Pool nightmare

[willshak]

The house was already constructed, but...

|main5|dl3|sec1_lnk2|71747or:

[PeterD]

|main5|dl3|sec1_lnk2|71747> or:

Except for the person who buried the crap, who knows, or who could have known. It is even possible that when the stuff was buried it was legal to do so, and in that case, the current owner has little recourse at all. However the article seems to indicate a variety of hard items, mostly metal, not garbage, so leaving it buried likely won't hurt anyone.

[so]

I've always wanted to take all my wife's crafts/scrapbooking/rubber stamps/pottery crap and bury it in a big hole in the backyard. This really motavates me.

[HeyBub]

|main5|dl3|sec1_lnk2|71747> or: It can happen. I was once invited to invest in a sand pit.

The promoter said the said had already been sold and would be paid for as it was removed. But that was not the selling point. What made the deal attractive, according to him, was the tax provisions.

You see, he explained, as you remove the sand you are depleting a mineral asset and you get a tax deduction. But that's only part of the scheme.

When the sand is gone, you have a big honkin' hole in the ground. Now you charge people to dump stuff in the hole (concrete, tree trunks, washing machines, whatever). But the real money-maker is this: you have an asset (the hole), you're filling it up (with junk), thereby depleting an asset once again!

My brain was going dizzy, but he continued: "Wait, there's more!"

"When the hole is almost full, you cover everything with about two feet of topsoil and sell the acreage for a low-cost housing subdivision!"

I passed.

[tnom]

This burying of trash was and still may be a common practice of Farmers. They typically dig a huge hole on their property and start filling it for years until it fills up. Then they dig another one.

[Steve Barker]

|main5|dl3|sec1_lnk2|71747> or:

well, duh. they put yuppie subdivisions on top of landfills all the time.

[Steve Barker]

Done all the time. And not illegal.

[EXT]

|main5|dl3|sec1_lnk2|71747>> or: >

Yeah, cheap 12" deep foundations don't provide much support, nor reveal much underground information. So you could end up overlooking a lot of potential problems. Up here in the cold north minimum depth is 4 feet, many foundations go 5 to 7 feet deep to allow for a basement.

[PeterD]

|main5|dl3|sec1_lnk2|71747>>>

Well, in Florida I've seen houses built with even less that 12" footings. Without any frost issues, the only thing important is stability (lack of cracks)...

[Randy333]

Watch the video... the EPA and DEP are getting involved, declare bankrupacy and run! Tthis could get into millions when the government gets involved.

This guy is screwed!

Remove 333 to reply. Randy

[Steve Barker]

|main5|dl3|sec1_lnk2|71747>>>

I'm a wondering two things:

1. what lo life jurisdiction only requires a 12" footing?
2. What dumass would build a house without a basement? It's only a couple thousand more than a crawl or a slab.

[Steve Barker]

|main5|dl3|sec1_lnk2|71747>> or:

that was his first mistake, making a big deal out of it. He should have just dumptrucked the shit out of there, brought in some dirt, got on with his pool and been done. He's fucktakated now for sure.

[jamesgangnc]

Southern half of Florida. No frost heave. Lots of areas are not good places to build basements. Areas with poor drainage or water close to the surface. Like Florida. You do not find many here in NC either. Poor drainage and lots of heavy rain. A few where the land slopes enough that most of the basement is out of the ground anyway. Don't make assupmtions based on your locality.

[jamesgangnc]

That's not particulalry true. If it's nothing but solid waste then there are not any issues.

If it's toxic materials then he is screwed, sort of. Would you rather find out now that someone buried toxic materials under your house? Or

10 years later while you are watching your kid die of some strange cancer.

[Vic Smith]

|main5|dl3|sec1_lnk2|71747>>>>

I don't know about foundation codes. Never saw a basement in Florida. Think you hit water after a couple feet in much of the state. In other places where's no water table issue, some developments build or offer to build slab houses to lower costs and make them affordable to more people. Years ago I had a workmate who bought such a slab house. A basement would have added about 20% to the cost. He regretted not ordering the basement. Then if you can afford a big ranch, there's no need for a basement. I've always had a basement, and most homes around here have them, but not all. It's a natural plus because lots generally aren't big enough to spread out a big ranch. One good thing about basements is they're quiet, and cool in the summer. A bad thing is they can flood.

--Vic

[Steve Barker]

|dl3|sec1_lnk2|71747>>

I'm not making any assumptions at all. It's just commonsense to build a basement. regardless of soil conditions. It's all workable. AND the IBC requires footings to be deeper than 12" regardless of location.

[jamesgangnc]

Wrong and wrong.

There are many places in Florida where if you dig 4 feet down your hole will fill up with water. A basement in those conditions is just plain stupid. You can't solve that with drainage. It's not "workable".

And building codes are local, not ibc. Ibc is a model that local juristictions can start from. They adapt as needed. Since there are no geological issues or frost in southern florida they don't need a deep footing. What's under the footing in florida is almost always sand. You dig deeper you just find more sand. So it's not like you can dig to a more stable stratum either. And if you dig too deep and your footing starts filling up with water now you've got a headache on your hands.

[HeyBub]

Same in all of south Texas. There must be a million homes in the greater Houston area and maybe six have basements. First, its at least 500' before you get to a stable rock formation - 'til then it's damp clay. Secondly, land is relatively cheap (compared to, say, Philadelphia), so homes tend to move out (sometimes up) to generate square feet.

[HeyBub]

Better would have been to cover it all up, sell the white elephant, and move.

[PeterD]

|main5|dl3|sec1_lnk2|71747>>>>

1. Most in Florida!

1. Steve, this house is in Florida, where NO houses have basements. Crawlspaces are not favored either for many reasons.