tying wire, previously cut into equal sections of 30 cm.

Once this work has been completed around the entire perimeter of the house, you can proceed to installing the formwork. In order to make the concrete blind area much easier, it is better to use edged board. The width of the material will depend on the height of the pour, since in some cases it is possible to raise the level when it is planned to further work with the landscape of the site. Optimal thickness concrete blind areas 10-15 centimeters.

The boards are installed using wooden stakes to which they can be nailed. When positioning the formwork, a building level should be used. It will be required to maintain the horizontal position of the blind area or to install slopes for better water drainage. It is equally important to install special inserts to divide the continuous concrete strip of the blind area. This is required to eliminate future kinks from temperature changes.

After completing all preparatory work You can start preparing the concrete mixture. To do this, you should use a mortar mixer with an electric motor so that the process goes faster and the resulting solution has high quality. The durability and strength that the concrete blind area around the house will have depends on this.

To prepare the concrete mixture, take sifted construction sand and fine crushed stone. This is exactly what allows you to get smooth surface, along which you can move freely as if on a path. Portland cement grade 400 or 500 is required as a binder. Special attention need to pay attention to the date of manufacture of this building material. The fact is that cement has the ability to reduce its own qualities and characteristics over time. That's why for work, you should choose material from the date of manufacture, which has not passed more than a month.

The mixture for the blind area around the concrete house is mixed using clean water. The temperature of the liquid should be at room temperature, that is, not too warm or cold. First, water is poured into the mixer, then crushed stone is added, and only then cement can be poured. This allows for uniform mixing of the binder, which helps produce better quality concrete. When the cement is completely distributed throughout the mixture, sand can be added.

The composition of the mixture is determined by different specialists from the following calculation:

One part cement;
Sand three parts;
Crushed stone five parts.

Water is added until the desired consistency is obtained, which should resemble sour cream. This is the only way to obtain a high-quality mixture that is convenient for leveling and laying. The resulting grade of concrete depends entirely on the cement used. So, to get M250 concrete, you need to use M400 cement. But a binder with the M500 grade allows you to obtain M350 concrete. The proportions of the material should not change.

The prepared concrete is evenly placed in the prepared blind area. This is done using buckets or directly from the mixer, when it is possible to install it directly near the formwork. Each portion of concrete after unloading is subjected to leveling and vibration. This allows all air bubbles to be expelled from the concrete, which will make it much stronger.

An ordinary wooden block can serve as a vibrator, which produces translational movements. Once this is done, you should move on to the process of leveling the concrete. To do this you will need a metal rule. This tool allows you to get a flat surface that is smooth and uniform. Thanks to it, the same thickness of the concrete blind area is obtained, which is also important.

If the formwork was done correctly, then there will be no problems with the slope of the structure. But you should still check it. The slope of the blind area should not be more than 15 mm per meter of width. This is the only way to get an additional path around the house, along which water will flow freely onto the site. If you want to drain the liquid to one place, a gutter is placed along the perimeter of the blind area. When it rains, water will flow into it and go into a storm drain or into a special ditch.

The laid slats at the formwork stage, which are responsible for the formation of expansion joints, should be pulled out after pouring the concrete. This measure allows you to avoid subsequent rotting of the wood and filling of these technological cavities with various debris. But there is no need to leave them empty either. Therefore, the most effective solution The seams will be filled with a special sealant. It will not interfere with the expansion of the concrete surface, and will also make the technological cavities more attractive in appearance.

What is important is the distance between expansion joints. It should not be too large, but it is also not recommended to chop it. The optimal distance is 2 meters, which eliminates the formation of cracks with subsequent destruction during the expansion and contraction of the concrete blind area.

Protective measures after concrete placement

When the concrete mixture is finally laid, the blind area should be covered with plywood or chipboard panels. It is allowed to use slate sheets that are leaned against the wall of the house. This measure allows you to protect fresh concrete from the effects of precipitation, such as rain. Also, such protection will not allow moisture to quickly leave the solution, which can lead to the formation of cracks.

What is the difference correct blind area made of concrete? The strength and durability of the top layer on which the water collected on the roof of the house falls. To ensure these qualities apply:

Cement laitance;
Liquid glass;
Primers and enamels;
Ceramic tiles and natural stone.

The most common method of protection is reinforced concrete. For this purpose, dry cement or milk prepared on its basis is used. After the treatment process, a the thinnest layer, able to withstand any impact of precipitation and temperature. This makes the blind area hardy and durable.

Coating concrete with a primer or enamel is also aimed at achieving protective properties and increasing the performance of the resulting structure. To do this, water repellents are used that penetrate deep into the frozen blind area, providing it with water-repellent properties. Compared to ironing, this method is somewhat more expensive, so it is less common among owners of country houses, although it is quite effective.

An alternative to priming concrete is to coat it with a mixture of liquid glass and cement. This composition is somewhat reminiscent of conventional iron surface, but provides the blind area with higher resistance to water and other precipitation. Responsible for this in the mixture liquid glass, increasing the water-repellent properties of the surface and making it more airtight.

Usage ceramic tiles And natural stone for facing the surface of the blind area allows you to perform two tasks at once:

Improving protective properties;
Decorative design of the area around the house.

When planning the future landscape design of a site, this method can perfectly fit the house located on it. Many designers use this solution to create a smooth transition from the structure to the ground. The qualities of ceramics or natural stone make it possible to ensure long-term operation of the blind area, even in cases where there is frequent movement of people living in the house.

The laying of all elements is carried out directly after laying and leveling the concrete. A building level will help check the evenness and horizontality of the resulting cladding layer. The only unpleasant moment is that due to the dense coating, the concrete base will take longer to dry, which will delay the start of its operation. Otherwise, this decision can be considered the best option designing a blind area around any building.

Step-by-step video review of the construction of a concrete platform

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