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MN Renovator · 12-07-14, 07:54 AM

This was a fun read. I'd personally prefer a foundation below the frost line so I can make an insulation tub so the whole slab can be poured inside.

I think it is a bad idea to build a home that requires it to be heated to a minimum of 64 degrees otherwise it is liable to frost heave and destroy the foundation and probably house. What if someone goes on vacation for a month and wants to drop the temperature to 40 degrees. I've done this in weather well below freezing and there has been no issues. I can't do this with that type of foundation and if I build a house with this type of freeze-fragile foundation that relies on the interior thermal body of the house bleeding into the ground to prevent it from frost heaving, I'm limited to my nighttime and away-to-work setbacks being much warmer than they are currently set to and there is a huge energy penalty to building a house this way.

The average temperature of my house in November through February factoring in setbacks is easily below 60. The slab in my house with the temperature upstairs at 40 degrees is still 55 degrees because it is significantly below the frost line and oddly enough provides heat to the house in this scenario, it would be much colder if it was above the frost line.

I'm also thinking of what damage this would have caused for all of the foreclosed homes that had their water shut off at the street and plumbing winterized while the house did fine on its own. How would a lender deal with this in a foreclosure. Would a lender even want to put a mortgage on a home like this for a borrower?

12-07-14, 07:54 AM	#2
MN Renovator Less usage=Cheaper bills Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Minneapolis, MN Posts: 939 Thanks: 41 Thanked 116 Times in 90 Posts	This was a fun read. I'd personally prefer a foundation below the frost line so I can make an insulation tub so the whole slab can be poured inside. I think it is a bad idea to build a home that requires it to be heated to a minimum of 64 degrees otherwise it is liable to frost heave and destroy the foundation and probably house. What if someone goes on vacation for a month and wants to drop the temperature to 40 degrees. I've done this in weather well below freezing and there has been no issues. I can't do this with that type of foundation and if I build a house with this type of freeze-fragile foundation that relies on the interior thermal body of the house bleeding into the ground to prevent it from frost heaving, I'm limited to my nighttime and away-to-work setbacks being much warmer than they are currently set to and there is a huge energy penalty to building a house this way. The average temperature of my house in November through February factoring in setbacks is easily below 60. The slab in my house with the temperature upstairs at 40 degrees is still 55 degrees because it is significantly below the frost line and oddly enough provides heat to the house in this scenario, it would be much colder if it was above the frost line. I'm also thinking of what damage this would have caused for all of the foreclosed homes that had their water shut off at the street and plumbing winterized while the house did fine on its own. How would a lender deal with this in a foreclosure. Would a lender even want to put a mortgage on a home like this for a borrower? Last edited by MN Renovator; 12-07-14 at 07:58 AM..