Today starts a series about the stages of construction. Our goal is to help you understand the stages of construction, learn about how we do things and what you can expect during each stage. In this series, we will cover 7 additional stages of construction.

Stage 1

Stage 1 includes the following: lot survey, finish floor survey, home layout, concrete form setting, under-slab plumbing, plumbing inspections, under-slab electrical, gravel fill, steel/hardware, post tension steel cable installation, pre-slab 3^rd party inspection, pre-slab local municipality building & safety inspection, Fulton Homes phase 1 inspection, slab & driveway concrete pour, concrete flatwork and rough grading. Flatwork is defined as concrete or brick paver walkways, driveways and patios.

The home layout begins by painting the lines of the home on the ground. The perimeter footing turn downs, interior bearing footings and plumbing trenches are all marked on the homesite with marking paint.

Forms are the next step in the process. Form setting follows the paint line layout on the homesite. Form setting is the process of setting the exterior perimeter requirements of the concrete slab. Form setting is also the process of creating the channel in which the perimeter footing turn down and interior bearing footings are poured with concrete.

The under-slab plumbing is installed next. ABS drain and waste lines are installed, followed by the water supply lines. The terrain, size of the home, weather and soil conditions will determine the time it takes to layout and trench for plumbing.

The term “steel” refers to the rebar that is used to reinforce the concrete footings. The term “hardware” refers to the bolts and or straps that secure the framing to the concrete foundation/slab. The term “cables” refers to the Post Tension system used to reinforce the concrete slabs. Footing depth, steel and hardware placement varies with soil conditions and engineering per plan.

Once the rebar, cables, footings and underground plumbing have passed inspection the footings and slab will be poured. Again, these inspections are conducted by the Fulton Homes Project Manager, an independent third party inspection company and the local municipality building & safety inspectors. The plumbing trenches are then back-filled and gravel is spread within the interior of the home. A typical slab is set up on this bed of gravel per the plans and engineering requirements. The under-slab electrical conduits are installed in the gravel at this time.

Please note that Fulton Homes is proud to use the Post Tension foundation system in all of their homes.

Post tension cables and rebar are used to reinforce the concrete slab. Plumbing and electrical protrusions are then prepped for inspection.

The pre-slab 3^rd party and local municipality building & safety inspections are then conducted to ensure that the gravel has been installed at the proper depth, there is ample room to the top of the forms for the required slab depth and that rebar, post tension cables, and structural hold-down hardware are installed per engineered plans & specifications. A Fulton Homes Phase 1 pre-slab inspection is also performed at this time. This Fulton Homes inspection includes the verification that the buyers chosen options have been installed.

The slab is now ready to be poured. After the concrete has cure per the engineering requirements, the cables will be tensioned and excess cable ends will be cut off.

You must never cut or drill into this slab as structural damage can occur if a cable is cut. This is extremely dangerous. There is a great possibility of injury when a cut cable snaps trough the concrete. If Fulton Homes must cut into the concrete for any reason we acquire extensive engineering prior to performing this work.