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Brian:
I don’t know the site situations. Why for instance do you plan on using piers and steel and all? Are there subsoil conditions that don’t allow you to trench? Is there a hillside or something that you are trying to bridge? When you say you are trying to avoid “heavy equipment” does this mean you don’t want the Ready-Mix truck to come on site? How would you do your slab?
You may have covered this before in other posts but I’m just not familiar w/ your situation.
Would like to help … repost maybe?
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Brian:
I don't know the site situations. Why for instance do you plan on using piers and steel and all? Are there subsoil conditions that don't allow you to trench? Is there a hillside or something that you are trying to bridge? When you say you are trying to avoid "heavy equipment" does this mean you don't want the Ready-Mix truck to come on site? How would you do your slab?
You may have covered this before in other posts but I'm just not familiar w/ your situation.
Would like to help ... repost maybe?
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It always amazes me when posters have a specific structural situation and think that what engineers really do is look up every design in their handy-dandy "Standard Design Handbook".
I must have missed that class in school.
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Hi All,
Been a while since I last visited...ya know, good weather and all.
Thinkin' 'bout adding to my garage but wish to avoid the large excavation and mess that comes with heavy equipment. Instead, I plan to employ a reinforced concrete pier and foundation wall system....I'm thinking along the lines of 14-inch diameter piers at 10-foot spacing with 8-inch wide X 12-inch deep beam bridging the span, but haven't given much thought to the amount and placement of the re-bar as of yet. I really would hope to avoid the involvement of the engineering professionals ($$$$) so I hope to find some standard (accepted) designs for this. Can anyone help me here?
Thanx,
Brian
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Brian,
Talk to your local building officials before you proceed. Something like this may require plans with an engineer's stamp. In defense of professional engineers, people who are not familiar tend to over-engineer in cases like this (departure from accepted and understood conventional building techniques) and also miss important details. You may find yourself using more steel and concrete than necessary and still falling short because your piers are not deep enough `or the beams bear on expansive soil. If you are insistant on using piers and grade beams an engineerr can save you a lot of hearbreak, extra labor, and materials - perhaps enough to justify his fee. I do not know how big a garage addition you have in mind but some dirt moving equipment will be required. You would be surprised at how much a good bob cat operator can do with the right attachments. Diging conventional footings should be less disruptive than augering holes and trenching for grade beams. Think this one over.