ᐅ Foundation Height for New Single-Family House Construction

Good day dear forum,

Since we will soon start building our house without a basement, I have a question about the footing level (on a strip foundation). Attached is a drawing (not to scale). How high would you recommend pouring the top edge of the footing? We need to ensure the appropriate slope away from the house, just like for the driveway... About 17cm (7 inches) of screed will be applied on top of the footing (I think this will be the height of the step at the entrance). I would appreciate any advice you could share on this.

Thank you very much and best regards
Bauherr88

17cm (7 inches) screed?! Please consult an architect or planner. That sounds very misguided.

Hello BehaElja,

the 17cm (approximately 7 inches) refers to the total thickness (including insulation, screed, etc.). We have a planner, but they say the base slab should be 30cm (approximately 12 inches) above the street level, which seems too low to me...

As a general rule, a minimum slope of 1% is recommended. The 30 cm (12 inches) you mentioned would definitely be sufficient. If you experience frequent flooding or heavy rain, you can of course increase the slope even further.

Our slab is also about 30 cm (12 inches) above street level. According to the plan, the top edge of the finished floor is 50 cm (20 inches) higher than the street—so exactly the same as in your case.

For us, the finished floor level had to be 20cm (8 inches) above street level.