When we first bought the house and we looked at the foundation with our neighbor, we all agreed that it was sturdy, the house was secure, and it wasn’t going anywhere. Obviously, this is a good thing. We also noted that the crawl space was not properly enclosed and there were some foundation issues in that space that may be causing rot in the framing, even if the house was secure. We took on this challenge as a calculated risk. After digging into this further (figuratively and literally) we’ve made a couple of slightly more expensive decisions.
First, rather than enclosing the crawl space with some piecemeal setup of cinder blocks, poured concrete, and wood framing, the whole thing will be concrete and block for the most secure system. This will also be the most weather and pest-proof, too.
Second, and related to above, the rear of the house will be jacked up when the new concrete is added to properly level the rooms in the back of the house that were added in the early 1970s and put on footings that have since settled.
Third, a new sill plate will be installed in various locations to both assure the framing remains level for years to come and separates the foundational element in the ground (which need to be rot resistant and concrete) from the wood framing above. Right now at least one corner of the house framing is sitting in the dirt and rotting because of this lack of separation.
Fourth, a new french drain will be installed around three sides of the house. Since the property slopes clearly from front to back, water today runs up against the front of the house and, with nowhere else to go, will cause damage over time. The new drain will redirect all water flow away from and around the house. While this isn’t entirely “necessary” this will assure the driest possible foundation and crawl space which is probably the Number One best way to avoid lots of other costly issues.
What’s Been Done?
Basically, the first three items above are now complete for the rear of the house, with the other sides to be completed in conjunction with the digging for the french drain. Following are a set of captioned photos of what’s been done so far.
