Concrete footings in South Gate CA - firm ground under everything you build
Planning a room addition, a block wall or a patio cover? We dig footings to firm ground so what you build on them stays put.
Do I need a concrete footing, and what goes into one?
A concrete footing is the wide base at the bottom of a foundation. It spreads the weight of a wall, column or post over enough soil so it doesn't sink. In South Gate we dig and pour footings for additions, garages, block walls and patio covers, so whatever you build has firm ground under it.
Most people who call about footings are adding a room, putting up a block wall or a concrete retaining wall, or setting posts for a patio cover, and the plans call for footings. The price mostly turns on how big the footings are, how far down we have to dig to hit firm ground, how much concrete and steel goes in, and whether we can get a machine back there or have to dig by hand. The schedule depends more on the permit and the inspection before the pour than on our crew. I'll give you a written figure for your site once I've seen it.
What our concrete footing work includes
Footings carry everything above them, and once the wall goes up nobody sees them again, so that's where I put my attention. Our crew digs down to firm ground, not just to a mark on a tape, because soft dirt or loose fill at the bottom keeps settling after the job is done. We keep the trench clean and dry, since whatever mud or crumbs are left at the bottom is what the concrete ends up sitting on. We set the rebar, the steel bars that hold the concrete together if the ground shifts, build forms where the top sits above the dirt, and get the dig checked before any concrete shows up. Then we pour, level the top so the wall or posts sit true, and haul off the extra dirt. If the budget is tight, cut somewhere you can see and fix later, not in the dig, because a nice finish won't help a wall sitting on a footing that sank.
Sometimes the footing you need isn't a new one. If an old footing has already settled and you're seeing cracks above it, foundation raising is the job to look at, and I'll tell you which one fits when I'm out there. When a new footing has to go through an existing patio or driveway, we use concrete cutting to saw a clean opening, so the slab around it stays in one piece instead of getting busted up.
Footings, permits and quake zones in South Gate
In South Gate, building permits come from the city's Building and Safety Division. The city typically requires one for any home improvement, alteration or new construction, including most digging. Footings almost always mean digging, so plan on a permit, though that office has the final word for your job. When the job calls for one, we pull it with the city or county office for your address and work through the inspections with them.
Earthquake ground can also change a footing job here. State maps mark areas where liquefaction may occur, which is wet, loose ground turning soft in a strong quake, and building inside a mapped hazard zone may mean you're asked to study and deal with that hazard as part of the permit. Whether that applies depends on your address, and you can type it into the state's EQ Zapp map to see. If your lot is in a zone, I'd rather know before I size the job. Most of what we dig around here is behind older houses on narrow lots with tight side yards, so a fair amount of the trench comes out by hand, and we see the same setup on jobs in Huntington Park and Cudahy.
How a footing job works
Call or send the form
Call (213) 643-0035 or send the form with your address and what the footing will carry, whether that's a wall, an addition or a few posts. That tells me what to look for before I come out.
I look at the site
I come out myself and look at the ground, the drainage and what's going to sit on the footing. You get a written estimate for your site, so you know the price before anything gets dug.
We handle permit and digging
If the job needs a permit we take care of it, and the inspection schedule sets when we can pour. Our own crew does the digging, forming and steel, and I'm usually on site with them.
Pour, finish and walk through
We pour and finish the footings and clean up, and then I walk the job with you. You get to see what's going under your wall before it's covered up for good.
Free on-site estimate for footings, walls and additions in South Gate
Send the form and we'll get back to you within one business day to set a time. I come out myself, look at the ground and what the footing has to carry, and write you a free estimate. There's no obligation to go ahead.
Questions before you book concrete footings
How much do concrete footings cost in South Gate?
Installed concrete footings across the US usually run about $4 to $20 per linear foot, and that's a national figure, not a South Gate price. Concrete, labor and digging drive it, and a wider, deeper footing on weak soil can cost several times what a shallow one does. I'll give you a figure for your job once I've seen the site.
How deep and wide does a concrete footing need to be?
No single size fits every job, because it depends on what the footing carries and the ground under it. Width, thickness, depth and steel are set by the load, how much weight the soil can hold, the earthquake design for the site and the building code. The footing itself can be a continuous strip under a wall, a single pad under a post, a combined pad or a stepped footing on a slope.
What causes a footing to settle and crack the walls above it?
Usually it's a footing that was too small or poorly built for the load and the soil. That can lead to too much settling, cracks in the walls and slabs above and, in bad cases, real structural damage. I'll also tell you up front that concrete can show a small crack somewhere, and that's not the same problem.
How do I know my footings were dug right before the pour?
The trench should be measured and any required building or soil inspection done before concrete goes in, so ask your contractor who sets up that check and when. On our jobs the dig gets checked before we pour. If a trench gets dug too deep or the bottom goes soft, the fix is an approved correction, not loose dirt shoveled back in.
Can I pull my own permit for footings in South Gate?
Usually yes, if you live in the house and the property has two units or less, because the city asks owners doing their own work for ID showing they live there. If a company or an LLC owns the property, the city says you need a licensed contractor.
Does a contractor need a California license to pour footings?
Yes, in most cases. California requires a Contractors State License Board license to build or alter a structure whenever the project needs a building permit, and also whenever labor and materials together come to $1,000 or more. Footings usually hit one or both, so ask to see the license before anyone digs.
Why South Gate homeowners call Advanced South Gate Concrete for footings
I write every estimate myself
I come out to look at your ground and write the estimate, and I'm usually on site while our crew digs, forms and pours. The person who sized the job is the one watching the trench.
In business since 2013
That's 13 years of digging and pouring, and a good part of it went to fixing other people's work. Most of those problems started under the concrete, which is why the dig gets more of my attention than the top.
Fully licensed and insured
Ask to see it when I come out for the estimate. With an open trench in your yard, you want to know whose crew is responsible for it.
Trench checked before concrete
South Gate inspects new construction, alterations and remodels to make sure the work meets the current California building codes. We plan our work so the trench gets checked while it's still open, because nobody can inspect a footing once it's buried.
With footings, the part that matters is the part you'll never see again, so have someone look at your ground before you settle on a price. Request an estimate or call (213) 643-0035.
Other work that comes up with footings
Foundation raising
When an older footing has already sunk and doors stick or walls crack, lifting the existing foundation back up usually makes more sense than pouring new.
Concrete cutting
A new footing often lands under an existing patio or driveway, and a saw cut opens just the strip we need while the rest stays whole.
Book a site visit for footings, walls and additions
Have your address and a short note on what the footing will carry ready when you call (213) 643-0035, so I can come out with the right questions.
