News and Press
Bontrager Wins First Basement Competition
Bontrager Concrete Specialties, Incorporated of Nappanee, Indiana was announced the winner of the first annual "Basement of the Year" competition (also known as the "Basement from Hell") during the CFA Annual Winter meeting at the All Star Café in Las Vegas, Nevada. Their submittal was selected from foundation projects around the country.
Kevin and Duane Bontrager, co-owners of the company, have been working as poured wall contractors for 33 years. According the them, this was one of the most challenging projects they have completed.
The footings were all 24" thick and 36" wide and sat on top of over 200 wood pilings. The footings needed to be pumped in two separate pours due to the size and inaccessibility of the project. There were 770 lineal feet of formed wall with thicknesses of 8", 10", 12", 14", 16" and 34".
There were numerous other odd forming situations. A couple worth mentioning include the front entry which had 11 foot long wall ties to hold things together; the 27 forty-five degree angle corners of which several had wall thickness changes; and the 38 + ninety degree corners. There were numerous dimensions that were ¼", ½", and ¾" instead of nice even inches. To add interest to the project, a brick ledge went around the entire perimeter of the building.
The project used 460 cubic yards of 4000 psi design concrete on the footings and walls and over 6000 pounds of reinforcing steel.
Our congratulations to Kevin, Duane, and their crews who constructed the project. Kevin and Duane will receive a CFA logo jacket for their efforts. Concrete Construction magazine plans to run a story on the project in a future issue.
The contest will be repeated next year so when you have a basement you think is deserving of the name "Basement from Hell" send us some good photos and specifics about the project.
The CFA is a voluntary, nonprofit association that brings together concrete contractors and professionals nationwide to improve the quality of cast-in-place concrete walls and foundations.
The CFA provides promotional materials, educational seminars, and networking opportunities to its members and the industry. CFA also works on behalf of its members and the entire industry to develop support and influence code bodies.
For more information about the CFA or any of its programs, call (319) 895-6940 or continue looking through this site.
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