Sunday, November 05, 2006

"the subfloor" - venture beneath your home

If you see something like this when you venture beneath your home, rest assured there is something wrong.

The floor structure is not very healthy and some rebuilding will be required. This loosely laid stack of brick and timber is suppose to be a pier.

You'll need to rebuild the pier or replace it with a stump or post. This may sound like a daunting task but it needn't be. There are a number of ready made height adjustable galvanized iron posts you can find in hardware stores and besides, if your worried about your workmanship just remember that when dealing with hidden structure it doesn't have to look pretty.

The Process:
  1. Locate the approximate position for the post and then dig a hole wide enough to allow for adjustment and deep enough for a firm anchor and bearing. Approx. 300mm wide by 600mm deep (1 ' x 2' ).
  2. The base is then set in position and concrete is poured into the hole securing the post with a brace, bricks or anything that works and allowed to set overnight.
  3. The next day the top half is adjusted in height to reach the underside of the floor bearer then bolted in position.
A few pointers that you should follow. They may seem like common sense however....
  1. Check if there is any heavy furniture on the floor before removing the shoddy pier. If there is relocate these items until the job is finished.
  2. When the initial shoddy pier is removed ensure that nobody walks on the floor. Lock the door if you can or buy some danger tape and cordon off the area. You've always wanted an excuse to use it.
  3. Remove all rubbish from the subfloor area once completed. Leaving rubble and timber will only attract termites.
This is what the galvanized post looks like. Notice the fixed termite shield.