In Seattle there are a lot of older homes with partial basements. The rest of the house will typically have a crawl space under it. Ever since we started putting basements under houses people have wanted to use these basement spaces for all kinds of things. Typically they started out as a place for the furnace and other utilities. People quickly realized these spaces would also be a great place to put the laundry. The next obvious thing to do with these spaces was to turn them into living spaces----rec-rooms, bedrooms, work-shops, grow-ops----you name it. The various transformations of these basement spaces were more or less successful depending on several variables. There might be height considerations, light considerations, egress considerations and moisture considerations----to name a few. Often these changes of use would not meet current standards, and some represented serious safety issues. This post is not really about all of these considerations----I will save them for another time. The space between the basement area and the crawl space was often simply open to the basement----at least orginally. There sometimes would be a little short wall to hold the dirt back where it stepped up to the crawl space height. Other times it was just a gradually sloping earthen embankment as the basement area transitioned to the crawl space. Finishing off the basement required dealing with this slope. Sometimes people would dig away the slope in the crawl space area and build a wall to retain the dirt. This increased the size of the basement space while providing a means of retaining the dirt. Some of these walls were more satisfactory than others. Often, the masonry or concrete retaining walls would not be tall enough. On top of these walls people would build a wood wall to close off the basement space from the crawl space area. If the foundation wall does not go high enough, the un-retained dirt wall inside the crawl space, over time, collapses against the wood wall----resulting in decay/rot and places where wood destroying insects can “party-down.” I think you can get the idea from the next couple of pictures. The solution? Proper retaining walls and clearances need to be created, and the solution would vary with the installation. Charles Buell
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PS, for those of you that are new to my blog (or for some other "unexplained" reason have never noticed)all pictures and smiley-face inserts (emoticons) (when I use them) have messages that show up when you point at them with your cursor.
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Here ...for the most part...either you have a basement or you don't....very few "stairless" places not as desirable...and oh to finish a lower level....almost everyone does...or will...!
Charles, thanks again for another informative post, I always enjoy going to your posts, I learn something new everytime...
Charles - I just saw the perfect example of this type basement recently when a friend asked me to help locate the source of a basement leak. It was awful! The "remodeler" had dirt directly against the 2 x 4 wall and insulation. There was no vapor barrier, and the wall wasn't even built of treated material.
Unfortunately for mjy friend, there is no easy solution; and this is a weekend, lake house that he has on the market. An inspection will kill the sale on this one.
I've seen a few people who have tried to "dig" out the crawl space to add to the basement square footage. That one can also lead to some strange construction techniques.
My sister in Wisconsin has a basement with one of those half cement walls...and she just finished it off.
I'm going to have to send her this blog to see if she did it right.
Judging from her last "renovation" I'm going to say she didn't!
Sally & David----that is one of the most common things I get asked is about finishing off the basement----often a deal killer if they can't
Gerry, you are welcome---glad you stop by
John----so often these walls need "help" when I find them
Pat, for sure---undermined footings for one
Craig, I have just forwarded this picture on to your sister for confirmation:)
Dirt and wood: Someone building a termite habitat? We build homes that are dug into the hillside (bermed or partially buried). We do this for a variety of reasons. Two of which are energy efficiency and safety (tornados).
When we do this, we use ICF wall systems, then put a stand-off 25 mil heavy plastic barrier over the wall, place a french drain below grade at the foundation with the property slope and then back fill the wall to grade.
There's not a stick of wood to be seen.
I have never seen anything like that out here in CT. We of course have mostly basements not crawlspaces under the home here.
Mike, there are lots of better approaches nowadays for sure.
James, you lucky dog you.
Mr Charles,
Yours truly is suited up and ready to roll.
Nutsy
Back in the early days of my construction career I carried many a 5 gallon bucket of concrete pouring retaining walls for just this situation. They are not good memories. At least we were fixing the situation, but my back still remembers.
Nutsy I bet if you bite onto your tail you will roll pretty good.
David my shoulders are in sympathy with yours.
I have seen many a crawl space dug out here and turned into a "basement." Not professionally done, of course!
Jay, they are often pathetic attempts.
Charlie - I don't get it. Did they run out of money during the construction of the home? Don't they usually blast?
Carol, THAT brings back some memories----out here builders have no clue about what it takes to put a basement into the ground back east:) Nothing but dirt out here----until you get up in the mountains. In the Seattle area the only rocks---except for the occassional glacial erratic----are the ones landscapers bring in from somewhere that does grow rocks :)