How to proceed on massive rehab project.

[MarcusGeiser]

I work for an investor in Pittsburgh, Pa. He recently purchased a home that was fire damaged. The fire was isolated to one room on the second floor and roof damage is minimal for a fire. The view from the rear deck is outstanding and is easy to get lost in. The basement is less than 6 feet and he wants to excavate down and make into a master suite.

I can handle the scope of work but on a project this size there are alot of i's to dot and t's to cross.

My question is do I need a structural engineer an architecht or both? OR could I hire an inspector or someone with inspector experience to consult on what to do?

 

[KZQuixote]

Hi Marcus,

How much of a designer are you? How clear is the vision of your customer? At the least you will need a structural engineer. If your experience at interpreting the needs of customers is limited you may need, Oh Gawd, I'm gonna say it, an architect.

Bill

 

[Coug Dad]

Welcome to the board. There are a lot of PA experts here who should be able to answer questions specific to your jurisdiction.

 

[rshuey]

If I were an engineer, I would designate a fire area as per the "Repairs" chapter of the IEBC and stay within that chapter. As long as you use that, your job will be a piece of cake.

if i were an engineer, lol.

 

[MarcusGeiser]

i believe that my investor and I are on the same page as far as vision. Several of the ideas were mine so I am looking for a way to accomplish something a little more grand than the average rehab. I will get in touch with an engineer.

Thank you.

 

[peach]

the basement renovation is not repair, and you'll need a structural engineer for underpinning the footing.

 

[MarcusGeiser]

Thank you, have contacted a couple of guys and will meet one on site to go over the project. The one guy I talked to wants $250 to come out seems reasonable? What do you guys think?

 

[Mark K]

You definately need an engineer if you are going to underpin the footings. You will likely end up taking out the existing footing and building a new wall. Either way this is a non trivial project. I have put a basement under my house so I have some experience with this type of effort.

If you do not want the basement to flood when it rains heavy find a way to naturally drain the basement. Relinace on pumps can be risky.

Considering that the engineer will spend several hours by the time he is done with this initial consultation the fee is very reasonable.

There are some engineers who will charge much less but it will end up costing you more due to poor drawings and lack of support. Get recommendations from people he has worked with. If the Owner insists on going with somebody who charges a fraction of the price consider turning down the job

 

[MarcusGeiser]

Met with the Engineer last week. Really nice guy explained everything to me. Looks like we are not going to have to replace the whole roof. The 4 or so rafters will have new wood sistered in and the roof deck replaced. He is working on a drawing. Does this sound right? I will get pictures soon and post them. May be looking to start the project around the first of the month.

 

[Mr Softy]

the basement renovation is not repair, and you'll need a structural engineer for underpinning the footing.

You definately need an engineer if you are going to underpin the footings.

this.

the fire repair sounds straight forward, but anytime digging out a basement is mentioned, i worry about foundation.

we have had a number of foundation failures due to excessive excavation.

 

[jim baird]

If you are going to try to make basement space habitable there may be egress issues. Architect would be helpful for the whole thing.

 

[Mr Softy]

If you are going to try to make basement space habitable there may be egress issues. Architect would be helpful for the whole thing.

yes. IRC requires egress from habitable basements.

 

[incognito]

Should not need much for design professionals unless your state requires them. What is the overall condition of the foundation? You may want to just have a housemover support the house and then remove the foundation and footings and replace. Its done here all the time and have never had an engineer or architect involved. The roof should not be a big deal. Just de-construct the roof to a point that all the fire damaged is gone and replace with new framing.