New Basement for Existing Home without demolition

[tomg]

Is it possible to add a basement to an existing home? We have a 2400 sq. ft. Ranch style house in Arizona. Several of our neighbors have basements. If it is possible how much would a project like that cost?

[Vic Viper]

everything is possibile.
i think it would cost a a lot (looooooot), and it would probably take a long time to get the whole project done.

[JWmHarmon]

It is possible to build a new basement under an existing house. The house would have to be jacked up and have steel I-beams placed under the walls and floors. If your house is built on a slab you may have to build a temporary floor to hold the walls together. Once the house is jacked up and rests on the steel I-beams, the basement can be excavated with a Bobcat loader or similar equipment unless it is built on solid rock.

The principle here is to support the existing house while doing the excavation and building of the basement. It is much the same as tranporting and setting up manufactured housing.

Another option that may or may not be available to you is to build the basement and foundation walls in front of or behind the house and then use the same I-beam procedure to move the house onto the new foundation.

I have seen this done on several occasions when new roads have been built and houses have been moved. I have also seen houses jacked up on I-beams and foundations built under them.

I do not know any cost factors for these projects.

I did one project many years ago where I jacked up my country cabin (20 feet X 30 feet) and dug footers under the walls a section at a time and poured footers and laid up concrete block. I used #4 rebar and let it stick out on the ends of each section. This allowed the next section to be locked into the rebar of each previous section. The concrete block repaced wood posts. My labor was "free" so I can't give you any cost estimates.

If you have room to build on, it may be more cost effective to build the addition with a basement, rather than putting the basement under the current house.

[stev0]

Tomg

Did you find any other information about adding a basement to existing slab house.? I have the same question.... I live in a 2800 sqft house on slab. I am wondering of a method that sacrifices the living room as the "dig" area, then "tunnel" a bit under other portions of the house....

I am guessing, barring code/permit issues, anything can be done... but I am curious has it been done???...and an approx. $$ sqft of added basement......

thanks

[cast]

we did a couple lifts on old houses a couple years ago and the price was about 15-20K. Then add the excavation and foundation.

As for the new basement under a slab on grade: That sounds like an ugly project. No way is the slab going to work as a floor, unless it was designed to span the distance. One of the houses I mentioned above, we actually attached the beams to every stud and just jacked up the perimeter, demo'd the floor, dug out a new basement, reframed it and dropped the house. All told, it was an adventure and not a path I would recommend given the cost (we did it only because city regulation confined the height and size of the structure as it was). Why not go up, instead of down?

[RReeseconstruction]

tomg

yes it very possible to put a basement under an existing home my father and i have done it for years. we live in southern Indiana and have been doing for 31 years. I have have recently started doing it again after 3 years of retirement. the only problem you will have is if your house is a slab home it is impossible to do a slab, i say impossible anything is possible with the right amount of money but it would not be feasible to even try. as far as the cost for 2400 sqft the way we figure around here would cost about $60,000.

[bigernie71]

I live in Indianapolis Indiana and would like a quote for a basement. Do you have contact information or a suggestion of another company that can perform this type of work.
Thanks,

[nanrehvasconez]

MORE PRACTICAL AND LESS EXPENSIVE WILL BE TO PUT A SECOND FLOOR BY RAISING THE ROOF OR BY CREATING ROOMS WITH DORMERS, COST BETWEEN 100 TO 150 BUCKS PER SQ FT.

[starkca3]

hey why not dig adjacent to your house? If you have a large enough lot can you forgo the whole raising the house thing and dig adjacent? Then without moving the house at all dig a stairwell to the adjacent basement.

Unless there are zoning laws that I dont know about (very likely)
then it seems like a good idea to mee!!!!

[starkca3]

like this is what i'm thinkin.

Somebody tell me what is wrong with this! there could be something that i dont know!...(noob)

also please forgive the 2 second illustration

[lekizz]

Note the question was four years ago, so they've probably built/undermined/demolished it by now

[starkca3]

OH....i wasnt paying attention to the date. Oops

[KDANA]

I KNOW THIS CONVERSATION STARTED YEARS AGO, BUT I AM INTERESTED IN FINDING OUT WHO DOES THIS AND GET A QUOTE/BID FOR RAISING A HOUSE FROM A CRAWL SPACE AND ADDING A FULL BASEMENT TO A HOME OF 1600 SQUARE FEET?