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Difficult Foundation -- Adding Basement Beside Crawlspace

From: jaime@castells.net
Category: Foundations and Basements
Remote Name: 216.23.50.137
Date: 24 May 2001
Time: 09:53 PM

Comments

I am very charged up about the design of an addition that I'm preparing to start. The foundation plan has become a problem. The existing house is on a block foundation with a crawlspace. I want to add a full basement below the addition. The problem is how to avoid undermining the existing footers. I want the new wall as close to the old as possible, but the new footers will be 4-7 feet (there's a single step in the current footers) below the existing ones.

A civil engineer mentioned the use of "shear walls" [described as a corrugated steel product] to be driven into the ground beside the existing footers. This idea is totally unfamiliar. Is it ever used in residential work? Where can I learn more about this technology? What alternatives might I look into?

Many thanks for any help!

Jaime ;-}

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