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STANDBY GENERATOR PAD: How to Build a Great Pad Without Pouring Concrete
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Feb 22, 2024
Watch and learn how to make a solid, level, good looking base pad for a standby generator without pouring concrete. Cheap, simple, stable and way better looking than just crushed stone or patio slabs. READ MY POPULAR ARTICLES ABOUT: Polyurethane Finish - https://bit.ly/powerbuffing DIY Hoop House Plans - https://bit.ly/hoophouseplans Submersible Pump Installation - https://bit.ly/pumpinstallation Air-Drying Wood Tips - https://bit.ly/wooddrying How to Build a Table - https://bit.ly/tablebuilding How to Stain a Deck - https://bit.ly/deckstain Choosing Waterproof Outdoor Glue - https://bit.ly/exterioradhesives How To Build A Wheelchair Ramp - https://bit.ly/wheelchairrampplans SUBSCRIBE: http://bit.ly/BLRchannel WATCH MY POPULAR VIDEO: How to Cut Perfect Miter Joints https://youtu.be/0wnjJ-Xi5FU WATCH MORE BAILEY LINE ROAD: Winter Tips - https://bit.ly/2rpnUcm
View Video Transcript
0:00
So I'm going to be installing a standby generator here at my place and the first
0:06
step is to create a pad for it to sit on and I've got an approach which is a
0:11
little different than normal. It's better than the basics and then easier with one of the more advanced methods people use but this is the
0:20
generator here. I might want to take a look at it before we go over to the pad site
0:27
There's an engine in this case it's propane fired. It connects to a generator
0:34
unit and it switches on and off as needed so when the power goes off this
0:39
automatically fires up and provides a more or less instant source of
0:45
electricity for the house. So there's all kinds of wiring and stuff that needs to
0:48
happen to make this work but as I said the first step is a foundation pad and
0:53
that's what I want to show you now. So here's the basic idea of this pad
1:00
The simplest way that people do this sort of thing is just to lay down some patio slabs but they're thin and they can break and you know one Cadillac
1:10
option is to actually pour a pad out of concrete but that's a lot of trouble and
1:16
if you don't get the concrete mix just right you're going to have some deterioration over the years. So this I think is the best way to go about it and
1:24
it starts with this pressure treated wood frame. This is going to be a regular
1:29
part of the installation. It's going to stay here. This is a foundation grade
1:34
pressure treated lumber so it's meant for continuous contact with the earth
1:38
and it will never rot. They actually build foundations of houses out of this
1:43
stuff. Inside are what's called foundation slabs. They're kind of like patio slabs
1:50
They're not as fancy looking and they're thicker. They're about three and a half inches thick so they're stronger. The idea is that I'm going to level this
1:59
frame with some stakes as I'm going to show you and then I'm going to fill the
2:05
bottom part of the frame with some sand up to this line that you see here. The
2:11
line will be level because the frame is going to be level. I'm going to compact
2:15
that and then I'm going to put these foundation slabs on top and we're
2:22
going to end up with a nice solid base. If there's any frost heaving and
2:28
moving at all these aren't going to crack because the joints between the
2:33
slabs will take up that movement and I'm going to put some topsoil around
2:39
the edge to kind of slope it down, get some grass growing and just make it all
2:45
look nice. It's not likely I'm going to have to move this pad but unlike a
2:50
concrete pad I would be able to do that. I can just take it all apart and move it
2:54
over. I think this is the best way to do it and now I'm going to show you how
2:59
I go about putting it all together. My job here now is to level this frame
3:03
I don't really know for sure what the highest point is at the moment. I kind of
3:08
think it's this corner but I'm going to be driving these stakes into the ground
3:12
so that I can raise or lower the frame as needed and then drive a screw or two
3:21
in to hold it level because this is going to set the stage for the whole
3:24
installation. These stakes aren't going to stay here but they are going to be
3:29
here when I put the fill in and compact it. So I've got my level out now. My job is to level this frame and as I suspected
3:48
this corner is a little bit high so that'll be my reference point. I'm
3:54
actually going to raise it a little bit and then drive a single screw in through
3:59
the stake into the frame. That sticks out a little bit but that's going to be
4:07
that I'm going to be taking that screw out again and it's below the level where
4:11
the slabs are going to go so I'm not concerned about that. Now I'm going to go over and
4:20
level up this next side. So now I'm going to put in some sand which I will level and compact. Some
4:37
people recommend digging out the sod in a situation like this but I think that's actually counterproductive because if if I dig that soil I'm going to loosen it
4:46
It's as compact as it can ever possibly be right now. There's just the tiniest
4:52
amount of vegetation on there so for an application like this I'm not going to
4:56
take that away. I'm just going to put my sand on top and level and smooth and
5:02
compact that sand. You can see it's going to take another load so I'll go and get it. So my job now
5:19
is to level this sand more or less where I've marked the inside of the frame
5:26
with the marker. So I've marked that inside of the frame two and three
5:30
quarter inches down from the top edge. The foundation slabs are three and a
5:36
half so those slabs are going to sit up a little bit proud of the wood which is
5:39
what I want but I can't start compacting it now because some places have too much
5:43
sand so I'm not enough. So I've cut this screed just fits within the frame and
5:49
I'm just going to work it back and forth to put my eye on as close as I can to be
5:56
on that line which you can see here. Just got to get it kind of level and then
6:06
I'll do some compacting and adjusting. There's too much sand in here but that's
6:15
okay. There's too much at the moment I'm not sure how how much it's going to
6:19
shrink by the time I start pounding it down but across that ridge where we come to it
6:26
So I'm just gonna go get the wheelbarrow here to empty some more sand in. So I've done some work with my screed and my trowel
6:40
I've just I'm more or less up to the line sometimes a little bit below the
6:45
line I think the whole thing is going to be below the line once I do some
6:49
pounding but that's okay we'll just do two or three back and forth until we get
6:56
things pretty good. There's going to be a certain amount of settling in of the
7:00
slabs anyway they're pretty heavy so they're going to settle in and and
7:04
really do their final final adjustment on themselves. We've got a fair amount of
7:15
shrinkage here but that's good that's what we want. If you've ever poured a pad you know it's a lot more trouble than this and
7:30
as I said before it's not it's not as reliable in this situation at least on a
7:36
northern climate where I live. So the compaction even with that little hand tool has resulted in quite a drop
7:55
in the sand level. That's what I expected so I'm just going to shovel on some more
8:00
sand repeat the process screed it pound it see how we're doing in relation to
8:06
the line and and just keep on doing that until we've got compacted sand evenly
8:12
all around the line. Well I'm up to that line now everything's compacted and
8:17
smooth and I'm ready to set these slabs in place. Before I do I'm going to cut
8:22
these stakes off. As I mentioned before I'm going to be putting some topsoil in
8:27
here almost up to the level of the wood and tapering out. That's going to stop
8:32
the sand from coming out there I'm going to plant some grass that'll establish sod on it and it'll just hold everything together nicely. So for now I just want
8:40
to cut off these stakes just somewhat lower than where that soil is going to go
8:51
Just so that they're out of the way. These slabs are pretty heavy and and I
8:56
don't want to have anything in the way when they're lower in place. Okay so now
9:04
it's time to set these slabs in place without pinching my fingers or making a
9:09
mess. So I'm not going to rely on this frame too much
9:22
Yeah I should say I've left about half an inch of clearance with the frame all
9:29
the way around the assembled slabs so it's not too tight of a fit. It would be
9:33
an awful shame right now to try to put these slabs in place and find that the
9:37
frame was a little too small. So you definitely want some clearance
10:07
Yeah I'm just gonna center them a bit in relation to the excess space and then
10:14
put down some soil. So everything's all done and in place now. We used the loader
10:20
tractor to bring the generator over here. We put it in place. I've started to put
10:25
some soil around the outside. I'm going to need more only at least twice as much
10:29
I think to bring it up higher and feather it out further but but there you
10:34
go a foundation platform for the generator all ready to go
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