A basement in todays house. I felt like a mouse in an obstacle course. I was surprised to see this. Most houses of this size at least have the basement framed for future finish. Not this one, just about 30 6x6’s everywhere. And yes they are resting on the slab, just waiting to be kicked out.
Looks like a Plinko board.
http://www.rental-world.com/images/casino_game_rental/Plinko_game_of_chance_rental._sm.JPG
. . . so what happened when you kicked them out? :mrgreen: . . . just couldn’t resist . . . how did you write it up?
What ever happened to metal I beams and posts?? :roll:
Amazing.
Brian, sure would be curious as to what the design drawings looked like on this one.
Or, was it designed by your local farmer turned Contractor? ha. ha. 
Maybe it was a 8" structural slab where you need not provide a base footings for all those toothpics. ha. ha.
Marcel 
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Whats even funnier is that a realtor was buying it. They had beautiful cherry cabinets in the kitchen, she took them out and installed off the shelf Home Depot oak cabinets, so what does that tell you?? 
Those were the days Pete!! 
Brian;
If the client is willing to stoop to Home Depot, I guess they can live with anything out of the standard and would not know the difference, right? ha. ha.
Marcel
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Are those post maybe temporary? They sure do look close together/
How do you know there aren’t the required footings below the slab?
It usually isn’t possible to tell footings are in place once the slab has been poured…
How do you know the columns are not restrained against lateral movement?
A common practice with wood columns is to set a steel anchor into the concrete footing but have it project up above the concrete, bore a hole in the middle of the column base, then set the column over the bolt.
This is a code-compliant means of laterally restraining columns against horizontal movement. (R407.3 2006 IRC)
Oh God. I feel a migraine coming on. :neutral:
My reports always state that I am unable to determine the presence or absence of footings due to exactly what you stated above.
It was a draw inspection, for this job I could care less. My purpose isn’t to locate defects on a draw.
Now you tell us. How’d you know a realtor was buying it?
Because I stood there and talked to her for awhile. She’s moving from Florida, has 2 kids and her mother is in the hospital. Anything else?? :neutral:
No, I was just curious because most of the time when I do draws it doesn’t have that detailed of information. Like the buyer’s occupation so I was curious how you knew. I’m still floored at her changing out the cabinets.
Oh, I guess I do wonder what she did with the cherry?
Read a while back in the NYT home section about some HO who had her kitchen done in 120K worth of commercial appliances, SS counters, yadda yadda yadda.
After a bit, she decided she didn’t like it, but she felt… you know, bad… about having it torn out less than a year after it went in.
So, she sitting there getting her hair done, and complaining about this dilemma, and her hairdresser, who does a lot of serious cooking and would die for a kitchen like this says, as a joke, “Well how about you give it to me in return for a year’s appointments… my husband will even come and take it out for you…”
And the client says, “Great!”
Out goes the old kitchen, in goes another 100K kitchen…
droool droool
Brian, correct me if I am wrong, but would not the draw inspection approve the monies requisitioned out of the concrete line item in which part of the design would have been to have provided a continuous depressed slab reinforced for the pattern of the bearing columns?
I would think that part of the Draw inspection requires a look at the design drawings and requisition for payment line items to make sure the Banks are getting their moneys worth or not overpaying.
At least that is the way it would work over hear.
Reccomending verification of depressed slab or footing under the bearing post in the cellar is simple and could be requested to do by the Building Contractor.
My curiosity is still wondering as to why their are so many post, and would be intriguing to me to see the design drawings.
The post appear to be 6"x6" and would be curious to know why post bases were not installed to prevent lateral movement and also rotation requirements of a member of this size. Even though pressure treated, wood posts should be elevated from any material subjecting moisture, such as the concrete. A house of such magnitude, one would think that a simple post base would not have been an issue.
The other element would be that the magnitude of this structure, the IRC should not even come into play.
Why would one be down to minimums with something this big.?
Just Curious.
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The draw inspections I do never have any requests like that where they ask us to verify whether or not the bank is getting their money’s worth etc. All they want to know is if it is completed, what is completed or not, so that they can release the next draw of money to progress with the construction. It’s not our responsibility to determine things like if the contractors are doing their jobs properly. That’s up to someone else.
