House Renovations - Structure
 

Hi Guys,

My house needs to be leveled slightly and what i am wandering is:

A) Has anyone had this done and,
B) If you have do you need permits or a special contractor to do this?

From what i have heard so far any contractor can do the job but obviously make sure they have insurance but i thought i would double check on here to see if anyone else knows about this.

Re: House Renovations - Structure
 

If you are in Nova Scotia you need a permit.

Re: House Renovations - Structure
 

Nope manitoba....
Did you do something like this yourself and if so:

Is a contractor with insurance good enough?

Thanks for the reply.

Re: House Renovations - Structure
 

I'd be very surprised if you didn't need a permit! On the site (link below) it states you need one for foundation repairs, which your situation likely comes under. (Unless you don't come under Winnipeg's jurisdiction where you are, in which case check with your local authorities).

See: http://http://winnipeg.ca/ppd/permits.stm

Find out first, then ask any potential contractors you interview, if you need one - if he says no, don't hire him! It's in your best interest, not his.

Good luck

Re: House Renovations - Structure
 

First of all, I was LOL at your using these words. In North American usage, saying a house needs to be leveled means it needs to be demolished...

Second, I'm willing to bet you need a permit to do this. Contact your local (city, township, etc.) building department.

I'm curious as to what the problem is. Is the house on a slab? Or does it have a basement? Is this a foundation problem? Soil problem?

Re: House Renovations - Structure
 

Hi Bill,

The problem is that the house is 50 years old and over the years it has sunk slightly on both sides of the house.

There is no foundation issue or anything like that it has just left me with a slight gradient in my home. Its so slight it's not even a real issue but i want to put new hardwood down so i might as well get the house level before i do that. And yes it has a basement the work i need to get done is to replace the existing wooden teleposts with the new metal ones so i can quite literally lower the center beam slowly over time. My only concern is i obviously want to be insured if anything goes wrong which is why i am asking these questions. Now i found a form which states a permit is required but the form doesn't say who can do the job legitimatly lol.

Re: House Renovations - Structure
 

Any builder who has been around for any length of time will be able to do this job. A steel tele-post (or several) are installed on top of steel plates, at certain intervals along a given plane. These are adjusted to "just" take the weight of the existing support(s). When the old supports are removed, the new ones are adjusted accordingly. It would be wise to make sure that your builder is insured AND covered by WCB!. There is no real special insured risk in this procedure. A call to your local building inspector will determine what permits are required AND whether engineers drawings are required (this varies by jurisdiction).
Essentially the center of the house is being lowered, to match the evolutionary subsidence of the outer walls. The strongest part of the house being at the center (usually where the chimney is located). It is possible to do this job yourself, if you have the confidence.
Good luck!

Re: House Renovations - Structure
 

I would just add that, to me at least, I'd want of very carefully select my contractor to do this so I had 110% confidence in his ability. Otherwise I fear this could be an episode of "Holmes on Homes' in the making!

Re: House Renovations - Structure
 

Yeah which is the reason for all the questioning, i have found a company that will come around and give me a quote for the job and will post what they tell me just for future reference for the expats.