[Noz221]

Hey guys,

I’m working on exposing footers from a house built in the ‘60s that burned down. I’ve attached some pics of what’s been dug up so far (post demo) and I could use a second opinion.

A few questions:

- We weren’t around for the demo and so far it looks like they just got rid of the foundation walls above grade and kept everything below grade in tact. Would you agree?

- How much deeper do we need to go to hit the footer here? Was code in the ‘60s the same as today? This is in New York State

- From what’s showing, how does the condition look to you? Anything here that raises a red flag? For example we haven’t seen any rebar

Appreciate any thoughts or advice I’m jsut trying to make sure I’m on the right track here. Thanks.

 

[Waskin]

Are you a lot owner or builder? Are you rebuilding a classic car from the ground up but hope to keep the tires so to speak?

 

[Kingcarpenter1]

Bring er home Tin



Mike

 

[Tinstaafl]

I’m working on exposing footers from a house built in the ‘60s that burned down. I’ve attached some pics of what’s been dug up so far (post demo) and I could use a second opinion.

In what capacity are you working on this project? Frankly, your questions would seem to indicate that you are not a professional contractor, and are not who this site is intended for. At first blush, the obvious answer is to hire a contractor familiar with such projects, who will be able to guide you through what's practical and what's not.

You may be better served by posting this on our sister site, www.diychatroom.com. I'll leave the thread open for now, pending clarification.

 

[Noz221]

You’re right, I’m not a professional contractor but I work for one. I just started and have to give him an update on this job so I thought I’d ask some things to get some insight before I try explaining to him in Spanish since his English is limited. Apologies for posting thanks

 

[ScipioAfricanus]

If you are new in the trades that is fine, no problem posting on the forum.

Glad to have you here.

Andy.

 

[ScipioAfricanus]

Jesus guys!

Maybe we can give the new guys a bit of a break and find out who they are and what they do before busting balls?

Andy.

 

[hdavis]

You’re right, I’m not a professional contractor but I work for one. I just started and have to give him an update on this job so I thought I’d ask some things to get some insight before I try explaining to him in Spanish since his English is limited. Apologies for posting thanks

This makes sense, you're welcome to be here and ask questions.

Thus one is actually a tough question.

 

[abhome1]

Frost level is 48inches in Ny state.
Alot of older footings were not set to that level.
I would not plan on reusing the existing footings unless you can verify the depth.

 

[greg24k]

Depending on where upstate you are located, what is the frost line for the area 36-48">? IMO your best bet is to remove the footer, get down to virgin soil, and start from scratch.

Good luck

 

[hdavis]

Most places, the footer depth hasn't changed since at least the 70s. Check current local code, and that should give you minimum depth.

I can't actually tell much from those pictures.

 

[Ed Corrigan]

Is that third picture the end where you broke some out? Poured to grade?

If so, you'll fail for no rebar anyway.

I would think that you would want to put in a new foundation so you can design the house without being stuck with the old footprint.

 

[Noz221]

Thanks for the input guys—that’s helpful. The inspector mentioned that to keep the existing septic and well layout, we’d need to build on as much of the existing footings as possible. Based on what you all are saying it sounds like we’ll need to expose the footings fully and then work with the inspector to see if they meet the current frost line requirements or if we’ll need to go deeper. Appreciate the advice on depth and frost line—looks like I’ve got some more digging (literally and figuratively) to do. Thanks again

 

[JoeStanton]

Does he mean existing footing as in location or actual footings? He could just mean location and not necessarily the old footings themself. I'm guessing the existing well and septic are staying? I wouldn't touch that job without going to virgin soil and new footing/foundation.

Here the inspectors are great if you just go in and talk to them.

 

[Noz221]

Yeah, the septic and well are staying put. From what I gathered we should try to use as much of the existing footings as we can, tho I’m responsible for spearheading the talks with the inspector so I’ll double-check with him to see if he just meant the location of the footings instead. Appreciate your help with this