Poured concrete raised foundation ??’s
I will be buiding a home on the west coast (Washington)and I will be talking to some concrete contractors in the next week or so. The property closes escrow tomorrow. I was wondering, can any one give me an idea of what a reasonable per foot cost for a raised foundation? The building will be 2 story, on a sand soil. The raised foundation walls will be poured concncrete. What do you think that the linear foot price on the preimeter walls should be? Approx. how much should interior support footings run? I realize that every state/location will be different, I am just trying to get a “ballpark” idea on what the costs should run. Trying to juggle how the money should be spent first. (pay off the land first and wait till we sell our house before starting the foundation or make those easy payments to the old owner and get the foundation done first.) My preference is to do the foundation first so we don’t wind up waiting till the house sells and be out that much longer to get the house done. Plus, it would be easier to schedule a foundation pour when convient to the sub and not have to worry later if he is booked up and possible 1or more months out.
By the way, don’t you hate it when the home owner asks you for a “ballpark”?. I was a cabinetmaker/finish carpenter for 18 years until I got hurt. Now, no more construction for these bone. Thanks every one for you input in advance.
-Brian
Replies
The reason nobody else here has replied is that the question is too vague.
The following things influence the pricing on a poured concrete foundation:
I've seen prices run from $50 - $150 a foot for labor. What you think is a simple box may not be for the contractor. Foundation guys generally get far less credit than they deserve and far less $$ than they deserve.
Give me some more specifics and I'll give you a better idea of what it would cost here in the Northeast.
Mike O.
"simple" 3' high rectangular perimeter foundation for a 2 story home on the coast of washington that is sitting on a sand base. Can't get into the specifics too much at this time because the plans are not finalized. The general will do the drawings since he is "certified" plan preparer. If it was a home on slab with footins designed in a earthquake area, it wouldn't even ask this question. But, raised, concrete form is not my bag of tricks(since my last time I played with mud, I have "convienently" forgot how to finish. Neck, shoulders and wrists can't take it anymore.
I just want an Idea and I realize that "non standard" always(not usually) costs ALOT more. Especially if there is an area of the foundation that is taking on a more of a load because of say: balconies, large door/window openings, and large structural steel supports. Does this help?
I know the feeling of what you are saying about concrete guys being under valued. They bust their #@! more than some other trades and don't get any credit for good work. If they srew up, then everybody else then has to make up for their flaws. I've seen floors that have a 1 1/2" hump in them and the oppostite where the floor is within a 1/8" from one end to the other, every form set is Perfectly square and the interior footings are where they SHOULD be. It was always nice to install cabinetry or flooring when the floors were perfect. Those were usually few and far in between, though. I just finished dealing with a concrete contractor on my own house last week and nothing would have been done right if I wasn't right there babysitting him and his workers(who he picked up on the local street corner and they didn't speak English. One actually knew what he was doing, but the boss wouldn't let him because it would take too much time. By the way, I'm a white guy and yo hablo Espanol . Those guys and I had a ball talking to each other in spanish and the boss had no clue that we were taking about him). They got worked to death and he was only paying them $8.00 per hour and thats not a good wage for living is So Cal.
Have a great day. -Brian
I'd assume you are at the low end of the spectrum (~$40/ft) for something that low. Being in an earthquake zone will probably mean rebar though and keyed/bar footings which the contractor will need to be a little more careful with (=$).
Why are you not going for a full foundation (8')? If you are going through the trouble of pouring something, you might as well do it right.
Mike O.
Oh, Do i wish! I'm not too sure because we are the same elevation as the ocean.. The ocean is less than 2 miles away, the bay is less than 1 mile away and we are ona fresh water lake approx 40 away. I would assume that we would need ti do some serious waterproofing with some kind of sump pump. While we are talking how expensive is those type of systems ruN. You just opened me up for more questions to ask you guys. Thanks :). Money is going to be tight, but that would be the cool place to put all of my mechanicals, plus my 5'X9' Brunwick pool table ( someone gave me a $8,000.00 table for free. His exwife gave it to me. I guess that is why they aren't married any more)
migraine- mind if I ask how you got hurt?
5 surgeries: one double cervicle spine, 2 shoulder restorations(R+L), 2 carpal tunnel(R+L) they want to do another cervicle fusion, plus I have a Wedged thorasic disk and a bulging lumbar. No acciddents but alot of abuse (construction) and I played hard when I was a kid, not including being a breech baby delivered by a military"doctor"(I was yanked out during delivery) Did you really want to know all that? But, thanks for asking. -Brian