User's Manual

13
Building the Foundation
Use the Vilter General Arrangement (GA) and foundation drawings to help secure a building permit and foundation
construction. The Vilter GA drawing will have the necessary dimensions required to determine the overall founda-
tion size and where to locate the compressor unit on the foundation. It will also show the dimensions required to
form up the housekeeping piers that the compressor unit rests on. The Vilter foundation drawing lists the necessary
information to construct a suitable foundation. It includes the rebar requirements and locations. It also shows anchor
bolt locations, grouting and the concrete specifi cations. Using the Vilter GA drawing, Vilter foundation drawing and
the information from site characteristics, site layout and safety studies will provide enough data to allow building
the foundation to proceed.
The foundation is to be cast and permanently exposed against the earth. Therefore, if constructing on an existing
fl oor, typically indoors, the fl oor will need to be broken up to get to the earth. If starting from undisturbed soil, it
must be also be prepared accordingly. In either case, these are some check points to consider:
• Check the depth of your frost line to ensure the foundation extends below it
• Ensure the foundation rests entirely on natural rock or entirely on solid earth, but never on a combination
of both
• Check the ability of the soil to carry the load
• Check wet season and dry season soil characteristics for static loading limits and elasticity
• Check local codes for Seismic Design requirements
For examples of foundation diagrams, refer to Figure 1 - Concrete Pad with Compressor Unit Dimensions - Side View
and Figure 2 - Concrete Pad with Compressor Unit Dimensions - Front View
CENTER LINE OF
GAS COMPRESSION
SYSTEM
EL. TOP OF
GRADE
# 6 @ 12"
EACH WAY
TOP & BOTTOM
3" CLR. 2" CLR.
1'-0"
6"
COMPRESSOR UNIT
2" (TYP.)
2" (TYP.)
G.A.
G.A.
EXCAVATE TO FROST DEPTH AS REQ'D AND BACKFILL
WITH CLSM OR NON-FROST SUSCEPTIBLE FILL
4" COMPACTED
SAND
Figure 1. Concrete Pad with Compressor Unit Dimensions - Side View
Foundation