How to Form Up a Footing for a Garage

The foundation of any building, including a garage, is built upon footers. These are small concrete slabs buried in the ground below the frost line, upon which the slab of the foundation is laid. The footers provide support for the foundation, helping to protect it from the ground shifting. Before the footers are poured, wooden forms must be built for them.

1 1/2-ton excavator
Tape measure
Wooden stakes
Hammer
Two-by-four boards
Nails
Circular saw
1-by-4 boards

Instructions

- 1
  Dig a trench for the footers with a 1 1/2-ton excavator, going beneath the frost line. Contact your local zoning board to learn how deep the frost line is in your area. When digging the trench, make it at least 1 foot wider than the footers so you have room to work inside it.
- 2
  Drive wooden stakes into the ground every 3 feet on both sides of the trench.
- 3
  Build the walls for the form by laying two-by-four boards on the ground along the inside of the wooden stakes. Nail them to the wooden stakes. Add a second row of two-by-fours on top of the first row of boards.
- 4
  Cut 1-by-4 boards to fit the width of the footings and nail them to the top of the form every 4 feet. This provides additional support to the forms while the concrete is being poured and as it cures.

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