New house, own contractor

newbiebuild

Hey , after talking to the building inpector I have discovered I have to build a new place(single story about 1000sq ft.) on this land I have. However, the 1 acre lot already has a well and septic tank(which is the good side). My dad has piles of tools and is very knowledgable, he also has a excavator(which is also good). BUT, we don't know ALOt about preparing for the foundation and all. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna need a footer and 16" wide and 12" deep. I don't wanna subcontract this out b/c I will run outta money. I'm in college and can get about 15k cash for the foundation. I probably need to build the foundation up as it is low. I've read that i need to get fill dirt and pack it with a machine? I was also assuming since there was already something there I could get my setbacks and use some geometry to set up my corners myself? Assuming the footer has to be like i described w/ rebar, what steps do I need to get things rolling?

Also, I originally was gonna have an architect draw some plans up for me but some good friends of mine told me they know a general contractor that would let me look thru some recent plans and give me a copy....how does this work? Do i get a copy and get them stamped by an engineer?


lotta questions here....I'm in a rush to get things started b/c we have this new proposal in my county that may be voted in that makes every permit a mandatory 6k....which would not be good!!!

joasis

Talk with a local contractor and see if they would offer consulting for a fee to help guide you. Your local code guy will give you the information specific that you need...from your experience level you describe, I would not advise you to jump into this with both feet until you get good info and evaluate your experience to see if you are really up to it. Home construction is not as simple as it looks on the DIY network.