Concrete Slab vs Crawl Space
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- Опубликовано: 21 май 2018
- Learn about concrete slab foundations and crawl space foundations. Let us know which one you would like to see on our spec house!
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Thank you, be safe, and be grateful.
When I built my parents home 30 years ago, I chose pier and beam construction with a minimum 30” height to the bottom of the floor joists. I did that consciously as sitting on my backside, my head is 29” off the dirt. I knew as the builder and their son, I would spend quality time in the crawl space and I have spent days down there leveling the house as it settled; adding structure for remodeling, swapping floor vents for the HVAC system. I love being able to sit upright in a crawl space. Most tradesmen do, and a happy tradesman does much better work than those lying on their back in cramped quarters where they can’t see the snake or spider coming to play. Crawl space is the only way to go, but it needs to be generous.
Daynaleo1, I agree 100% !
Great points, I've worked in a few crawl spaces and only one small portion was I able to sit up. It was much better!
I very recently asked my civil engineer niece slab or Pier and beam? Her instant reply was pier and beam .....reason being you can fix that if you have settling issues, etc. really not much you Can do w a slab in our shrink and swell soils (both sand and clay here) in N. Tx.
Yep. We set up our place so it is comfortable underneath. I don't mind going under to fix or add things.
As a plumber I’ve seen quite a few terrible ones. I’ve been under a couple where you had to dig as you go and others where there was almost just enough room to get stuck. Luckily I’m skinny and unluckily I’m a bit claustrophobic and arachnophobic.
Please do the crawl space for the love of anyone that has to make a change in the future! I'd rather crawl in a crawl space than crawl in an attic space! I love you videos, keep em coming.
Jake Parr, absolutely! Attic spaces get really tight where the roof rafters meet the ceiling joists; plus, the attic gets really (I mean really) hot in the summer! I’d rather be on my back in the dirt of crawl spaces than sitting upright in an attic.
DanielinLaTuna best thing I found for tight spaces like crawl spaces is called a bump cap. Its a baseball cap hard hat. Doesnt get in the way and keeps me from hitting my head on pipes etc
As a homeowner, I appreciate the access that a crawlspace can provide even if it requires more maintenance over the life of the house. It's very difficult to identify leaks or defects in concrete slabs after construction, where as with a crawlspace, all you have to do is look.
From a learning perspective, I'd love to learn how plumbing and electrical is done with a post-tension slab.
Recently found this channel. Love it for tons of reasons. I’ve worked in new construction all over Southern California for 30 years as finish carpenter/ cabinet installer. Majority of homes are built on slab foundations. Many post tension. In the lower desert areas, Palm Springs , Indio , many of these slabs are poured over super sandy soil.
Think super fine beach sand. I asked a superintendent
once if they were required to do anything special or different because of this beach sand they were building on. He replied , no , the slab kinda floats on the sand.
Couldn’t help but think of famous teacher who said
“ the foolish man builds his house on the sand, wise man builds his house on a rock””
Scott is the Mister Rogers of construction. I mean that in the best way possible.
Virgil Kelly Are you trying to say he's wearing slippers inside his Classic Sears macho-ismo work boots?. 😐
Now that's funny stuff... rotflol....😂🤣👍
omg #truth
Virgil Kelly 6
+1
New video? Hell yeah! Nothing better than getting off work and seeing there's a new essential craftsman video.
Andrew Harry haha same here, what kind of construction?
I think all crawls needs to be a minimum of 4ft
As a civil engineer, great content as always. Wonderful explanation of residential foundations.
Yup. Top work.
I would love to see you do a passive or at least a very efficient house on an insulated slab.
A friend recently built a new house on a crawl space, but did a neat and surprisingly simple thing while framing up the floor over it: He put trap door hatches all over the place. Rather than crawling through a tiny access hole and wiggling his way the length of the house, he has a comfortable access spot almost every ten feet. Hatch below the kitchen? - Wine/root cellar. Hatch below the living room? Access to shelves for the Christmas decorations. In front of a bedroom closet? Bonus closet space.
For essentially the price of an afternoon or two extra labour, some hinges, latches, and weather sealing, he is getting ten times the useful storage space out of an otherwise normal crawlspace.
I do like many of the benefits of a slab, such has using it as part of a thermal mass storage and in-floor heating, but its also pretty hard to store stuff in a slab and still get it out easily.
Kinda a mini basement. That is an interesting concept. True, the only thing to store in a slab is a body.
Rambozo Clown 😂 😆 it’d be best not to store evidence so close to home.
Those skeletons used for education can apparently aren't that expensive, and real bone ones can be bought for a few grand... No crime, therefore no evidence for anyone to come looking for, but some VERY confused contractors during renovations at some point in the future?
Common in Japan now to have slab with stem walls of generous height around perimeter and under structural walls, with hatches in floors, like you say. Best of both worlds: forgiving floor, dry, strong, bug & snake free, with clean crawl space for cool storage and utilities/renovation.
Akatarawa Japan, that sounds like a wonderful idea. Too often houses are built for the convenience of the builder rather than the comfort of the buyer. Nice to see Scott considering how the owner will live in the house. He’s building it like his family would inherit the house. 😀
Crawl space. It's pretty handy to have that access when you need to run wire, fix things, etc.
This!
This!
This!
I'm interested in a crawl space design because I want to build a house with a basement and I assume a basement shares many more similarities with a crawl space than with a slab. Also your homeowners might appreciate the accessibility of utilities and not walking on concrete.
Almost at 40 yrs. in the Cement Finisher Union, this ↑↑↑
Hi, I’ve started watching the house build series yesterday and subscribed immediately. I can’t wait to see more content... the expertise and experience you have, combined with your calm and detailed narration make it a joy to watch this build come along.
Thank you so much for starting this project for build enthousiasts all over the world...
Henk Koets from The Netherlands
Guys. I’m not even a builder or contractor. I do software for christ sake. And I love watching these videos. Listening to this man, by far the smartest wisest daddest guy I’ve heard.
My favorite notification by far
I would personally love to see a crawl space poured and framed because it is seldom covered in modern day construction manuals. While I understand that it may be cost or time prohibitive for this project, it might just be a good follow up video to explain the time and dollar spend differences between crawl spaces, rebar slab on grade, and post tension slab on grade. As always, amazing job!
Oh yeah, I almost forgot people even do those. In Atlanta, I think I have only seen maybe two or three poured crawls. They are so much better to work in than a regular dirt crawl.
Blueshirt, Out here on the west coast I’ve done my share of crawling in dirt, not fun. Nowadays I wear a dust mask, a cap, and a disposable jumpsuit. I think the concrete floor crawl space is popular in the northeast. Would love to have one.
@@DanielinLaTuna love to see concrete floor crawl space or at least a tall crawl space with drainage material. Dry storage area for new owner with multiple floor access hatches, hidden in cupboards closests walk in robes etc.
I too would like to see crawl space.
I've watched two of your videos so far, the one about sharpening and this one. Things my dad knew but never taught me, and I'm going to rectify that error for the next generation.
Crawl space. 4 foot minimum.
I think of access to supports, plumbing, electrical, and modifications.
Possible storage and multiple other possibilities.
Why not 8'-9' basement and get living area?
As an electrician I would go with a crawl space for future renovations and repairs.
Gary Brightbill just give it a drop ceiling. Perfect.
I've dealt with Foundation issues post tension is the way to go do it once do it right
You mean you don't want to run wires through my attic in San Antonio this coming August?
Zac Crow I've seen a wood version of a drop ceiling before that came out really nice instead of ceiling tiles they had panels made of tongue and groove boards
@@FrankKittchnerIII I agree. Thinner slab & less shrinkage. Just have to get your embedment depths correct if post-installing ABs, or bye bye tendon. Lol.
Do the post-tensioning! As a civil engineer I took a prestressed/post-tensioned concrete design class, but we never talked much about residential applications. I think with the standards of production and presentation on your channel it would be extremely useful (and interesting!) content. Keep up the great work
Ben Watts post tension would be fascinating to watch.
Agreed. Whether or not it's the most suitable choice for the site I don't know but it would certainly be the most interesting for the video series.
Post tension is an engineers game. Not a builders game. Go with an enclosed crawlspace.
Unless you have a post and beam type foundation there would be zero benefit to post tensioned concrete foundations and considerable expense. A normal foundation is under compressive loads only which concrete is more than capable of supporting.
Every crawl space I've ever seen is like the drivers seat in a 1950's sports car. It gets built and Then someone looks and say, " yeah, I think a human might be able to fit in there."
Post tension or a crawl space sounds like like something where we all could all learn a lot
Ps I am a young man entering the trades in a year or so and your videos are great for getting ready for trade school and helping me get the base idea
Thanks
I second this vote
Here in Hawaii, we call them "Post & Pier" type foundation. Essentially, the lot is graded, and special concrete support blocks are placed every 10 or so feet in a grid patteren. A Y' suppprted 4x4 or larger are placed vertically to hold the horizontal floor joists. Its a little cheaper since you dont have to pour and concrete (besides garage) and the plumbing is easily accessible post construction. When I built my home, we decided on post & pier w slab garage because we live in a wet, tropical environment and also helps keep out the bugs/insects (IMO) since its elevated.
GB USA check out the video in the link cool construction walkthrough knowledge is power ruclips.net/video/6Wawhmm9Wxo/видео.html
Post-tension would be interesting. Yes!
Good luck cutting into a postension slab later!!
In my mind it's so important to be able to access failed plumbing in at least a crawl space.
I raised my family in Mesa Arizona and did quite a bit of framing in the Gilbert Arizona area. In the 70s and early 80s they had a lot of problems with slabs moving downward and cracking. They eventually went to post tension floor framing. One of the greatest things they ever did. Thank you so much for your knowledgeable and intelligent videos
I love crawl spaces just for the simple fact of when things and when things always go wrong you can repair them although a nice slap is great for how cool it keeps the house especially in the summer not to mention how much stuff you can do without worrying about hurting your floor
If you go with the crawl space then maybe you could do post tension on the garage so we can see the process. And thank you guys for doing this project, it is really awesome!
I'm most interested in a crawl space first, then post-tension second. Not really interested in just a standard slab.
Good info! Here in NY we generally have a full basement because of frost and soil conditions. Plus people expect it. That's where ppl have laundry, weight rooms, workshops and such
Plumbing problems in a slab are a nightmare. And very expensive. Crawl space for ease of repairs.
@P C So your drains to showers, tubs and toilets have to be well above floor level. Which seems a bit awkward. Do able, but awkward.
All plumbing /sinks/ tubs/ showers is built on an Outside wall. Easily accessible from the outside with a slab. It doesn't take a genius to figure that out. Lived in this slab house 30 years NO problems. Very low maintenance. In a large expensive multi-story house this would be more of a problem but then again you would have big bux to hire anything done, but we only had two children and one bathroom three bedroom slab house. Everything worked out well!!
@@trikebum5 So it limits the house design. Mind as well have an outhouse. LOL
@@trikebum5 shouldn't put plumbing in outside walls here due to freezing
What kind of problems
A crawl space I think would be most interesting. Also good to have that extra storage space if you need it
More interested in a footer with stem wall crawl space. Growing up in the Southwest everything is slab. Moved up north to Alaska and everything “crawl space” blew my mind.
Absolutely fascinating discussion on foundations. Loving this series. Thank you for the awesome content. I drive thru your area every time I visit our property in southern Oregon. We are planning on building a home on that property so this series is especially interesting. I will have to treat myself to a visit to your site on one of my trips. I really enjoy your presentation style. 👍🏻
As a contractor for 25 yrs., I've been a part of virtually every aspect of residential construction. But I've never experienced post-tension concrete work. Would love to see the informative and dynamic way you bring such topics as this to life.
I would be interested in seeing how the post tension slab is done, but you guys will have to decide what will work best for your house.
Another vote for post tension. I have never seen or poured one. Thank you EC for the information.
I always get excited when I see you've uploaded a new video, keep up the great work
Basement every time! Store all your junk and tools. Make a shop down there!
@Pyra Gorgon my basement has a hole cut in the concrete and a water pump that starts automatically when the water table reaches a certain level.
If money is no issue.
Don't you people have sheds? LOL
@@wolfsoldier5105 sheds are for lawnmovers!
@@michaelcuff5780 Aye to that! I'm not walking outside to get my wrenches!
How about post tension slab on grade for the garage and crawl space for the main house? Then we get the best of both worlds!
Your my hero Scott! Keep the great videos coming, watching from glen Burnie Maryland
Youre a construction genius and your level of explaining what things are and how they work is incredible.
Absolute epic instructor! You make us believe in ourselves to get the job done and done right. I can't thank you enough.
Slab makes me feel like I'm not in a trailer.
I may be a little late for this thread but here is my take anyway. I am thinking crawl space with rat slab, thickened where any posts need to be for the floor structure. Let this space be conditioned as needed for the thermal value of the living space. The slab is just for pest control and ease of sliding storage boxes and of course not needing to work in the dirt when maintaining electrical, plumbing, HVAC systems. PT slabs are the way to go for elevated concrete work. In my almost 30 years working up in the Seattle area I have yet to put in a PT slab on grade. Worked on many above grade. I think you will find that there are many more cost friendly choices than a PT on grade.
That said I would like to see your channel take on some unique concrete projects. There are so many lessons in building forms that you have only scratched the surface with in your retaining wall build. Thank you for such great content.
Great instructor! I learn a lot from every post. Thank you for sharing your knowledge. Excellent tutelage.
Sealed Plenum, insulated and conditioned Crawl Space FTW!
The floors are cool in the summer and warm in the winter.
I would like your thoughts on a crawl space that has a cement floor in it, in other words a short cellar. So that there is no dirt to deal with when have have to go in crawl space.
crawlspace for sure! as time goes on and technology improves, we'll want more and more amenities in our homes, leaving a crawlspace means leaving room for modification. it'll make life a hell of a lot easier for electricians like me!
I love all of your videos, you're awesome, thank you. I've had the great pleasure of being taken to jobsites since I was 5 years old, and more than 30 years later I'm still in the trades, and feel humbled by your videos and love being reminded of the great fundamentals that older craftsmen have to share. Just wanted to say thanks, and for other folks, that one more plus for slab on grade is being able to do radiant heat and utilize that thermal mass benefit aspect of it as well. Keep the great videos coming, Larry Haun is gone, and you've been carrying the torch for him as a great youtube building teacher very well. Thanks!
Retired building inspector...Excellent informative explanation of basic fundamental factors to consider.
Type of desired heating should also be a factor.
Finished floor slabs with integral hot water heating, (radiant slabs) are high quality comfort and efficient operating costs for colder climates but are also more expensive to build.
If air conditioning is desired, then forced air heating/cooling should be the type for which a crawl space is the best choice to accommodate the larger ductwork.
Love to see tradesman who try to make good informed decisions and give good advice.
Keep up the good work.
This guy is a perfect example of an excellent application of youtube, somebody with decades of experience sharing his knowledge articulated well, good on camera, good voice, which is why he is very successful. Larry
As a carpentry teacher, my students and I are closely following your build. I have been, and will continue to use your videos for instructional purposes. You’re extensive knowledge and professional insight have been a great asset to me in the classroom.
I would love to see you put the house on a crawl space and cover the floor framing process . Either way I look forward to watching and appreciate what you’re doing.
Thank you for your efforts. I'm learning so much!
The post tension sounds really cool. I'd like to see you try that one. Thanks for the video!
Essential Craftsman you and I are the same.. I am life long concrete contractor and a welder and fabricator. I can build anything just like you. We have the same set of skills. You and I old skilled guys who are a relic of the past..
@Keith Rosen
I never get tired of listening to the old guys stroke their egos lol.
I haven't heard of post tension being used in a domestic situation - that would be very informative. Vote 1 PT.
I agree. See lots of post tension in commercial use but not residential here in Central Texas. Vote 2 PT.
Hey wpattison, you're absolutely right... My interpretation of a PT foundation was off and limited to larger commercial structures. It never occurred to me that they were extensively used here in residential applications (I obviously know very little about foundations). I suspect when I drove by an in construction residential foundation I just thought it to be rebar...
Texas gumbo? Maybe black gumbo if you're in Wharton County... I'm just west of you in Drip. Thanks for the picture and shedding light on what a residential PT foundation looks like in construction!!
I cast my vote for post tension
I swear I learn more from this channel than I could from a library or anywhere else for that matter. ... Except maybe from Google... :) I honestly wished I had more "gumbo" on my property. ...Anything else but more rock... I'm sure you know what I mean. Thanks again!
Here in the Las Vegas area, it's used a lot for residential construction. Not many, if any basements here. Mostly slabs. The desert doesn't move much, well, except for those pesky little earth quakes.
best video ever. No long intro with the music and jib jab. Just the straight facts. Thank You
Live watching ur videos and hear ur explanations as to why something needs to be done a certain way! One thing I would like to mention is that u can use stripes of 1" wide by 1/8" by what ever length to install once concrete has been floated by steel. Its a good trick.
I'm interested in all 3. I currently live in a house built by a developer w/ slab floor and I'm planning to build my first house in the next few years. My main concern is comfort and durability, but I also have my eyes on the budget. I need to weigh the cost benefit for my build so any tutorial will be appreciated. In your experience, for the house you have planned, are the costs for the three different foundations similar or widely varied? And are the necessary skills similar or is one much easier than the others for a novice to build? Since you're speculating, I think you should build the one that is smart for the budget and will attract a buyer with quality.
Crawl space is my vote. insulate, vapor barrier, gravel. you'll add potential storage, and will always have access to mechanicals for repairs, not to mention it is easier to run conditioned air to the first floor rooms.
You can insulate under the slab.
I like the idea of a slab. The post tension type sounds interesting. One of the things I like about it, other than the noise when walking is you can have in-floor heat. Don't have to hear forced air.
The absolute perfect speaker for these videos! It is a blessing to have the experience and the knowledge, and to share it with all of us in video land is an awesome god send. I personally think he should be teaching a trade school the trades , so that are future trades can carry on in the same fashion with the same care and professionalism that Scott exudes.👍
My father built the house I grew up in on a slab. I thought it was the best foundation after seeing the water/moisture issues in basements around our town on the east coast of Canada. I'd like to see more on the post tension foundation. That said your content is always educational and whatever you choose will be useful for learning.
4 years late, but I would like to comment that moisture issues (rising damp) can be prevented by using a vapor barrier under the slab. Some of them offer between 15 and 20 years warranty, while others have lifetime warranty.
what is norm for the area? crawlspace is my choice.
This video is by far the best and favorite!!! Thanks for sharing Scott. ~Jay.
I must say, as a young civil engineer this entire series is very informative. Thanks for putting all this together!
I never get bored listen to his video he's a great guy a great father and a great grandfather awesome guy 💯😍😘😊😇
Miguel Moreno you sick person 🤢
?
Hmm. You figured all that out just by watching him teach construction stuff?
Naveen Kumar yes I do but he's a good teacher knows about blacksmith work now I like to learn blacksmith work from him one day but for now my daughter is more important for my life blacksmith it's just a Hobby for me
Can you talk about some of the problems with slab on grade like if you want to remodel the difficulties that come with that. And some of the benefits of the crawl space simplicity of remodeling.
I’d vote for the post tension idea. But, to be honest, its partly because it sounds cool and i might like to do it on my own house in a couple of years.
Also, did you get to say hi to the neighbor and two dogs walking by?
I love the crawl space from the service side of our industry. A lot easier to effectively do repairs when pipe and vents are accessible. I also love it when the siding is spaced significantly off the ground as this helps prevent rot if you go with a wood siding. Love the series and it is always a joy listening to such wisdom
Really enjoy your videos very informative I always like learning from master craftsman such as yourself.
Love to see a crawlspace. Lots of value added for the new home buyer, especially in the Pacific Northwest where a chilly dead floor is a big disadvantage above and beyond the ability to run lines below the 1st floor. I'm sure cost is, as always, a factor. Any clue as to building cost difference to the crawlspace and the slab? I'm sure for a skilled concrete man like you pouring a slab is probably easier. For a guy like me who would have to sub out all the work what's the dollar say?
Keep it simple and flexible. Post and beam with plenty of crawlspace for remodeling later.
Love your videos! I've powered through most of them just in the last couple days. I would be interested in slab foundation as I am considering building a shop. But no matter what I know your videos will be entertaining and informative. Keep them coming. I'm learning so much. Also. You have me wanting to be a black smith now
Very Informative. Thanks!
ANOTHER important set of considerations. With a slab there is NO steps and much LESS expensive and is ideal for older people!!! Also only ONE or two holes in a corner or midway on the edge of the slab for water gas and electricity if needed. Run everything overhead after that. Great access in the attic for repair or modifications.
Good point, but if anything happens to the pipes it’s more costly to fix. My grandma lives in a manufactured home (mobile home) my dad added ramps with rails for her years ago. Adding a ramp is an easy fix compared to breaking the foundation to get to pipes.
Just wanted to add my thoughts since people do a lot of research on RUclips (myself included) and might not have considered installing a ramp.
Just make those manholes big enought for us extra wide guys. Dam things gets smaller every year...
Jonathan Knighton what is an extra wipe guy does it have to do with toilet paper?
Extra wipe usually refers to an Over filling of something
Whoops Typo. WIPE=WIDE
we knew what you meant.. just pullin` yer chain
That's right, the holes are getting smaller...
Very informative, thank you!
Hi Scott, I would like to see you do a post tension slab. I have experience with building residential structures with both crawls and basements but I’ve never worked on a structure built on a PT slab I would love to be able to learn about it by watching you guys. Thanks for all the videos, I learn something new every one I watch.
I like the versatility of a concrete slab. However I have been on concrete must of my life and now after 3 back surgeries I can no longer tolerate concrete. I can go to any store that has concrete slab floors and can not spend more than a few minutes literally on it before I have to sit down or just leave due to the pain it causes me. I can not have a concrete floor in a home anymore. All most any Neurological Surgeon will tell you that it is hard on joint and the spine. Just a thought to consider.
I would like to see a crawl space foundation
I would like to see Crawlspace !! Thank you for sharing this!
What an awesome explanation, so easy to mentally visualize as you describe the differences.
Crawl space for future changes and future repairs!
Crawl space. Access when needed. Greater elevation from ground for features such as porches and decks. More benefits in my opinion than slab. I'm interested in the cost comparison.
Adam Gall Knowing the cost difference would be valuable
Looking foreword to more build videos! Keep it up guys.
I would be very interested in the process of building a crawl space. That’s my vote however I know that whatever you guys end up doing will be very entertaining and a great education.
Post tension sounds really cool and interesting. Whichever you choose, I'm looking forward to it!
This makes me think of how footings were done before concrete. I live in North Wales and my house was built sometime in the mid 1800s. The walls have no signifigant foundations at all. They just dug a shallow trench to the subsoil and placed the largest stones they had to hand in it and built the wall on top of that using uncoursed quarry waste. These were homes intended for the miners so they weren't going to build them out of expensive cut stone! No DPC or anything like that, just slate and lime mortar from dirt to roof.
As far as I know where Georgian and Victorian era brick houses where built, the footing would usually just be a few courses of hard engineering brick built one and a half or two bricks thick to support a wall one brick thick. Onto this there might be a slate DPC. We do have the relative benefit in this part of the world of not having signifigant earthquakes although you see plenty of old buildings here that have moved signifigantly in their lifetime with barely a square angle anywhere on them but they still stand. I understand this is largely due to the soft lime mortar which can allow for quite alot of movement while still holding the masonry together.
I would like to see a hybrid of sorts... a crawlspace with a thinner slab to eliminate rodents and insects, but still give convenient access for the mechanicals, a conditioned crawlspace and attic would be interesting too... Matt Reisinger has a channel that does a lot of building science I would be curious to see how his techniques of building in central Texas can be adapted to the challenges of your region. Collaboration would be fun to see.
Tim Mills it's called a "slush coat" or mud mat. Do it all the time on high-rise foundations. One or two loads of concrete for a house this size is well worth it.
In CT a crawlspace is required to have a thin layer of concrete over the dirt and vapor barier. We always called it a “rat slab”
This is one I've not even consider.....I would imagine a drain tile system would be a must in this area though...??? I really like this idea...👍
J Anderson yeah... rat slab, I saw tom Silva do it on TOH for a porch to room addition... seems logical enough to me.
Awesome to see Risinger mentioned on EC! I say enclosed crawlspace. Closed cell insulation on exterior walls, foam board under floor of crawlspace.
My 2 story home is 25 years old with a post tension slab and full brick veneer with absolutely no cracks in the brick or the slab. We live in a very dry climate here in Texas and have noticed only a couple times during extreme dry summers that the house would settle some evidenced through interior doors not closing properly. This was remedied through laying perimeter soaker hoses around the house and allowing them to run for a few days, problem solved. We live in a neighborhood of about a 1000 homes and have never heard of or seen any evidence of foundation issues since all of the homes used post tension. I would highly recommend the method or crawl space foundation having just recently been involved with a large antebellum home build. Great informative video, makes me feel super knowing I made the right decision with both of these homes. Thanks again.
Can you do a wood floor system with crawl space along with poured walls?
In my area of Connecticut, we have tens of thousands of houses that were built in the last 30 years that used a concrete mix that had a mineral in the aggregate that causes the concrete to absorb water and swell, destroying the entire foundation. Lots of houses getting lifted around here for new foundations, and insurance doesn't cover it.
And the rest of the property owners are paying the bill through an insurance surcharge. $12 a year for each of us, not sure how many years for us all to pay off these rotten foundations! Who knew minerals could do such damage?
Yup. There is so much behind this story (political and not) it is really sad. Glad I have a stacked stone foundation, though that will not save me from the surcharge.
Neat
My vote is for crawl space. I find post tensioning a really interesting idea that I'd like to know more about in a residential slab on grade situation but I just don't think s-o-g is the best application for the site you're building on. Plus, I bet there's plenty of interesting things you could teach us about crawl space foundation. No matter which you choose, please keep up the great work!
When I build my house, I'm going with a crawlspace and radiant heat floors poured on top of that. Kind of a crawlspace/slab hybrid. But I'll also be building a timber frame with 4"x8" "joists" topped with 2"x6" tongue and groove for a subfloor, so not exactly conventional.
Having lived in a slab house the last 25 years, I would never do it again for one simple but big reason: Storage. This house has no basement and no usable attic space, so everything people would normally store in their basements ends up out in my garage, or pay for a mini-storage unit every month for years. One other big reason would be remodeling. With plumbing buried in the concrete floor, wherever sinks, drains and vent lines were put is where they always have to be unless you bust up the floor, so kitchen and bathroom layouts will always have to be exactly where they were when the house was built.
Pier and beam! Works best in North Texas, at least.
Really enjoy watching your journey (s) . Condolences re your mum , it’s tough , but keep your family close and you’ll get through . Take care mate .
Wow!! Great explanation!! I'm having some doubts on a slab I have to build in a humid, yet rocky, yet inclined terrain 😬. I will continue watching your videos!! Thanks! 🙏🏻
I grew up in Florida. Every house was slab on grade. Anything else feels like a mobile home.
Yeah. That's exactly what I think when I see a raised home, regardless of how nice it is.
For real
I grew up in the old south on the gulf and everything was on pier and beam. Everything else seems like overkill.
Our house wasn't but it was about 100 yrs old
Slab on grade is great in sand near sea level because it floats on it like a pontoon, but I believe basements are technically a more solid foundation because they are entrenched in the earth more deeply such as in clay soils when it isn't reasonable to get down to bedrock.
Made my day to get this notification.
I like the crawlspace. You have more options to work with it in the future. Placing the hvac under the house will be a smaller load on the system compared to the attic, plus floor registers with heat on on a cold day is wonderful. Thanks for the video.
Thanks for the video !!!