I got a few questions about a home idea before I start building.

 

I flip houses, for numerous investors around Dallas/Fort Worth so far this month we have flipped 7. I don't know if I can help but you got my number, I am in no means the labor behind the job but I may be able to get you some answers.

 

I'm lookin to build an elevated home. Like what they use in flood zones. I'm not in a high water area but I'm tryin to avoid a $13,000 foundation. I can build the rest of it on my own but I don't have any access to wall forms and i hate block work. So I wanna use steel H beams as pedestals and just build a small utility room at ground level to put the furnace water heater and such in. Then use skirting around the bottom level. This way I can also use it as cold storage under the house.

I just don't know any drawbacks to this in the way of longevity and building code problems. This is a home that I'm gonna build myself paying cash for materials as I go so I'm not worring about financing problems either.

 

humm is it septic or sewer, just wondering because if your septic and dint have a perk able spot you ll need an engineered drain field cost of about $10,000-$20,000. And the building department will want engineered plans for everything. Just my .02 I don't build houses i do mainly remodeling work.

 

how high are the H beams going to be?

 

I'm lookin at puttin this around the 6 foot high. This way if I decided I wanted a basement in the future it would be an easy thing to do and I could still enclose the bottom and use it for storage. By not being a finished basement this also keeps the tax bill lower.

The Septic would have to be one of the tank percolators. I use every bit of the property and can't afford to block off enough of it for the leech area. My ground is also hard pack clay and I don't think it would the branches would drain anything anyway. It sets up like concrete.

 

make the ceilings 8 feet, you dont want a 6 foot ceiling, unless your a midget.

 

As a structural designer in my previous life I can tell you there are many problems with this even before you get it going.

So you don't get screwed by a contractor you should use the correct terms.

Beams are steel or wood that run horizontal and Columns (steel) or Posts (wood) run vertical. You will need both in this case.

First, you will need to crib the existing house and install ful length structural steel beams to assist in the raising of the house. These MUST be designed by an engineer. This engineer must know what it is you are trying to do and explain to him that you want a lift or rigging design to get this building elevated.

Next, you will want to get a geotechnical report for the soil conditions to state that you can actually put more loading on the existing foundations. If you can, great, if you can't you will need new foundations (aka structural engineer again). Then the walls which in this case would be load bearing would be constructed and placed under the existing structure - no need for structural steel columns. You will want to check with the local building authority on zoning and height restrictions and you will also want to be very concerned if you are in a seismic zone because this makes connecting the existing building to the new wall and the foundation a little tricky.

As far as the septic goes, I don't know.

 

I would just do a foundation. you can reduce the cost of the upstairs and do a room downstairs. then it will help absorb the cost of the foundation.