Need advice for a 1st time homeowner for leveling a home and insulating a crawl space?

Question

I'm not very handy (yet) but I think that I can do this. My house is 87 years old and is not level towards the front. Because of this my window and door frames appear crooked, especially on the sides of the house. I'm assuming that I can place a jack under the house in the dirt crawl space and slowly lift the house up in the problem areas (slowly = 1/4 inch per day)? Is there a certain type of jack which I should plan on using and any advice in general for me? I'm getting the impression that this will be a trial and error project and not an exact science. I do plan to insulate it as well, I live in Buffalo and that floor gets very cold and I lose lots of heat. Any tips on how I may want to insulate down there? Should 1 be done before the other? Thank you for any help.

Answer 1

Yes, you can do this yourself.
I AM a professional, and Ive lifted, and reset many homes.

Ok, you haven't stated just how much you need to lift, total...

Basic method here -- you need something to distribute the weight of the jack, supporting the home. If you put a jack right on the dirt...hehehe.. it's going to push itself into the dirt, rather than lift your home. Also, you need something good and heavy to put between the jacks, and the floor joists. (Either steel I-beams, hardwood blocks for individual locations, or laminated 2x6 beams)
I would advise using more than one jack at a time. You can rent, or purchase, steel support jacks, I would use some good hydraulic jacks for the actual lifting, but let the home rest on the steel supports in between lifts. You also need to know when the home is level... so, that means a water level... you can make one, or purchase one.

The home settled over a period of years... do not get in a hurry to lift it back to level...hehehe... I would advise about a half inch a week... any more, and you could have some trouble with plaster cracking, etc. If you don't mind doing a lot of interior work, over a period of time, then you can lift it faster. Unfortunately, with a home this old, you should not try to do it all in one setting. Those walls, floors, doors and windows, will want to stay as they are right now... and will resist leveling. You need to give them some time to settle into the new locations.

Start with the lowest section of the home.. and gradually add more jacks and supports as you go. How many and where you put them will depend a lot on just how much of the home you have to lift, and the conditions under there.

A technique I use, is to use a good hardwood block, or several pieces of 2x lumber glued and nailed together to form a beam, between the jack, or supports, and the home. Try to locate the jacks/supports under the main beams of the home... if you try to jack under a single floor joist, you're just going to push a hump up in your floor =D You can use those 2x lumber to create a beam, and span an outside corner if necessary (probably will, from the sound of your description.)

This does NOT have to be trial and error. Use the level to see exactly how far out your home is, and you will know exactly where you need to jack. I use graph paper, and mark down the variances, when I use the water level to check a home.

I would suggest that you wait until the home is where you want it, before insulating the floor. To insulate it, simply use some R-19 insulation, and stuff it up between the floor joists. You can use staples (thru the paper backer to the floor joists), or if using unbacked insulation, then, plastic ribbon, ties, or even small pieces of metal coat hanger, to hold the insulation in place. Cover it by stapling some 6 mil plastic sheeting to the underside of the floor joists. This will help keep your floor warm during the winter, and is more efficient than perimeter insulation alone would be.
Now, if you want to insulate around the walls of the crawl space, I would recommend styrofoam sheeting (1 to 2 inches thick), with a vapor barrier on the crawlspace floor, and walls. You would not believe how much moisture comes up into a home from underneath it, heheheh.
One note of caution -- do NOT block cross ventilation. I know -- it sounds contradictory... insulate, but ventilate. But you will do more damage to the home by allowing moisture to build up under it, than by letting it cross ventilate. You need to get rid of any excess moisture under the home, all year round. Putting down a good moisture barrier is an excellent way to start. (It will also make crawling underneath the home, a bit cleaner, hehehe)

Good Luck

Answer 2

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Answer 3

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Need advice for a 1st time homeowner for leveling a home and insulating a crawl space?
I'm not very handy (yet) but I think that I can do this. My house is 87 years old and is not level towards the front. Because of this my window and door frames appear crooked, especially on the sides of the house. I'm assuming that I can place a jack under the house in the dirt crawl...

Answer 4

House Leveling Jacks

Answer 5

DO NOT DO THIS YOURSELF!! Leveling a house is best left to professionals. The types of jacks they have can lift way more than ones commercially available. If, while lifting a corner of your house, something goes terribly wrong, and your the one with the jack handle it's on you. On the other hand, pros carry liability insurance in case something does go wrong. I would definitely stay away from this one. Let the pros take care of it.

Answer 6

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Answer 7

My floors started to slant after a few years. I thought it was weird but I didn't think much of it. Now it's ten years later and there is a huge slant in the flooring. I wish I had fixed it sooner! http://www.budgetreblocking.com.au