By Monte Leeper
Q. Although we've lived in our home for a little over two years, we're still
very "green behind the ear" when it comes to understanding how a house works.
Your column has been very helpful in our efforts to educate ourselves about
the correct way to maintain the house. We have two crawl spaces in the
basement, one under a small sunroom and another an even smaller nook. What
is the reason for the crawl spaces? Can the dirt be excavated in order to
turn the spaces into "rooms"? We would very much appreciate your advice on
this matter.
A. Crawl spaces are for toddlers who can do wiring, plumbing, insulation work
and that sort of thing. It helps build character in them as they explore
your home. Otherwise, it is required ventilation and access space for workers who need to check problems and make future installations. A crawl space must, by code, have a minimum vertical open space of 18-inch clearance from the bottom of the floor
structure to the ground below. Incidentally, the ground should have a 2-inch
thick (minimum) concrete slab on it to prevent vermin and insects from
invading your home.
If you want to excavate for a basement in the crawl-space area, have the toddlers play somewhere else while you check the depth of the concrete footing. The footing is located approximately 3 feet below the outside ground level. You will have to dig a hole at a corner of the foundation to check the depth. If you discover that
it is 3 feet deep, you have a problem to solve: You need to support the
rooms above while digging below the shallower footings so that they match the
depth of the basement footing, which I will estimate is probably a few feet
lower than the adjacent crawl-space footing. It is quite a job, and depending upon where you live, it can be difficult because of ground-water tables and drainage. Getting heavy digging equipment to the area may also be an issue.
Whatever you decide, make sure to hire qualified excavation and masonry contractors who can properly support the structure while doing the work. Do not use toddlers for this particular procedure. Good luck!
