I started what was to be a fairly small project that has turned ugly due to all the support posts under my back porch deck either being already rotted through or in various stages of rot. They were rough cedar. Half were concreted into heavy black clay soil(1 foot or so on top of the parent material soil which is limestones on top of limestone slabs with minimal soil), and half were just dug in.
The damage was done, I believe, by very poor drainage due to the builder leaving the soil in piles in a way that ran the runoff water right into the posts.
I cannot get post hole diggers or even a standard shovel under the deck to dig new holes because it is too low and it is also roofed over.
I am thinking that I can place concrete blocks under the rim joist close to where each rotting post is, cut it out, and then place blocks for support where the old post was. The old posts are directly below the posts that support the roof over the deck.
Or I could dig a hole as deep as I can after cutting out the rotted post and pour a pier with a metal standoff bracket anchored on top and use a post above that to go up to support the rim joist.
Does anyone out there have any experience with this problem and know of any other way(s) to address it?
Thanks for any assistance.
RonT