Lally or lolly Columns
I own a 3 family 1890 frame house. The wooden columns in the basement some touch the supporting beam and some of them don’t. I think we have 3-4. I wanted to install new lolly or lally columns for proper support. Can I just place a new metal column next to the old wooden posts?…
I own a 3 family 1890 frame house. The wooden columns in the basement some touch the supporting beam and some of them don’t. I think we have 3-4. I wanted to install new lolly or lally columns for proper support. Can I just place a new metal column next to the old wooden posts? Do I need to enclose them in concrete? Any other issues that I need to be concerned about?
We supplemented our brick columns with new steel columns and it worked well. We had the work done by a contractor and designed by an architect/engineer. We also decided to excavate the basement to create more headroom and pour a concrete floor.
One concern about the wood columns – they provide a highway for termites into your house if they are in contact with a dirt floor. Sometime in the past a prior owner installed wood columns to supplement the brick ones – not a good idea. Thats why we had to pour concrete (after spending lots on termite treatment.
The support four columns in my home in Beverley Square West (Victorian Flatbush) are also supported by brick beams that may be original to the house which was built in 1903. They are still supporting the beams as they all make contact but I’d like to have them changed to the columns for aesthetic reasons. My husband is extremely handy and has become even more so since we’ve been in this house but is this something that could be or should be done as a do-it yourself project? Any suggestions for contractors if not.
The concrete goes inside the steeel tube.
The column must be placed on its own concrete footing separate from the floor. Its OK to pour a concrete floor after putting in your column support, but you can’t build a support on top of an existing floor slab- you have to break out a hole to put in a support.
The support pad is a structural element to the house and requires a city inspector to sign off on it.
You can use steel columns next to the wooden ones, but you should pour yourself a little footing for each of the new lally columns. And just for kicks: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lally_column