www.buoyantfoundation.org

Why use Buoyant

Foundations?

B uoyant foundations are a cost-

e f fec t iv e , r es ide nt - f r ie ndly

alternative to permanent static elevation

that is especially appropriate for New

Orleans’ traditional neighborhoods.

Homes with buoyant foundations will

remain close to the ground supported on

piers, but will float straight up as high as

necessary to stay above water when

flooding occurs. Buoyant foundations

eliminate the daily inconvenience of

climbing long flights of stairs and retain

the traditional proximity of the front

porch to the street. Successful

amphibious houses in the Netherlands,

in rural Louisiana (where they have

functioned reliably for more than 30

years) and now two new examples in

New Orleans demonstrate the

www.buoyantfoundation.org

Dry in September

Amphibious Fishing Camps in

Pointe Coupee Parish, La

How Does It Work?

Floating in February

It basically works like a floating dock. A

structural frame that holds the flotation

blocks is attached to the underside of an

existing shotgun house. There are four

“vertical guidance” posts not far from the

corners of the house. The tops of the posts

are attached to the structural frame. The

posts telescope out of the ground,

allowing the house to move straight up

and down. Utility lines have either self-

sealing “breakaway” connections or long,

coiled “umbilical” lines. When flooding

occurs, the flotation blocks lift the house,

with the frame transferring the forces

between the house and the blocks. The

vertical guidance posts keep the house

from going anywhere except straight up

and down with the rising and falling of the

This section drawing of a

shotgun house with a

buoyant foundation

installed shows the

buoyancy blocks under

the house and vertical

guidance posts that

telescope out of the

Float When It Floods!

Testing the Buoyant Foundation

prototype at LSU

Amphibious Housing in

the Netherlands

A steel frame attaches

to the underside of the

house and holds the

buoyancy blocks off

the ground. The house

remains supported on

its original piers in non

-flood conditions.

Project Partners

FutureProof, LLC

Innovative Green Solutions

Our School at Blair Grocery

Project Director

Elizabeth C English , PhD

University of Waterloo

english@ecenglish.ca

create homes that

float in a flood

Advantages:

Elevates house to exactly what is required to stay above water, even if flood surpasses BFE

Less expensive than permanent static elevation

House remains low to the ground, so there are no long flights of stairs

Structure is less susceptible to hurricane wind damage

Alleviates long-term problems of soil subsidence and rising sea level

Retrofitted house looks essentially the same as before

Original traditional architecture is preserved

Neighborhood retains original character

www.buoyantfoundation.org

An alternative approach

to flood protection for

existing homes in

New Orleans &

South Louisiana

Existing Amphibious

Homes in Louisiana

And now in New Orleans too

www.buoyantfoundation.org

The Buoyant

Foundation

Project

Amphibious house in the Lower 9th Ward

Amphibious house in Lakeview

In Pointe Coupee Parish, La

Amphibious fishing camp at Raccourci Old River