Restumping is a tough task that requires the best engineers & workers to analyze, remove & restump, or even reblock a particular home. Asking relevant questions to the shortlisted restumping contractor can considerably help you in finding the right company that has the ability to do the desired job right. Whether this is reblocking just a few blocks or replacing just one blown-out stump made of concrete, the right questions can specifically help you in finding people who would complete the task effectively and quickly. Most crucially, these questions would help you find a company that effectively meets your budget and ensures that you can be able to restump without digging a big hole in your pocket.
Homes that are being supported by wooden posts are referred to as stumps. Over time, these stumps become worn, damaged, or rotten. The erosion of the home's structural support can cause damage to the walls, floors & foundation. Restumping is the procedure of removing these damaged old stumps & replacing them with new support stumps.
The restumping procedure is completed in five major steps. Firstly, the home is prepared for work to begin with. Secondly, the house is lifted to expose the old stumps. The restumping company will then dig the required holes to set the new posts. These support posts are usually set in concrete. After all the posts are set, the house is then lowered into its foundation & the area of work is cleaned in an appropriate manner.
There are various signs to tell you when to opt for restumping. If you notice that your house's foundation is shifting of your plant to renovate your house from scratch, then you should hire a professional restumping expert to examine your house's foundation & determine if the restumping procedure is necessary.
With multiple contractors in the market, it becomes a little tough to pick the best of the lot. Hence in this article, we bring you some tips to help you find the right restumping expert.
Choosing the perfect restumping company:
- When you're planning a huge restumping of your house, this is crucial that you choose to work with the best and most experienced company from your area.
- You should locate the most potential companies by conducting some research on the web. You need to look at how long the company has been doing business in the market and what number of homes they have already repaired successfully.
- You need to ensure that they are licensed & insured to conduct the work of restumping.
- You need to ensure to go through all the details of the contract before signing the same.
Asking the right questions to a restumping contractor before selecting them:
Before signing a contract with a restumping contractor, you need to be sure about the work scope. To ensure the same, you need to ask the contractor the following questions:
- Are all stumps in your house going to be replaced? – this will help you understand how big or small the entire work is
- Will the level of the floor be of the existing height, or would it be higher? – this will help you understand what will be there in change to the height of the foundation of the house
- Are the replacement processes of damaged/rotten bearers & joists included in the given price quote? – This will help you understand if you have paid anything over and above the total cost quoted.
- Is there any nature of internal damage likely during the procedure of restumping? – this will help you understand if the restumping work is absolutely safe for your house
- Is the levelling of floors guaranteed if you opt for their services? – this is will help you understand that in case of any issue after the completion of work, will the company re-work on the restumping or do you need to pay them again
How Much Does It Cost To Restump A House?
If the timber stumps supporting your house become fragile due to unavoidable factors, they must be immediately replaced, and this process is known as restumping or blocking again. Restumping gives your house a strong foundation and reduces the chance of untimely mishaps that could have happened due to the rotten stumps. If inspecting your home's structure reveals that the timbers are damaged. Call a restumping expert who can give you the best return on investment, ensuring outstanding workmanship.
The Signs that Indicate that your Building requires Restumping:
When will you notice these aspects?
- The floors of the Building are slopping.
- You can't open the door smoothly.
- There are cracks on the walls.
Though these signs can be the result of other factors, yet you must make sure what actually happened to your house by getting professional help. On-site assessment will be done by the respective professionals to identify the root cause of the problem and how far it has spread and affected your house. They will provide you with the best solution, and you will get to know about the cost of restumping the house from the respected firm.
Potential Factors That Determine the Cost of Restumping House:
- The house's height: The height of the house matters because when it is too low, the workers will face difficulty going underneath. Excavation may be required for the purpose of restumping. Hence, in this case, the cost of the restumping houses may get higher. You can hire labourers that can lift the floorboards to reach the stumps from inside the house, and it will shun the obligation of trench digging. Again, if your house is located much higher on the ground, the professionals use a mini-digger. It can save a lot of labour cost restumping house. But the materials charges can be increased.
- The actual foundation: The experts suggest that you can reuse the existing foundation. Hence, your money and time will be saved. You need to do a soil test and recognize if the foundation is okay
- The current condition of the soil: The soil condition beneath the house plays a big role in deciding the amount of work and the associated cost of restumping house jobs. The best solution is to get the soil tested mandatorily. Appoint an engineer who can calculate the footings' depth. It will reduce the chance of further mistakes.
- Current stump holes: The expert consultant suggests that you can reuse the present stump holes. Therefore, both your money and time will be saved. The cost of restumping a house increases owing to the depth of the digging of holes.
- Frequency of the work: Also, if you can get the restumping job done all at once, you have to pay much less in comparison to the multiple sectioned work in which the workers have to visit your house and go several times. The less they visit, the less you pay.
- The probable range of cost of restumping house: So, each stump can cost anything from $500-$700. The entire restumping and levelling of the house may cost between $4,000 and $15,000 approximately.
Benefits Of Restumping Your Home
Unfortunately, having house stumps in bad condition is a dangerous situation that can easily go unnoticed by homeowners until it is too late. When you notice problems with your stumps, a professional should always be bought in to do the necessary assessments as to whether restumping is required.
Indicators of a home that may need restumping are found in various places, such as doors and windows that may not open and close easily or are no longer square. Cracks may also start appearing in plaster walls or ceilings. Floors may become squeaky, wavey, or spongy and crack may start appearing in external brickwork.
Upgrading To Modern Materials
Restumping in the 21st century has all the benefits of technology - such as materials manufactured specifically to minimize and/or prevent dry rot. You can choose fresh hardwood, concrete or galvanized steel when restumping. At Bohm, we specialize in galvanized steel restumping as it has many benefits, including longevity, high strength and ability to adjust.
Dry rot is a common issue in older houses on timber stumps. After a period of time, the dry rot causes other timber in close proximity to deteriorate. Bohm Industries always checks for signs of dry rot during our assessment and throughout the restumping process.
Galvanized steel with painted welds and correct installation will ensure the steel stumps last for decades or longer. Even in coastal environments, steel stumps are the best choice. If you'd like to explore more reasons to choose steel - check out our other blog; Why choose steel stumps?
Strengthening Your Home's Foundations
It's important to protect your property by keeping your home's foundations strong. Restumping can safeguard your foundations from being weakened by the many complications that can arise from stump problems.
One of the largest of these problems is moisture, especially if your house is built on timber stumps. Moisture causes deterioration, attracts destructive pests, spreads dry rot, and in general, moisture will wear away at the foundation of the home.
Another problem is that the hardwood stumps on which many Queenslander and Colonial style homes were built on will still deteriorate over time. During restumping, your home will also be levelled, exceeding minimum standards every time.
Adding Value To Your Home
Whether you are renovating, preparing to sell or preparing to purchase, a newly restumped house has an increased value and attractiveness to potential buyers.
Future maintenance is a top concern for property purchasers and having your house recently restumped proves it has a solid foundation and that any potential future stumping issues have been mitigated.
Frequently Asked Questions
Underpinning a mobile home is a process to build a support structure under the home and is required in some areas. If you are trying to obtain financing for a new mobile home purchase and you are told the home must be on a foundation, underpinning is often to what the lender is referring.
Stump length will mostly be about 100mm off the bottom of the hole to the bearer. When fitting the stump your finished height of the thread should be about 50-60mm. So, keep that in mind when you set up your heights.
You can choose to only partially restump your home or business, but we don't recommend it. You're pitting the stumps against each other, as they'll deteriorate at different speeds. It's a big job to swap out only one or two stumps.
The stump holes are dug into the ground with a post hole digger. Stump footings transfer the building loads to the foundation and are used to support timber framed houses.
The real advantage of strip footings/stumps is that your floor will feel a little softer to walk on compared to a slab, and you also have the benefit of being able to access the subfloor of your home. The negative side is the significant extra cost difference for strip footings/stumps.
Finding The Best Reblocking Expert Team And Save Your House
Most of the houses are made with wood or concrete stumps. The stumps are susceptible and are not safe. If you feel that your property is unsafe, then you can contact with the team of Reblocking. There are various services that provide underpinning, restumping or reblocking. You should notice some signs in your home which indicate the reblocking. These signs are,
- Cracking bricks and mortar.
- Doors are not opening as well as closing properly.
- One-sided door frames.
- Slanting balconies and floors.
- Doors leading from the hinges.
- Cracks in the plasterwork.
The Services Are Provided By The Reblocking Team:
Tree roots, poor structure and also plumbing faults can cause all smash up to your home. To avoid these problems, you need to hire a professional reblocking team. The Reblocking provides various services, and these are,
- Underpinning: — It is the removal of the soil from the building area and replacing it with concrete. Basically, it is strengthening the integrity of the Building. To get the best result with underpinning is to make your home better and stronger. Also, you need to extend your foundation. For this problem, you can hire the best underpinning professional team. This team can fix your problem and emphasise this problem for a number of years.
- Restumping/reblocking: — Cracked walls, indistinct doors etc., all are signs that your house is no longer in session on a concrete groundwork. Sometimes, extreme damage stump can cause the collapse of the home. If the house is sitting on the stump, then due to the time, it shifted off. You can easily get an expert restumping contractor who can resolve your problem.
Why Hire The Service Team?
If you find that your home is not in proper condition, you must choose the service team. The Reblocking service team provides you with lots of benefits. The restumping process provides a long-lasting and also solid house. Also, by using reblocking, the value, longevity and condition of your house will increase as soon. To turn your old home into a new one, you need to restump or reblock the process. So, to get these benefits, you need to hire an expert servicing team. This team provides restumping, reblocking and also underpinning of all sizes with a moderate budget. There are many services that utilize the most up-to-date industry techniques and guidelines as well as high eminence materials to carry out better-quality work. They are devoted to giving the best outstanding service always.
Whenever you select the House Reblocking, you can be sure that your house and also you are in a safe condition. You can search online to get the best company. Before hiring, you must check their reviews and also their previous work. Also, you can get advice from the company on what to do or not. They can guide you properly.