[ifordtail]

Hey there everyone. I'm building a deck on a Victorian home. The deck will extend 10' from the house. The front of the house is around 23' wide. The deck will be an L shape, wrapping around 15' of the side or the house, extending 10' there as well. There will be 8 columns on the deck that will support a covering for the porch on the front of the house and a small balcony on the side of the house. I will be using a ledger board all the way around to support the deck from the house. At this point I'm figuring I will be using pt wood for the structure of the deck. It will have a white finish so I may complete the entire deck with pt. I've figured I need 8 footings 14"x14" 50" deep, spaced 5.75' apart around the perimeter of the deck, which will curve at the corner. Posts will be 4x4 with saddle brackets. Can someone tell me if these footings will do the job??

Nikki

 

[concretemasonry]

What are you building on? - Pig slop, mud, good soil and conpacted base? The depth of 50" is no insurance against failure'

Dick

 

[brockmiera]

Hey there everyone. I'm building a deck on a Victorian home. The deck will extend 10' from the house. The front of the house is around 23' wide. The deck will be an L shape, wrapping around 15' of the side or the house, extending 10' there as well. There will be 8 columns on the deck that will support a covering for the porch on the front of the house and a small balcony on the side of the house. I will be using a ledger board all the way around to support the deck from the house. At this point I'm figuring I will be using pt wood for the structure of the deck. It will have a white finish so I may complete the entire deck with pt. I've figured I need 8 footings 14"x14" 50" deep, spaced 5.75' apart around the perimeter of the deck, which will curve at the corner. Posts will be 4x4 with saddle brackets. Can someone tell me if these footings will do the job??

Nikki

Yes. I'd start with your building department. If not them, I'd contact a structural engineer to size and stamp your footers.

 

[GBrackins]

sizing of footings is based upon the loads they must support and the soil bearing capacity of the undisturbed virgin material they must bear upon. I do not believe you'll find the answer to your question on and online forum.

building department is a good place to start, as brock said a professional engineer is an even better place to go.

good luck!

 

[joecaption]

And if this is going to have a roof go with 6 X 6's not 4 X 4's.
The 6 X 6's get's cut into so the rim joist can be resting on the side of the 6 X 6 not just bolted to the side of it.

 

[ifordtail]

Thanks for the information. I've attached a drawing of the new porch that will be constructed and the beginning of a rough plan for the deck part of the porch. The owner is looking to have the decking running perpendicular to the house so now I'm a little stuck on how to run the joists. Seeing how they'll be running parallel to the house the ledger won't support the joists. I'd appreciate any input on the supporting structure I've come up with so far.

 

[tony.g]

Isn't this supposed to be a DIY site?

 

[ifordtail]

Just asking for some advice dude...

 

[jagans]

No offence meant but your illustration looks severely out of scale, if you are looking to produce a Victorian type look. The deck is completely overpowering the house. Just an opinion, for what its worth to you.

 

[TheEplumber]

Just asking for some advice dude...

As already mentioned- at least twice- Get in touch with an engineer and cover your tail. Think of the problems down the road when your columns start to sink.

 

[kwikfishron]

I'm not having a good feeling for the homeowner here.

That's a fairly complex deck with roof and along with the footings you're asking framing 101 questions.

 

[ifordtail]

First of all the image of the house your seeing is not the entire house. It's just the facade. The house is much wider in the back and much larger than it appears here. The porch is exactly the same size as what was previously standing except there was a sunroom and now there will be a gazebo instead...that's what the wife wants. I never claimed to be an engineer and I understand the complexity of the deck. I understand I need an engineer. I'm simply asking questions so I can understand for myself. If you have no sensible advice or input I would appreciate if you not waste your time or mine with your useless comments.

 

[concretemasonry]

iford -

All you asked was what are the "footing needs".

Now, you throw in the framing and and do not say anything about your location, climate and soil strength/type to determine the size and type of "footings".

I suggest you have the guy that made the cute drawing to determine how he would frame it in the real world, especially the existing house foundation and materials to support a good portion of the dead, snow and live loads that the engineer will use.

Obviously, you will need some beams to support the joists that carry the decking that runs pendicular to the home.

Dick

 

[Daniel Holzman]

Sizing footers, beams, joists etc has been discussed repeatedly on this forum over the past few years, by doing a search you will reveal dozens, possibly hundreds of comments, of various degrees of utility. Those who know how to design generally refrain from discussing specific projects, as they stand to lose their license for performing work without a contract, offering advice without having seen the site etc. The folks willing to comment may or may not know anything, but by and large are not licensed, hence have little to lose by offering opinions. It is often impossible to distinguish between knowledgeable responses and totally bogus responses. My suggestion is to discuss footing design with the building inspector, since they ultimately have the responsibility of issuing your permit, and insuring that your work meets local standards.