The framing for the living space is all wood, obviously, but apparently you can use PT wood our CMU for the crawl space structure. So, if it is a brick house, you end up looking at a brick wall which looks continuous, but really there is a point behind the brick where you go from crawlspace to living space. As long ast the flood water is under that 36" mark, technically your house doesn't flood (with the exception of the garage, which is built at grade-level).įrom the exterior, you can't tell if that pony wall is made up of wood or CMU, nor can you tell where it starts and stops, because typically they bring the exterior finish material all the way down to grade level. In our case, we have a 36" high crawl space, which is designed to allow water to flow in and out in case of flooding. My understanding is that we are talking about the short wall (sometimes called the "skirt" I think) that surrounds the perimeter of the house, above the ground level but up to where the 1st floor starts. I get the sense that the architect and the engineer don't want to come out and say "wood is fine" in case there is a problem down the road, even though the risk seems low.ĭoes anyone out there have experience with these types of foundations and/or recommendations of what we should do? Of course the engineer recommends the CMU style, but says that using PT wood is also a "viable" option. However CMU is significantly more expensive than wood, and the frequency with which the crawlspace floods (in my opinion) should be rare, so is it worth the extra money? The argument goes like this: if the neighborhood floods again, and water floods underneath the crawlspace, you don't want any wood in the "wet" area, therefore CMU would seem to be the best material. Apparently this "pony wall" can be constructed out of CMUs (concrete blocks) or pressure-treated lumber. The question is, what is the best material to use between the pier & beam foundation and the bottom of the first floor. We have retained the services of an architect and an engineer, and we have come to a crossroads.ĭue to the fact that our house is in the floodplain, we will have a crawl-space foundation with flood vents. My wife and I are in the process of building a new custom home in the Braes Heights neighborhood.
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