My foundation sub and I are having a disagreement on a crawl space foundation he is doing on a small addition to a home I am renovating. The site is on land that slopes toward the existing foundation. He wants to construct a “stepped foundation” instead of a level foundation. We agreed on 2 one-half inch rebar in the footer, but I feel a “stepped” footer does not meet code because the rebar can not be continuous or tied together in a practical manner. He wants to pour the footer in sections with each section at a separate elevation so he does not have to dig so deep in the higher ground. I argue that the footer must be continuous and uniform in elevation and dimensions in order to meet code. Because he has been in the business much longer than me, he feels that he is correct that he can make the footer like steps. I think he is being lazy because the soil is red clay. What do the code experts say?
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Replies
Experts on what code? There are thousands of different codes around the country.
Stepped footings are very common. I don't see what the problem is.
Hi JPG,
I agree with Boss that stepped footings are very common. The code states that the bottom of the footing must be below the frost line. Depending on where you are in the country this could be 4' or much less. The footing has to be on undisturbed material and compacted. Soil bearing capacity tested etc. The footings do not have to be at a continuous elevation and rebar is not required by the IRC except in certain seismic zones. That being said, I have never built a project without rebar in the foundation, or even seen engineered drawings that did not have a rebar schedule. The stepped footings should be fine and I would guess it would not be too difficult to bend some rebar to conform to the drops in the footing forms. My only other thought is you mentioned this is a small addition, if it is small enough, it may make sense to dig to a level grade and end up with a level footing. That may make your crawlspace more like a basement at one end and will certainly mean much more earth-moving and concrete. I don't think your foundation sub is being lazy. What he is proposing is very common and to my knowledge does not violate the IRC in any way. Also, you must have a full set of stamped drawings that you are working from. Did the inspector raise any questions or concerns about the way the foundation was to be built, or are you still in the planning/estimating phase?
Swallow your pride and back down. Your sub is right.
Rebar in a stepped footing must be continuous. There is no structural reason to tie rebar together if proper laps are maintained. It is tied together to hold it in place.
Response
Thank all of you very much. I stand corrected on the footer issue. He was right and I was wrong. The agreement between foundation sub and I specified he would excavate the new crawl space to the same level as the existing crawl space, so he is obviously not going to be delivering what was agreed upon, but I'm willing to yield on this as a good will gesture since I was wrong. Again, thank you all for responding.
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In addition to your addition to the addition, deal with water evacuation away or around this grade towards the house. Remember , you build from the ground up in a good job.
Thank you for sharing the information.