Old wooden supports in basement of 2 family 100+ year old house

ytorrie

Hello there,

I am very new to this game, but am in the process of putting an offer down on a house and do not know where to turn for this question, so any help would be appreciated.

In looking through a bottom floor condo of a 2 family house today, we noticed uneveness in the floor. So we went to the basement and found the floor is supported by old wooden upright supports, and hence the "waves" in the floor which are centered around the support beams in the basement. FYI, the house is 100+ years old - a gem. I know in houses this age you put up with eccentricities and that's okay by me but I just don't want any be safety issues (although they've been okay for all these years I guess). Would these be best replaced with steel upright supports? If so, any idea what kind of $$$ I'd be looking at for something like this (the house is 950 square feet). Would replacing the wooden upright support beams stop the waving or would there need to be horizontal support beams to ensure this?

Thanks for any help you can offer.

Yve

clasact

it would be hard to say without seeing the cross members.Are they warped and worn,if they are the original I would say they are then I would replace them also and yes the steel jack post are what you need.Depending on the hight (they come in different sizes) would determine pricing.This and a good foundation will help stop any future waving but I doubt it will fix what is already their,You may have to put down a new floor and if any walls or doors have been damaged they may need replacing or fixed.I have not seen how bad this is and I am no expert( didn't even stay at a holiday inn) but their may be alot more to this then what your thinking.I would have an inspector in if your thinking of buying or a contractor to get a better ideal of what it would take to fix it

ytorrie

Thanks for the reply. Given the house was built in 1916 (not 100 years old yet) the floors are suprisingly good and I didn't notice it until the realtor pointed it out. I know the upright beams are original wood, but I don't know about the cross beams (although suspect they are original too), so I will keep this and your other comments in mind if we get approved and onto the inspection phase. Thanks again.