Second floor addition possible with 4ft footings?

This is the kind of question you hire a structural engineer to tell you the answer to. Don't rely on a contractor and their "experience" but someone who actually can put a stamp on it the city might accept.

RCLapCar wrote: ↑ This is the kind of question you hire a structural engineer to tell you the answer to. Don't rely on a contractor and their "experience" but someone who actually can put a stamp on it the city might accept.

This

Ya need a structural engineer to consult & design
Only then will you know WHAT is possible
And WHAT isn’t in regards to what is currently existing

Lol … most things are possible on ones wish list … if you have deep enough pockets to do a massive structural beef up … or a full demolition and start over

tevion wrote: ↑ I would like to put a second floor on a single-storey addition (16 x 25 ft) that has 4ft cinder bloc footings. Some contractors seem to think that this is impossible in principle, others suggest that it is possible under certain circumstances, but I don't think I fully understand what circumstances would need to be in place. I would be grateful if anyone could throw light on this.

Since you don’t even give a location to start…. It depends on things like soil conditions, frost levels, snow loads (I imagine), how the footings were made (the cinder blocks typically are on a poured concrete footing), and any number of things that a structural engineer has to take into account when doing up the drawings that will need to be approved before a permit is issued.

So get an engineer involved early.

C

I’m assuming you mean 4ft cinder block foundation wall?

The wall is certainly able to hold the load of a second floor, these types of additions are done all the time.

However the footings will need to be inspected to ensure it’s adequate for the additional load. If they are not, you’d have to underpin it to make new footings.

The wall may support it but the footings might not.