Friends,
We are getting reagy to lift this 117 year old Victorian home. We need to build a basement under it. Suggestions???
Friends,
We are getting reagy to lift this 117 year old Victorian home. We need to build a basement under it. Suggestions???
There are a number of ways to achieve a level foundation and mudsill.
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Replies
Juan, welcome to breaktime.
You just asked a very open ended question that might not get a lot of responses.
& might get some real smartazz ones.
Some quick tips for ya.
Pictures are worth a 1000 words.
More detailed questions & be specific.
Start at the begining & you will learn more than you ever wanted to know about lifting a house.
Great prespective.
We are going to remodel and renovate a 117 year old Historic Home in California. The critical phase of the project is at the beggining. We have to shore and raise the house enough to get equipment under the house to excavate and prepare the area for concrete. We are planning to use I beams to have the house rested on but still working on a final game plan. Suggestions?
If you do not have experience with structural lifting and moving I would not attempt this--hire a house mover instead. At a minimum I would want 200+ pieces of cribbing 6x8x48, a unified jacking system, a couple of W12x96 x 48' long or longer, a knuckle-boom crane, an excavator, and a crew of 4+ experienced hands. I assume you do not own all of that.
Do you think raising the house will be better than moving it out of the way. How about cost?
I have seen plenty of house raised for basements, & my wifes cousin just jacked up a garage moved it 13' (property line issues) & that is now the loft & he is building new walls underneath it.
But that's just 4 walls & roof shell.
As dave said this is not something to take too lightly.
A lot of variables in how the house was framed & where load points can be set.
Even lift is very important----- shear wasn't something thought of that long ago.
IMHO depending on the size & configuration of the house I would get some bids on a lift then think about a basement.
Read up on Madman's ordeal, it is very informative & eye opening.
“We need to be a country of tall fences and wide gates.”
Fred Dalton Thompson
There was another poster, located on the Ore. coast who also just did a thread on lifting a smaller house. He was skilled (ie. carpenter) and did it himself. I can't remember the title of the the thread though. Maybe someone else will remember it and post it .
They can't get your Goat if you don't tell them where it is hidden.
Great advice. Thanks for the time
Juan,
Poster here by the name of "madmadscientist" is doing that procedure right now.
Here is a link to one of his threads.
http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=97090.1
He also has a blog going , link to that is contained in the thread I linked for you.
He has several threads on the subject.
Learn to use the search function and look for posts by "madmadscientist"
Lots of good reading in the threads.
Here is the thread that is the start of his odyssey with the house that he is working on.
Better put a pot of coffee on , your in for a long read!
http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=86536.1
How big?
Beams and joists?
Crawl space?
What's your skill?
Bob's next test date: 12/10/07
>Suggestions???<
get an engineer to work up the drawings.
get a house mover to make the lift, you'll spend far too much money on items you won't reuse and resale will be pitiful.
hire a contractor to do the foundation, poured wall if you can but the moved hosues I've dealt with have been CMUs.