Wood foundation questions

[Joe Funderburk, CMI]

Originally Posted by mtyson

wood basement walls are permitted by all of the state and national building codes making them a an accepted building practice in all homes with the exception of the ones that i will live in

I second that emotion.

[Christopher Currins]

Originally Posted by jfunderburk

I would dispute that using common sense. And I quickly found this online referring to the lifespan of utility poles.

"With proper maintenance, the average lifetime of a wood utility pole is typically 30 to 40 years (Beyond Pesticides, 2005; AISI, 2005; Western Wood Preservers Institute, 1996), but as poles age, the effects of initial preservative treatments wear off and the preservatives must be re-applied (Wolfe et al, 2001). The majority of wood poles in service today has received, or is scheduled to receive, these repeat applications of preservative (WWPI, 2005). During the time a utility pole is in use, water acts as a medium for preservatives leaching from the wood into soils and groundwater. Leaching rates vary by both type of wood and chemical applied as well as by the standard of application. Researchers estimate that between 30-80% of the Penta applied to wood is released within the first year, but CCA-treated wood, on the other hand, is more resistant to leaching than Penta-treated poles (Bunce and Nakai, 1989; Zagury, et al., 2003). Leaching rates also are effected by the amount of preservative initially absorbed into the wood; the pH of rainfall and soil near the in-service pole; as well as the type of soil the pole is rooted in. "

Source: http://www.enviroliteracy.org/article.php/1311.html


Here's another one....

"The wood pole's lifespan is about 30-40 years. Sounding, drilling, and coring inspections give information about the pole's condition."

Source: http://www.psc.state.fl.us/consumers...yPoleInfo.aspx

Joe I would not own any building with a wood foundation either. The link I posted is from a TV add that's been running in my area. Thought it might be a little informative. My opinion is it's just a matter of time before they're out of business.


Regarding utility poles, it seems they would be more exposed to the elements than a properly installed foundation.

[Nick Gromicko]

http://www.nachi.org/permanent-wood-foundations.htm