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Tim_S
Member
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2015 11:42am
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Hi all,
I am working on plans for a 16 x 32 cabin in WI and have a few questions. First of all, there is very limited access to the build site. It can be reached by four-wheelers but has no road access for bigger vehicles. There is no water or electricity but there is a trout stream nearby. I want to use a post and beam foundation but I'm not sure what to do about the posts. I want to use 3 rows of posts with each post 8 feet apart. Each row would be 8 feet apart too. That makes for 15 posts. The posts will need to be four feet deep to get below the frost line. I would love to use Sonotubes and cement but the prospect of getting that much cement back there really scares me. I was wondering if I could just pour a cement base at the bottom of each hole and put six foot 6 x 6 posts on top of that. I read somewhere that these posts last longer if you coat them with roofing tar. We have an ample supply of gravel that we use for trail maintenance so I was thinking that i could use that to backfill the holes around each post to let it drain better and keep water away from the posts. The soil is mostly sand and rock. I have dug a few holes in the past for outhouses, etc. so I'm not too worried about digging the holes. We would then put 6 x 6 beams on top of the posts so that the base of the foundation is two feet off of the ground. The footprint is fairly level but one corner is slightly elevated. I think using wood posts would also make it easier to make sure that each post is level. It's easier to cut a wooden post or two than to perfectly align 15 cement columns.
Any thoughts or suggestions on this plan would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
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OwenChristensen
Member
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2015 02:01pm
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Yes 6x6's treated will last and work well. They work better for fastening the beam too. If you have sand a gravel they work even better, you shouldn't have frost heave if post holes drain well. Rather than a cement pad on the bottom, I like to chainsaw a few notches into the bottom 6'' then pour quick set around the base. This will help to hold down the post if frost tries to lift it. More often by far is frost pinch and lift from top than frost getting under the post.
Ps. you can start your posts up to a foot under ends and set beams in by a foot. Use very large laminated beams with cross blocking. Extra scabs at joins are also a good idea. You can't trust treated beams not to sag under their own weight, so I seldom go over seven feet between posts.
Owen
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Quad_Hunter
Member
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2015 06:27pm
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Hi, not sure on your whereabouts is but I've been doing similar research and found thermal screw piles a viable options. They are in and out in one day, can access remote sites and do not disturb the ground.
They can be little more expensive then traditional concrete but don't be afraid to shop around. Price can vary greatly in price from contactor to contractor.
I'm building a 26x32 structure a got a quote with 15 piles (5 in each row). Basically works out to $400 per with an engineer report for building inspector.....
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MJW
Member
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2015 07:14pm
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We built our 20 x 32 on 6 x 6s.
Probably overkill but we went with 3 rows of 7.
Working well for us.
Our Cabin in MO
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jrbarnard
Member
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# Posted: 29 Mar 2015 08:55am - Edited by: jrbarnard
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I built a 24x32 with a 16x32 covered porch. We used 2x8's for the outer base and 2x8's for the beams with 2x6's for the joists.
I over-engineer everything ;)
The key will be, if you want stability...lack of that 'creaking sound', easy to find places to put in a screw (lol).. the further you run the joists, the farther you spread them out, the heavier the board.
So, 2x6's are plenty fine, just keep them at..what experts (people like Mnt know more of the numbers).. under 9ft run and under 2' spacing?
I went with a 7.5' run and spaced them all like 18" apart.
I think I have pics... sec..
Then I leveled them all on cinder blocks.
It was remote, to say the least. 55 miles from the nearest town and Home Depot told me they would never deliver there again :P
Russ
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