rmayo

I agree with Scott, the decision to use push piers versus helical is a matter of economics. If bedrock is fairly shallow push piers are typically used, deeper soils require helical piers. Be skeptical if the engineer that designed them works for the foundation company or was referred by the company. Most of these foundations companies install way more piers than needed, remember the more they use the more they make. Most walkout basements are partially supported on fill dirt that was poorly compacted causing the back half to settle. So only the back half would typically need piers. If they want to pier the entire perimeter of the foundation, get a second opinion from an independent engineer. Around here those piers are about $1000 each, of if the engineer reduced the number of required piers by one you saved money. Also the typical spacing between piers is about 6 to 8 feet.

Robert Look at these web sites: Site #1 Site #2

Try this definition: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foundation_(engineering)

(see diagram) Cut the flashing long, cut at the solid red lines and bend at the dashed line. Use silicone where they overlap at the back. Click to Enlarge 27.88 KB

Chad You risking your life like that for a few hundred dollars reminds me when I went elk hunting in Colorado 10 years ago. I went to pay for my tag and the price was around $500.25. I ask the guy what the 25 cents was for and he said it was for search & rescue. He said if you get lost in the mountains the search & rescue team would use the 25 cents to call my wife and tell her I wasn't coming home. The situation was different but the results would have been the same, if you fell off that roof you probably wouldn't be going home. I use binoculars on roofs that steep and clarify in my report the roof was too steep to safely walk and was view from the ground with binoculars.

Neal Dry snow will weigh as little as 3 lbs/cu ft and wet saturated snow can weigh about 21 lbs/cu ft. Depending where you live building codes prescribe the minimum design snow load. In New Jersey the design snow load is about 20 lbs/cu ft so a new house built to code will be at its upper design load with 12" of saturated snow. If its an older house built before codes, without codes or just poor construction roof collapse is highly likely. Atlanta is in a 5 lb/cu ft snow load zone so if they get that freak 12" wet snow they will be 4 times over the design load. Typically roof failure due to snow loads starts at the weakest link. That may be a bad rafter with a knot, or a bad joint connection, over spanned rafter,etc. Once one rafter or truss fails then its load is transfered to the adjacent rafters or trusses and then a chain reaction of failure begins.