Because you explained it so well and the way you did, I’ve decided to build Pier and Beam for my off grid house in San Luis Colorado. Since I’m doing everything by myself, it’s the best choice from all the videos that I’ve watched. You just explain it a little better to where I understand exactly what’s pro and what’s con. Thank you very much for filming this. 😊
My mechanical engineer brain likes pier and beam for the accessibility to utility pipes and for maintenance. Imagine an aircraft without hatches or access panels.
I’m in your area! I bought a couple of run down houses to renovate and they’re my first pier & beams. Gotta’ say, I miss my slab foundation, but I’m working with what I got and I’m learning as I go. I appreciate your insight regarding the benefits of p&b. The houses are ~70 years old and I’m preparing to spend some time underneath with very little clearance and a pretty high level of claustrophobia. Wish me luck!
@@badawesome Yeah, not terribly worried about snakes. It’s working in such a tight space with claustrophobia. Houses are set low, with very little clearance - like belly crawl low, the plumbing is not well organized and there’s junk and trash scattered about that I want to clear.
Another thought. Slabs are used in the north but with pex tubing coiled in the slab to run warm liquid through providing radiant heat. Same in Switzerland and the Netherlands.
What’s the best way to insulate? From the bottom? Seems like fastening plywood or something underneath and placing insulation from the top would be easier. How would you prevent mice and insects from getting in from underneath? Would you put plastic down under the floor and then cover with blue stone for moisture? Great video. Thanks for sharing.
@@JonDawson very curious on a bit more information on some pier and beam things, I messaged you on Facebook a while back was wondering if you might have some info for me!
The main reason post a beam cost more is the floor framing cost + walls when a slab has no framing cost just pour cost and most guys will pour concrete cheaper then guys will frame and post box anchors rebar for the piers hammer drill bits ect start to add up more I pour concrete and am currently building a post and bream right now lol I only went post and beam for the fact I can do more as a one or two man show then I can with a slab is all the reason I did it in the long run slab would of been faster (one day pour) be 2 day framing floor of post and beam so it’s all about money and time frames for most people and u don’t get a lot of pros from post and beam from that aspect but me always moving is a nice part not waiting on help
I did both. Cmu block piers and a slab for my post and beam cottage. Insulated the piers and under slab. Find pier and beam raised off ground to be worse for bugs and rodents here in the north. I basically have a pavilion right now. Gonna finish walls this summer. Pier and beam cost more for radon mitigation. Code here masonry needs to be expose or breathable 18 inches above grade. To dry out. Better insulation factor with slab than pier and beam. All the wood causes thermal breaks. So same insulation thickness in pier floor means lower r value. Another con on pier and beam is frost heave. Which I see on a lot on pier and beam cottages up north. I have 70 psf snow loads and 6 foot frost depths. Another pro for pier and beam is use as a root cellar or cold room. Most sky scrapes have piers and slab.
Thanks for the video. I bought land in the mountains with a grade. Do you still think a higher pier and beam foundation is cheaper vs a walkout basement foundation?
Thanks for the vid Jon! Question - you are using a 1 ply framing on top of 4x6 for your build. One of the pics there uses 3 ply right on top of concrete pier. What are your thoughts on pros and cons of each approach and why did you go the frame on beam route?
I like the beam attached to a bracket that is lagged to the concrete personally. it’s more secure in my eyes. But many people do it with 2 or 3 ply 2x12s. I don’t see too many major issues or differences in ether
@@JonDawson Did you end up beefing up those bottom girders? I thought you started w 4x6 in one early vid but the pics now look like there are 2x10 on each side?
In continental Europe it's mostly slabs. What I don't understand how plumbing can go just under the house in this crawl space and not freeze in winter? I mean it's basically street temperature there
Yes i have crawl space.in arkansas the builders do not build up turf and gravel before they pour a slab..many houses in the delta of arkansas smell mildewie.bad even new.so much water in the delta.
I live in Florida and I'm doing a Pier and Beam and with the hurricanes, I think it's a better option. The cost for a slab is ridiculously high for 400 feet (around $20,000)! Pier & Beam ($3,000). What part of Florida are you moving to?
Good video. 10 years in Houston in a 1200 sq. ft. slab home, meh. Bugs, yes. 20+ years in Dallas in a 1200 sq. ft. pier and beam. I'll take the pier and beam. Not many bugs and if I saw one, bug bomb in the crawl space. The house was 25 years old and the underneath was good, probably still is. The only problem was the attached slab garage and driveway. Cracks.
Slab is ridiculous. Piers, beams and stem walls is far superior. Slab also can't do any type of earthquake rollers, can't access any of the buried utilities, cement is cold on the legs and feet. Wouldn't even consider slab. One can also put piers in themselves. Less cement.
Because you explained it so well and the way you did, I’ve decided to build Pier and Beam for my off grid house in San Luis Colorado. Since I’m doing everything by myself, it’s the best choice from all the videos that I’ve watched. You just explain it a little better to where I understand exactly what’s pro and what’s con. Thank you very much for filming this. 😊
Use bell auger for your piers
I have a lot on the Wild Horse Mesa! Where are you?
@@andreycham4797I’m wondering how the ground will be for auggering holes because of rocks
Can you use metal studs/ beams instead of wood for the pier and beams? So no mold or rot?
This fella nailed it! Thank you for taking the time to make a video this great, Jon!
My mechanical engineer brain likes pier and beam for the accessibility to utility pipes and for maintenance. Imagine an aircraft without hatches or access panels.
I’m in your area! I bought a couple of run down houses to renovate and they’re my first pier & beams. Gotta’ say, I miss my slab foundation, but I’m working with what I got and I’m learning as I go. I appreciate your insight regarding the benefits of p&b. The houses are ~70 years old and I’m preparing to spend some time underneath with very little clearance and a pretty high level of claustrophobia. Wish me luck!
most snakes are not venomous
@@badawesome Yeah, not terribly worried about snakes. It’s working in such a tight space with claustrophobia. Houses are set low, with very little clearance - like belly crawl low, the plumbing is not well organized and there’s junk and trash scattered about that I want to clear.
Another thought. Slabs are used in the north but with pex tubing coiled in the slab to run warm liquid through providing radiant heat. Same in Switzerland and the Netherlands.
Good stuff Jon. Thanks for sharing!
What’s the best way to insulate? From the bottom? Seems like fastening plywood or something underneath and placing insulation from the top would be easier.
How would you prevent mice and insects from getting in from underneath? Would you put plastic down under the floor and then cover with blue stone for moisture? Great video. Thanks for sharing.
Very informative and interesting video. Thanks
Thanks!!
@@JonDawson very curious on a bit more information on some pier and beam things, I messaged you on Facebook a while back was wondering if you might have some info for me!
I agree with you when it comes to pier and beam. You have access your utility
What are your thoughts on open web floor trusses with post/pier to beam foundations?
Loved it, solid logic. Thank you. ❤
I think I go whit pier and beam just the fact I don’t have to worry about plumbing to much
The main reason post a beam cost more is the floor framing cost + walls when a slab has no framing cost just pour cost and most guys will pour concrete cheaper then guys will frame and post box anchors rebar for the piers hammer drill bits ect start to add up more I pour concrete and am currently building a post and bream right now lol I only went post and beam for the fact I can do more as a one or two man show then I can with a slab is all the reason I did it in the long run slab would of been faster (one day pour) be 2 day framing floor of post and beam so it’s all about money and time frames for most people and u don’t get a lot of pros from post and beam from that aspect but me always moving is a nice part not waiting on help
I did both. Cmu block piers and a slab for my post and beam cottage. Insulated the piers and under slab. Find pier and beam raised off ground to be worse for bugs and rodents here in the north. I basically have a pavilion right now. Gonna finish walls this summer. Pier and beam cost more for radon mitigation. Code here masonry needs to be expose or breathable 18 inches above grade. To dry out. Better insulation factor with slab than pier and beam. All the wood causes thermal breaks. So same insulation thickness in pier floor means lower r value. Another con on pier and beam is frost heave. Which I see on a lot on pier and beam cottages up north. I have 70 psf snow loads and 6 foot frost depths. Another pro for pier and beam is use as a root cellar or cold room. Most sky scrapes have piers and slab.
Shouldn't pier go below frost line?
Thanks for the video. I bought land in the mountains with a grade. Do you still think a higher pier and beam foundation is cheaper vs a walkout basement foundation?
Same. Would love to hear the response on this.
@@donnaspakes2861 A basement is the most expensive followed by pier and beam followed by slab if you hire someone to do it.
Well done Sir .
Wish you wrote a book!!
Check out his BLOG. The link is in the description. I wish he was in Florida and I would pay him to do my Pier and Beam set up.
Thanks for the vid Jon! Question - you are using a 1 ply framing on top of 4x6 for your build. One of the pics there uses 3 ply right on top of concrete pier. What are your thoughts on pros and cons of each approach and why did you go the frame on beam route?
I like the beam attached to a bracket that is lagged to the concrete personally. it’s more secure in my eyes. But many people do it with 2 or 3 ply 2x12s. I don’t see too many major issues or differences in ether
@@JonDawson Did you end up beefing up those bottom girders? I thought you started w 4x6 in one early vid but the pics now look like there are 2x10 on each side?
Wife and I are in our second p&b house. Both built in 50s. Would never live on slab. Ease of repair along is worth it all.
In continental Europe it's mostly slabs. What I don't understand how plumbing can go just under the house in this crawl space and not freeze in winter? I mean it's basically street temperature there
Put insulation around perimeter and temp stays above 50 degrees year round which is the temperature of the earth below frost line.
Do you do consultations on pier & beam?
Can u use steel instead of wood?
titanium would even be better
What's your take if you do a concrete and steel beam for a pier and beam solution
Instead of using any wood for the pier and beam
The beams do not sit on the sonotubes with enough bearing.
It seems like using pylons (solo tubes with concrete) and then building the floor from there is easier for the DIY person and under 1,200 SqFoot.
Yes i have crawl space.in arkansas the builders do not build up turf and gravel before they pour a slab..many houses in the delta of arkansas smell mildewie.bad even new.so much water in the delta.
How about using concrete colums
that's the same as a pier
Thinking doing a pier and beam,moving to Florida!!
I live in Florida and I'm doing a Pier and Beam and with the hurricanes, I think it's a better option. The cost for a slab is ridiculously high for 400 feet (around $20,000)! Pier & Beam ($3,000). What part of Florida are you moving to?
@@latonyalee7821 milton/pensacola.. where did you build your home?
@@anthonymurphy2540 I heard that area is nice and Destin is very Tiny House friendly, which isn't far from Pensacola.
they run plumbing under slab in Florida
and everywhere else
@@badawesome I'm not in construction, but I read that places run plumbing in the attic.
Pier and beam ftw!
I wanna build a p&b home in philly
Pier and beam all the way. Another pro is not having to worry about tree roots from garden getting in slab.
How plumbing doesn't freeze in winter under the house?
@@tatsianapalchekh5326 upinor plumbing, well insulated offcourse.
@@dianayukindez7857 extra costs then
@@tatsianapalchekh5326 its an investment. Totally worth it. 🙂
Good video. 10 years in Houston in a 1200 sq. ft. slab home, meh. Bugs, yes. 20+ years in Dallas in a 1200 sq. ft. pier and beam. I'll take the pier and beam. Not many bugs and if I saw one, bug bomb in the crawl space. The house was 25 years old and the underneath was good, probably still is. The only problem was the attached slab garage and driveway. Cracks.
concrete has been known to crack
👍
Slab is good for a cabin in a forest used in summer for holidays. Real home needs a real base, come on
lol.
Slab is ridiculous. Piers, beams and stem walls is far superior. Slab also can't do any type of earthquake rollers, can't access any of the buried utilities, cement is cold on the legs and feet. Wouldn't even consider slab. One can also put piers in themselves. Less cement.