Prefab homes can be built anywhere, but can they be built on a sloped hillside block which could complicate things. Hillside sloped home building is different from any type of house build, however, some things do get changed or added to the total process of the house build.
So can a prefab home be built on sloped blocks? Yes, they can, however, there will have to be a greater emphasis on geotechnical engineering, ground surveys, and foundation work to ensure the house’s stability and integrity.
The reason why prefabs need to be built on hillside areas is thanks to the fact that in many cities the flat property areas are already fully developed while the hillside sloped blocks are now the new prospects for new development and expansion of the city farther. Additionally, hillside locations are also located higher and provide great views and a less crowded feeling.
For those reasons, people these days are exploring more and more into the possibility of building their homes on the slopes of the hills around the main cities. A decision many do in the hopes of getting better employment opportunities, better education for children, and overall higher quality of services.
As such the prefab industry has to answer the demand and some companies have professionals working with them so prefab homes could be a viable solution for hillside sloped blocks. To be honest about it the process involving prefabrication is not so different than building a stick-built home on a hillside, though, the prefabs do have some pros over the other.
But make no mistake, building a prefab home on a sloped hillside is very much doable even if it will be harder than building a similar size home on a flat piece of land.
But before diving into a contract with any architect or prefab manufacturer, one should know the facts and understand what will be changing so the project could finish with success. And in my eyes, there are things worth knowing before approaching the build itself or even purchasing the land.
What You Should Know About Building A Prefab On A Slope
Building A Prefab Home On A Slope Needs A Different Foundation
Foundation is the most basic infrastructure of the prefab home, it holds the house into place, it supports the living spaces above it, and it must be in accordance with local building codes. Furthermore, the structure of the soil has a role in determining how the foundation would look like.
Building a foundation on a flat ground means that all the forces are working in one direction and the loads will mostly be spread evenly across the whole section of the foundation. But, when the home is about to be built on an angeled ground such as a hillside the forces will change as some support will be lost since parts of the foundation might be elevated from the ground.
This makes the foundation for a hillside prefab home and in fact any home, a bit different. Thus, the task of planning the foundation for each home on a hillside is new as there are no similar blocks on a hillside slope.
Moreover, in some cases, the composition of the foundation could be different, a stronger concrete or one with faster curing time. Whatever is needed to make the prefab home as durable as possible.
Making the right plan regarding the prefabs hillside foundations will make or brack the house, it will be one of the factors that could limit the prefab home sustainability and safety.
Building Prefabs On Hillsides Will Increase The Lower Levels Area
Sloped hillside home build is different from the somewhat normal flat home building, prefabs can be a great option as the ability to play and adjust parts to fit the plan is fairly easy.
However, one thing that prefab home hillside built will have is a larger size lower levels, as the topography determines how the home layout will be. As the topography is a slope the house will be built in several levels to lower the stress on the foundation. This is also a great way of keeping the hillside topography cleaner and more eco-friendly, but that’s a topic for another post.
The prefab home will have to be adjusted to fit the slope and the best way of doing it is spreading the house into several levels (depends on the size) as the lower you go the bigger to levels become. This is to help support the house and give the prefab home greater stability and better use of the block.
On the other hand, the larger connection with the ground may force a higher use of thermal insulation on the floors. As many prefab homes are proud sustainable homes, their insulation is a valuable part of it. Thus, making sure the prefab home will keep its high performance the floors must be insulated as well.
Building A Prefab On A Slope Means More Geotechnical Engineering And Surveying
At the beginning of each new home building project, there is a land survey and some geotechnical engineering. However, a new hillside prefab building project gets to do this part only on steroids.
Because this prefab home project is situated on a slope there is more to learn on how and where to position the home. The ground could be parts rocky and parts sandy, and some of it might even not be stable to hold the foundation of the home.
Therefore, each block of hillside land must be explored thoroughly, which could take longer than usual.
Additionally, for the prefab to be safely built on-site the ground must support its weight, for that reason, some extra geotechnical work might be required. This work is mandatory so that the foundation work could start properly and be complete without any surprises along the way.
Moreover, land surveys might happen more than once if there will be any surprises while preparing the sloped land for work. The surveys help determine certain points on the property that also help locate the home on site.
Overall, there is a greater challenge preparing the land to actually start working on the home build. This could like the other factors prolong the total building time, even when talking about a speedy prefab home built.
Sloped Prefab Home Build Might Take Longer
Building a prefab home is faster than building a home traditionally, however, even the fastest of prefabs might suffer some delays when built on a slope hillside block.
The appeal for many prefab homeowners is the speed at which the homes could be livable on-site, but as mentioned above building prefabs on hillsides is harder. As such one should understand that due prefabs can be built anywhere the preparation process might be longer.
As there is more work to be done locally with geotechnical engineering, surveys, and later with the foundation, the process must be longer.
With this information on hand one should not be afraid of building a prefab home on slopes, but to be aware of the fact that it will take a little bit longer.
Prefab Home Built On Slope Will Have Higher Costs
Eventually costs play a major part in our decision-making process, the prefab homes in part are very competitive in price to the stick-built home systems. However, both those building systems will cost more when it comes to a hillside home build.
This is thanks to more preparation work that is required, larger contact with the ground which adds more materials to the build and prolonging the total time of the process. All that equals money.
The question is how much money, well this is hard to tell as every location will have its unique fetchers and not all contractors are the same. Moreover, each prefab home is different, one could be built with a steel frame while the other with a wood frame, both are wonderful in their own way, yet not every home builder knows how to work with all materials.
There are many factors that can prolong the prefab building time, but, making a build on a sloped hillside work will require a larger budget than of the same size house on a flat piece of land.
The larger and stronger foundation will most likely cost more, but for the house to be safe, it must be done.
More work with geotechnical engineers and land surveys will also cost more as sloped blocks are tricky and could potentially hold surprises. Making sure the land is ready for building the prefab’s foundation might cost more than on flat property.
Finally, if you are still wondering whether or not building a prefab home on a slope is possible, then let me reassure you that it is possible and if taking the right steps can also be safe and not so troublesome.
Find the right architect or prefab manufacturer that can show previous experience with hillside sloped prefab homes. From there try to make sure that no step is being missed so your home will be durable and safe to live in.
If you haven’t bought the land yet, well now you know that there will be some extra costs compared to a flat property. However, better airflow and view are a thing only hillside homes can be proud of.
I hope that these 5 things to know about prefab homes built on a slope did not frighten you but only prepared you mentally for the process of building your new and amazing prefab home on a sloped hillside.
Until next time
My Alternative House