All about soil, footings, and codes for residential building | Building Better Homes

Learn about testing the ground with a soil probe, common footing mistakes, and what can be found in the code book about the sizing and thickness of concrete footings. This video covers a broad range of topics centered around digging, steel reinforcing, and sizing footings and how to determine if your ground is solid enough to hold them up! If you are building anything that requires a concrete footing, including something as simple as a deck, this is a good information video just for you!
#dig
#foundation
#pier

[therealdealrei]

Only Contractor I've ever seen bring out the code book. GREAT JOB guys!!

[lisapender]

I'm a female and I loved this video. I'm 55 and this makes me want to learn this stuff and build my own home! Thanks guys!!! Keepem coming! Much love from Tenn.

[MostlyPeacefulCombatVet]

Great video again! Y'all are lucky to only have a 12 inch frost line!
Y'all do some great work and make great points! Especially things like testing the soil with your t handle probe. And digging with a machine.

One thing I will add that we have been doing for a good 4-5 years now is we like to cut the bottom of our footings out a hair wider than the walls. We just take a sharp spade and cut a few inches all the way around at the very bottom of the footing. This not only gives you a slightly larger load bearing, but mainly takes care of uplift. Especially on more shallow frost footings. Uplift has become such a big deal, the dang house is bound to blow away before the deck ever moves. We bell shape every footing, pier, and/or column to satisfy uplift requirements. We recently purchased a bell auger to do the work for us, because we do alot of large piers and footings. But on a simple deck, it takes no time to knock out that detail at the bottom. Unless your footings need to be 5-6 ft deep. In that case just use those Bigfoot forms or pour your footing large first and then do your pier. Lol!

As far as deck builds go, I always recommend people study their codes, and study the DCA 6.
You'll find a lot of useful info no matter where you are, in the DCA 6.

I hope this helps some folks out there. Be safe out there in the field y'all! Thanks for the content Perkins! God bless y'all! 👍

[JetSetMediaGroup]

I'm surprised this knowledge did not get more views. He gave a lot of first hand needed knowledge.... Keep going!!!!

[gmaki]

While looking for good videos to review for building a home in Texas, I noticed this group having great content. I like the explanations combined with visual examples. Also, they throw in a little comedy to make it interesting but informative. Thank you!

[ivanhannel]

Great video. Wish this video had come out one year ago. I inherited a lot in central Phoenix and went well into the planning and permitting stages only to find out later that the soil would require 3 foot footings! With no choice, I did that, but had I known, I likely would have placed a very different structure on the lot. Anyway, first thing I would ever do is have a soil analysis done of any lot in the future. Good videos!

[Charlotte_TSilva]

I always learn something beneficial when I watch your channel even when your joking with each other. Never a dull moment.

[alantrinanes]

Greetings from the Philippine islands, we are getting ready to plan for a mountain retreat here in central Luzon and these videos are really a great help. Thank you guys!

[craiglindsey]

Love the tip about steel not being required in NC, but still going with 2 runs of #5. I have been looking for that standard, and thought I was missing something.

[TinManKustoms]

Great information
You guys are lucky with a 12" frost line.
Here in Ontario we have 4' frost line but in some parts we the code states we must go to 6' to ensure we below the frost line.
As footings go most decks over 12'×12' they now want to see footings at either 28" wide or 32" wide . Thankfully they make post augers that are up to 36" wide which saves alot of hand digging

[jim]

Interesting information. I live on the coast of Maryland where everything is sand. A lot of our stuff sits on wooden pilings with concrete ground beams on top.

[imstevemcqueen]

You guys are the most informative builders on You Tube. Awesome builders.

[Foreverlovewill]

Thank you for all the detailed information you included in this video. Currently have a foundation footer project to complete now.

[drymoonproperties]

I have seen these same things many many times in my business.
When I built on Lake Michigan in my area we had to have steel pylons drove 75 plus foot into the gravel beds had to go almost 200' on one occasion thank God I was taught well our prices were always determined by engineering needs and actual costs of having them driven deep enough to pass inspections.
Our minimum depths where I live is 36"-42" depending on ground we always went 42" plus and always put at least 4" of gravel before pouring any concrete just wouldn't ever take any chances plus French drains to prevent any standing water.

[aaronfurman]

Great video. Thanks for putting the effort forth with this. Every site Im on, its amazing how many potential clients turn into new clients when I pull my ICC book out - I always try to make sure I am in the know and this just reinforced my OCD.

[briangc]

I always keep a copy of the IRC in my truck so when the inspector comes out I can show him that I did do it by the newest codes.
Most inspectors are not up to date on the codes and many have their own personal opinions of interpretation of the codes. Instead of debating with them, I just open the book and ask them to show me.

[tc]

Fabulous mini-course on foundations!!!

[JM-qyyd]

Awesome! Thank you for taking the time to educate us!👍👌

[obbiebeal]

👍👍👍👍 WOW ! I clearly understood all taught in this video. 65 years in the USA / Georgia. About to build house in west Africa. And there is no such thing as building codes for diy in the bush. Somehow they got the footings part correct and piles. Many build 2 story They make cement block manually (one block at a time ) then plaster the blocks for all walls. No 2 x 4 wooden studs. When money is available we can adhere to strict codes. But when money is not available, not even loans, then humans have to rely on the best knowledge and resources they have. 🙏🙏🙏🤞 the USA do not have another great depression. Thanks for the very good information. A DIY can build 3000 Sq. Ft. ON 1 ACRE for $ 30, 000. USD ( In the bush / rural if they DIY ...LOL dirt road pure country living .)

[OldePhart]

Good Morning. Sure appreciate your efforts .