02-16-2006, 11:58 AM
Good point, Leilaniguy!
If your building site has unstable soil or has been bulldozed and not compacted (many engineers require compacting between each 12" of soil) then post and pier is much easier to repair if (when) the land settles.
In our neighborhood we have two houses built side by side, both on where the cane company used to put bagasse and rubbish. One fellow built his concrete as a "floating" pad - i.e. strong enough that it didn't need to be fully supported underneath. He watched the contractor build it and counted the concrete trucks as they came and went to make sure there was a full pour according to the blueprints. (The contractor thought it was overkill.) His neighbor has the same house design, but didn't count the concrete trucks (he wasn't on island at the time) and the contractor just did a "normal" slab. Less than ten years later, the foundation was severely cracking and dropping on one edge. Of course, by this time the contractor is long gone so the homeowner spent most of last summer digging and putting concrete under his house.
Not meant to be a horror story, just a chance for some learning at someone else's experience.
A hui hou!
Cathy
If your building site has unstable soil or has been bulldozed and not compacted (many engineers require compacting between each 12" of soil) then post and pier is much easier to repair if (when) the land settles.
In our neighborhood we have two houses built side by side, both on where the cane company used to put bagasse and rubbish. One fellow built his concrete as a "floating" pad - i.e. strong enough that it didn't need to be fully supported underneath. He watched the contractor build it and counted the concrete trucks as they came and went to make sure there was a full pour according to the blueprints. (The contractor thought it was overkill.) His neighbor has the same house design, but didn't count the concrete trucks (he wasn't on island at the time) and the contractor just did a "normal" slab. Less than ten years later, the foundation was severely cracking and dropping on one edge. Of course, by this time the contractor is long gone so the homeowner spent most of last summer digging and putting concrete under his house.
Not meant to be a horror story, just a chance for some learning at someone else's experience.
A hui hou!
Cathy
Kurt Wilson