Hey Hoss

[I luv herfrds]

Just wondering about the foundation on your house. Did you hire it done or did you do it your self?
We have gotten bids ranging from $26k to over $40k. Waiting to hear from one more contractor.

Got a bid to excavate the site at $2000.00. A bid for $7800.00 for the stryofoam forms for the walls. $600 for the drain pipe to go around the footings. The rebar at $1500 rough estimating.

One bid is $9792 for the basement slab. A different bid is $6000 for the walls concrete with a lower price for the basement floor.

I am seriously starting to wonder if we can do it ourselves and instead of paying someone to do it we can put that money into the materials needed.

Husband is good at measuring, I stink at it, but I'm good at running equipment.

Any thoughts on doing it ourselves? Yes I have been cruising through DIY network web site.

 

[cowboy43]

If you are paying cash for it you can do it yourself, but if you are borroring the money that may be a different story , if the money is borrowed , here it has to be done by a contractor and inspected thru the stages of construction.

 

[HOSS]

I hired it done. There was so many off-sets to my house I could not afford a mistake. I hired an experienced guy with all of the right equipment and a laser transit that he could down load the blue print for the foundation in and it would lay it all out to the fraction of an inch. If you are off square a little bit when you go to put on the decking and frame the walls it really stands out and makes everything from the drywall to the trim work more difficult. If my foundation was a basic rectangle I could have probably done it myself. I have built rectangle barns and got it accurate.

I didn't put in a basement just footers but I had them poured extra deep and wide. I didn't want any settling. It sounds like with pouring basement walls and floors I would hire it done if it were me.

 

[Jalopy]

ILH- We built our house in '02-'03. We( basically I) acted as general contractor. We used a construction loan. I hired the excavation and cement pouring done by a local company, but I had ultimate approval for all decisions and was on site for the pouring of the cement. We used the styrofaom forms that are left in place and I bought those seperate from the sub contractor as I liked the kind I got opposed to the kind they had a dealership for. As Hoss stated evreything from there on up depends on how accurate you are with the footings and basement walls. I think sometimes it wise to spend money at certain times for the expertise and skill sub contractors can bring to the project. Good Luck and enjoy the process it can be really enjoyable. It was for us.

 

[I luv herfrds]

It's a cash deal, no loan money what so ever.
Thanks Hoss.

It is a 48'x48' square house.
One contractor bid us $4800 to dig out the basement. Going to talk to the other guy who I got the $2000 bid from; he has his own equipment and is closer that is why he was cheaper. Also recommended by the concrete plant guys, they know who to avoid.
The footings are 16"x20" there are 3 through the center of the basement. Also a 3' frost wall on the west side.

Just got a different bid for the concrete forms for $5300. A lot less then the lumber store gave us.

Now figuring just the concrete, excavation, forms, drain pipe, rebar and sealer we have got it priced out to $16,500.

We had a contractor recommended and we tried to contact him, but found out yesterday he is not going to be doing any work for quite awhile. He fell on some ice and fractured his pelvic bone in 3 places. He also has 2 jobs ahead of us he is doing.

Jalopy it is not fun at this point. Trying to get the bids and everything lined up is stressful.

 

[Wewild]

Our concrete including basement floor and garage and labor were about $10k each. The excavation was less than $5K so maybe $25K. The concrete guys used removable forms not the Styrofoam type. That would be about a 2000 sq-ft basement including many offsets and a 22'x 9' safe room with a concrete lid.

 

[Orerancher]

Basement foundation is really not something you really wanna do unless you already have all the ties, clips, whalers, strong backs, and material for braces...LOTS of braces!! Make darn sure the walls are plumb and square or the Framer will be cussin the foundition crew!

Plus...you aint never seen a wreck like havin a 10ft form 'blow out' in the middle of the pour!

We set up and pour 2-3 Basement foundations a year

Best of luck!

 

[upfrombottom]

I built houses for thirty years so I will try and give some honest advice. The biggest mistake people make is under estimating their physical ability. And when you do that, your mental ability fades soon after. Some say, I can do that and they can for an hour or two, but on a project that will take all day to do right it usually don't end on a good note. The foundation of anything is the absolute beginning, and will reflect on everything from there on up.

If you are insistent on doing it yourself, here is what I would do which is what any knowledgeable contractor would do. If I were not able to shoot the grades ( get the exact level of the foundation) find a subcontractor that will dig the basement and footings and put them on grade. Get this same guy to shoot the grades on some "batter boards" that you can pull strings from to set the forms. If you get the strings at the right height (top of the foundation) and get them square everything can be layed out from them. Supply stores, lumber yards,or concrete plants, can help you find a reputable person to do this.

A decent set of plans will show you the sizes and where the re-bar should be located. You can install the re-bar in the footings and possibly pour them yourself. They don't have to be pretty, just flat. If you can't shoot grades yourself, you can measure down from the strings on the batter boards and set some stakes in the footings( if your not a experienced finisher the closer together the better) to get the top of the concrete level. You can also plumb down from the strings to set the dowels, for the foundation walls, in the footings.

Once you get the footings in you can (using a plumb bob) plumb down from the strings to get the bottom line of the foundation walls and then you can build the forms for the basement walls. When you get the forms in, this is where I would seriously consider a professional finisher. Your local mixing plant can help you find one. It takes a great deal of labor and experience pouring foundation walls and vibrating them down so they will be uniform and free of voids. The same goes for the floor. There is alot more to finishing a concrete floor than just pouring the concrete and it can get away from you in a hurry. A professional finisher will be money well spent. The odds are stacked way against you on the finishing. And always ask for references! Any good contractor will be proud of his work and will offer many. By all means write them down and check them. It never bothered me for people to check my references as a matter of fact, it will help build trust, which makes it alot easier to work together.

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

Some good advice from upfrombottom. Unless you have done alot of concrete work yourself, hire some one to do it.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Thanks for all of the advice. Will be hiring a contractor to do it. Like the redi mix plant owner told me, "Better to spend a dime now, then a dollar later to fix it."