Semester 2

ABPL 90393 Steel and Composite

Construction Systems

Lecture 7
Basement Construction
(Single level)

All construction site images UNO Source: Peter Ashford 1

• precast concrete panel • Technical information
basement case study extracted from the following
• reinforced concrete wall manufacturer’s catalogues:
basement •
• Bored pier and shotcrete infill – Corkjoint www.corkjoint.com
panels – Parchem www.parchem.com.au
– CETCO www.cetco.com
• waterproofing solutions
– Nylex
• drainage

2
 Case study

Precast concrete panels used for a single level basement, 2 temporary props per panel required 3
 Case study

Steel shutters for worker safety and cast insitu concrete walls built in sections called “Drives” 4
 Describe the drawing annotations
5
Single level precast concrete panel basement
 precast concrete panel basement wall installation
1. Bulk excavation as per drawing in previous slide

2. Excavate vertical slots at locations marked 1 for a length equal to the

precast panel width (1.5 or 3.0m)

3. Excavate for strip footing, place reinforcement and panel dowel bars into
footing and cast footing. Provide bent out bars from ends of footing to
enable lapping to adjoining footing.

4. Place precast panels at locations marked 1, connect props from panel to

temporary footings. Precast panels to have the cordrain and the strip
drain adhered to the back of the panel prior to removal of the angle
restraint.

5. Grout in panel dowels

6. Pour no-fines concrete behind the wall

7. Repeat 1 to 7 for locations marked 2, then 3 then 4. 6

1

2
Single level
precast concrete
3 panel basement
Overall Construction sequence

5
7
 Single level precast
concrete panel basement

Example of Drive No.1

on a hit and miss basis

Note how closely spaced the

Drives are in the top RHS due to
the adjoining building on the
boundary line.

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 Single level precast
concrete panel basement

Example of Drive No.1

on a hit and miss basis

Once these precast walls are

Installed, the soil is retained
from collapse and Drive No.2
can be commenced.

9
 Single level precast
concrete panel basement

Example of Drive No.1

on a hit and miss basis

Once these precast walls are

Installed, the soil is retained
from collapse and Drive No.2
can be commenced.

Once No. 2 walls are installed

Drive No.3 can be commenced

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Image shows adjoining building brick wall, rendered,
The earth batter, footing poured with starter bars and
PVC packers, strip drain at base of wall, wilseal on
edge of RHS precast panel, overlapping edge of the
sheet drain at the back of the panel and precast panel
props.
Pin connections top and bottom of wall, therefor props
required.

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All work by hand inside the steel shutter protection: Including footing excavation, reinforcement incl starter bars,
strip drain installation and protective cover and pouring concrete. This section of wall is cast insitu concrete. 12
 precast concrete panel basement

Options?

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precast concrete panel basement

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 Case study

Completed precast concrete panel installation. Note the internal pad footings have been poured with column starter
bars in place, the bulk of the basement slab has been poured prior to the first suspended slab. Why? 15
Drainage systems
 Stripdrain
• Stripdrain is a geotextile filter fabric around a
deep formed plastic core
• available in widths of 100mm, 200mm, up to
900mm. Standard thickness 40mm.
• Stripdrain is lightweight, flexible and easy
to join simply by overlapping core and
taping geotextile

The width of the strip drain and the number required

depend on the expected volume of water behind the wall,
which is determined by a geotechnical report
 Cordrain
Coredrain is a geocomposite vertical
drainage blanket, which consists of a
plastic cuspated inner core, fitted with a
heat bonded, non woven geotextile filter
fabric bonded on one side only.
• Cordrain effectively reduces hydrostatic
pressure behind walls
• Cordrain typically eliminates the need
for aggregate or sand backfill

Cordrain sheets attached to the back of the

precastwalls prior to erection and no-fines
concrete backfill (example next 2 slides)
 Waterproofing and panel joint detailing

Coredrain at the back of the wall, no-fines concrete backfill as drainage, and partially completed panel to panel 19
corner connection. Wilseal on exterior, backing rod and sealant on inside face, grout infill still to be done.
 Waterproofing Solutions:

Example image of No-fines concrete

as drainage filter behind the back of a wall

What is no-fines concrete?

Concrete without any fines, that is NO SAND.
Contains cement and aggregate only, therefore
very porous and acts like a drain but is still strong enough
to provide lateral support to the retained soil.
 precast concrete panel basement
Sealing the joints between
the precast panels

If the “Wilseal” is compressed

from 30mm to 15mm, it is
nearly waterproof
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5 barriers to prevent water entry
 Single level basement drainage plan

Note the location of exterior and interior drains & pit locations
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Single level basement drainage plan

Discuss:

External drains
Internal drains
Spoon drains
Pits and pumps

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 Cast insitu reinforced concrete basement

• reinforced concrete basement walls require pour joints either vertical or

horizontal that must be sealed to limit/prevent water penetration when the
concrete shrinks.

Torched on bituminous sheet tanking, overlapped at joints and protected with black corflute board to prevent
the sheet tanking being punctured during backfilling with crushed rock 24
 Waterproofing

Why Consider Waterproofing?

• Leakage is the most common problem

and waterproofing should not be
overlooked.

• The concrete substructure cannot

be constructed in one piece and
therefore contains construction
joints which can act as a water
path. (see next slide)

• What about different levels of

water‐ resistance? Does the
basement need to be water
resistant OR waterproof?

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 example cast insitu walls, joint layout

Floor Plan

It is not possible to cast all the wall perimeter at once

Careful compaction and good quality concrete essential
to achieve any level of water tightness.
All joints need some level of waterproofing
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 Cast insitu waterproofing solutions:

• Corkjoint Waterstops
– Sure‐Stop PVC Waterstops
– Sure‐Stop Rubber Waterstop
– Sure‐Stop Copper Waterstop PVC waterstops

– SUPERSWELL
– HYDROTITE
– Waterproof injection system
• Geotextile Fabrics
• Bentonite Geotextile WP System
• Nylex Drainage Solutions
Hydrotite
– Stripdrain
– Cordrain
– Plazadeck Drain
– Root Barrier
 Sure‐Stop PVC Waterstops

• They are specially designed for use

throughout the construction industry in
water retaining and water excluding
structures where a positive seal is
required for poured in‐situ concrete
expansion, construction and contraction
joints.

• Waterstops are designed to allow for

expansion and other movements that
can cause joints to open and close.

• The efficiency of any waterstop is very

dependent on good workmanship and
on full compaction of the concrete!
 Versatility of Sure‐Stop waterstops

For walls or basement slabs

F
 Sure‐Stop PVC Waterstops

Waterstops being used in joint between the tunnel base and the side walls, cruciforms prefabricated
in factory with heat plastic welding to ensure watertightness.
Sure‐Stop PVC Waterstops

These waterstops are flat on one side for fixing

directly on to the formwork

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 Superswell/Waterstop‐RX

• Both products are sealing compounds which

expand in a controlled fashion when exposed to
moisture, forming a positive seal in concrete joints
• The key is their 75% sodium bentonite
content which provides superior expansion to
seal and fill small voids.
• Allows concrete to gain strength before expansion
• Unaffected by repeated wet and dry cycles
• Seals cracks and around penetrations

All images sourced

from the manufacturer
 Superswell/Waterstop‐RX
• They are ideal for use in horizontal and
vertical construction joints
• Needs 50mm clear cover to the face of
the concrete
• Recommended for use in non‐movement joints
(reinforcement is continuous)

All images sourced

from the manufacturer
Superswell/Waterstop‐RX
 Hydrotite
• Hydrotite expands as it absorbs
water and fills up concrete joint
gaps conforming to the gap
variation, ensuring excellent sealing
• Unique combination of expanding
hydrophilic material and non-
expanding chloroprene rubber
• expands in a controlled fashion by
approximately eight times by
volume in the presence of moisture
to create a compression seal within
joints which shuts out the water
path
• seals horizontal and vertical
construction joints
• returns to its original size if there is
no more water or moisture present

Hydrotite is less flexible than Waterstop RX so can only be used on flat surfaces 35
 Hydrotite

• Hydrotite
• some leakage may occur before
hydrotite re-expands fully
• repeated wet and dry cycling of
this nature does not effect the
functioning of Hydrotite
• self adhesive backing which makes
installation easier and lower
construction time and cost
• suitable for low movement joints

e.g.: Vertical Thru Pipe

Construction tie penetrations Horizontal and vertical joints
joint holes

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Hydrotite

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 bituminous tanking
• Bitumen is a mixed substance made up of organic liquids that are highly
sticky, viscous, and waterproof.
• Bitumen tanking membranes are usually self bonding and can be used in
vertical or horizontal applications for tanking below ground structures,
subways, and retaining walls.
• Bitumen primer can also be sprayed or applied on a surface with a
brush/roller.

A roll of bitumen tanking membrane Bitumen primer applied to concrete blockwork, ready for
pressing onto surface and heat torching for adhesion
 bituminous tanking

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Bituminous tanking covered with black protective core flute board
 bituminous tanking

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Bituminous tanking can also be applied using a brush with 2-3 coats required, still requires coreflute boards
 Bored pier and shotcrete infill panels
MSD building

Exposed bored piers, capping beam with strip drains, starter bars epoxied in and ground anchors installed
 Bored pier and shotcrete infill panels

There are horizontal and vertical joints in the shotcrete infill panel walls. All have the potential to leak. 42
Joints can be sealed for example with Waterstop RX if required
 Bored pier and shotcrete
infill panels

Leakage through:

Horizontal joints in the shotcrete

between the capping beam and the
shotcrete infill panel

Vertical joint between the shotcrete and

the bored pier

Possible cracks in the shotcrete infill panel

Note spoon drain that is connected to the

SWD and pits

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 Drainage pits

Cast insitu concrete pits including pump pit, future pit access is by lifting the open grate covers 44
 Storm water drains and pits

Note subfloor drainage pipes and pits, strip drains in the centre of each infill panel and vertical joints 45
between piers and shotcrete panels
 Strip drain connection

Connection of the strip drain behind wall connected to internal subfloor drainage system 46
MSD building
north west corner
showing strip drains
connected to storm
water drains

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MSD building
North west corner
Submersible pump

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MSD building
north west corner
Pump details

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