Foundation installation in Solon OH - the right type with every cost listed
Building a new house or an addition and unsure whether to go slab, crawl space or basement? We'll show what each adds to the bill.
Which foundation should my new house sit on?
Foundation installation in Solon means building the slab, crawl space or basement your house sits on. That one choice decides how much room you get below the floor and most of what the job costs.
Most people who call us are building a new house or an addition, and they have a drawing, a lot and three foundation types to choose from. The price mostly moves with that choice, then with how deep we dig, what water does on your lot and how much drainage and waterproofing the plan needs. The schedule turns on the city's permit review, the weather and whether the city asks for a soil test first. I come out, measure and give you a written estimate that lists what's included, so you see your own number before you commit to a type. If you already know you want a slab, our slab foundation building page goes into that one in more detail.
How we handle foundation installation
I start by walking the lot with you and going over what a slab, a crawl space or a basement each adds to the bill, because that choice changes the whole job. My written bid lists the digging, drainage, backfill and the rest, so you can hold it against other bids line for line. Once you've picked, our crew lays out the house and digs to the depth the plans and the city call for. Then we pack the subgrade, which is the soil the footings sit on, and form and pour the footings with rebar, the steel that holds the concrete together when the ground moves. After that come the walls or the slab and drainage around the outside. Backfill goes in once the concrete has cured enough to take the push of the dirt. The dig, the base and the drainage are buried before anyone sees the house, so they're the first thing a low bid trims. They're the last place I'll cut, because nobody can fix a foundation's base once the house is standing on it.
A foundation stands on its footings, so if you're adding a garage, a porch or a room that needs its own support, our concrete footings work covers that job by itself. If you're putting up a commercial building, we can come back after it's up and pour the concrete parking lot around it, on a base we prepare the same careful way.
Slab on grade
A slab suits a one-story plan where the furnace, water heater and pipes can sit above the floor, because nothing is left to reach underneath. It's the shortest dig of the three, which keeps the job simple.
Crawl space
A crawl space suits you if you want a plumber or electrician to reach the pipes and wiring under the floor later without opening a finished room. It lifts the house off the ground and keeps the dig shallower than a basement.
Full basement
A basement suits you if you want storage, a workshop or finished living space under the house and you're ready to budget for it. The deep dig and the work to keep it dry drive the cost up, so I go over each part before you decide.
What foundation installation in Solon involves
The Solon Building Department issues most building permits in the city, and each one needs an application, construction drawings and a site plan. When your job needs a permit, we file it and schedule the inspections, and the inspections get called in the way your permit lists them. Before the city issues a permit, it wants every contractor and sub on the job listed and registered with it, and a contractor's registration is renewed every year and has to show liability insurance that names the City of Solon as an additional insured. That makes it fair to ask any bidder who will actually be on your site. Rules differ from one city to the next, so we check with that building department before we start instead of guessing.
Winters here freeze the ground, so the state's foundation rule decides how footings are protected from frost, and the depth is something we confirm with the building department before we dig. We plan around the same freeze and the same wet spring ground on jobs in Twinsburg and Aurora, which is why we sort out drainage before we talk about anything else.
Foundation and footing work
Why call us for a foundation
I price every job myself
I do the estimates myself, so the person who walks your lot is the person who wrote the number. You won't get a salesperson's promise that the crew has to sort out later.
Our crew, run by me or our foreman
Our own crew does the forming, pouring and finishing, with me or our foreman running the job. Someone who knows your bid is on site when the footings go in.
Building in Solon since 2013
I started this business in Solon in 2013, and 13 years of Ohio winters show what frost does to footings that weren't protected from it. We plan for the freeze from the first day of the dig.
Licensed, insured and nothing left off
We're licensed and insured. Satisfaction guaranteed on every job, and I'd rather lose a bid than leave the dig or the backfill off it to win.
Get your foundation priced in writing before you pick a type, because once it's poured it's hard to change. Request an estimate or call (440) 560-8533.
(440) 560-8533Get a written foundation estimate for your lot
We reply within one business day. Then I come out, measure and give you a free written estimate that lists what's included, with no obligation. Have your address, the foundation type you're leaning toward and any drawings or site plan handy.
Foundation questions we hear in Solon
Which foundation type costs the least and goes in the fastest?
A slab is normally the cheapest and fastest foundation to build, and a crawl space sits in the middle on price while still giving you access underneath. A basement gives you the most space, but the excavation, waterproofing, drainage, insulation and radon protection all add to the bill, so plan your budget for each of them. If you're on the fence, I can price more than one type for your lot.
Do garage or porch foundations in Ohio need footings below the frost line?
Yes. Under Ohio's foundation rule, footings can stay above the frost line only when insulation protects them, and that option isn't allowed for unheated spaces like garages, porches and carports, so their footings go below it. The depth is a question for the Solon Building Department, and we confirm it with them before we dig.
How long does Solon take to review a building permit?
Solon's permit review generally takes 7 to 10 business days, depending on the project. Build that wait into your planned start date, because we can't break ground until the permit is issued.
How do I know if my lot in Solon needs a soil test?
The city's building official decides, and can require a soil test where questionable soil is likely, done by an approved agency using an approved method. Leave some room in your schedule and budget in case the official asks for one.
How do I compare foundation bids from different contractors?
One foundation guide advises asking every bidder to include excavation, reinforcement, drainage, insulation, vapor control, permits and backfill, so each price covers the same work. A bid that leaves out the dig or the backfill usually adds it back later, so ask before you sign.
Do I need a site plan for a home addition foundation in Solon?
Yes. Solon wants a site plan for every residential addition, showing where the addition goes and how far it sits from your property lines and the buildings around it. Get it together early, because the permit can't move forward without it.
Plan your foundation and footings with Bedrock Solon Concrete
Call (440) 560-8533 before your drawings are final, while switching foundation types is still easy to do.
