Protecting foundations from frost

摘要

It seems like I say this a lot, but the code is too often misrepresented as more restrictive than it really is. At times, this is because industry practice is so commonplace that it's understood as required, when there are actually other options permitted within the plain text of the code.One of these misconceptions has to do with foundations. Excavating below frost depth is an example of a norm that's often considered a requirement, when really it's just the first of four options the International Residential Code's section R403.1.4.1 provides for protecting foundations from frost. In the code, none of the four options is encouraged over another. It's often just convention that leads people to select option one-excavating below frost depth-and ignore the rest. Before we look at the other options, let's understand the goal of the code's provisions for protecting foundations from frost and the variables it addresses.