Concrete footings in Duarte CA - a solid base under what you're building
Building a wall, deck or addition and not sure what goes under it? We dig, form and pour footings, with inspections built into the schedule.
- Service
- Concrete footings
- Call
- (626) 416-2143
How do you know you need footings, or new ones?
Posts that lean or sink
A deck post or patio cover post that has tipped or dropped usually sits on loose fill, or on no real footing at all. The longer it goes, the harder it pulls on the beam and everything bolted to it.
Cracks stepping up a wall
Cracks that climb a block wall in a stair-step line usually mean the ground under its footing has moved. Left alone, the wall starts to lean, and a leaning wall gets torn out, not patched.
Plans that call for footings
If you're adding a room, a patio cover or a garden wall, the drawings show footings before anything you'll actually look at. They get built first, so a late start on them pushes back every trade waiting behind them.
What does a concrete footing job in Duarte involve?
A concrete footing is the buried band or pad of concrete that spreads the weight of a wall, a post or the edge of a slab into the ground, and a footing job in Duarte covers digging it out, building the forms, setting the steel and pouring the concrete. Once it's done, it disappears under dirt, which is exactly how it should be.
Most people who call me already have a project in mind, like a room addition, a patio cover or a block wall, and the footings are the first thing between them and it. The price moves mostly with how much footing the plans call for, how easy the spot is to dig and haul dirt out of, and whether old concrete has to come out first. The schedule depends less on us than on the paperwork, because the permit review and the inspection visits set the pace, so the estimate is where you get your own number.
Details to note before an estimate
- What the footings will hold up
- Any plans or drawings you already have
- Rough length and layout of the run
- Old concrete or roots in the way
How we build concrete footings
I start by asking what the footings will hold up and going over any plans you have, because a footing under a fence post and one under a bedroom wall are different jobs. Then our crew lays out the lines, digs the trenches or holes and cleans the loose dirt out of the bottom, so the concrete bears on firm ground instead of whatever crumbled in. We build the forms and set the rebar, the steel that keeps concrete from pulling apart, and I work the inspection visits into the schedule so nobody is standing around waiting. After the pour we let it cure, the slow stretch where it gains strength, before the forms come off and the dirt goes back in. If the budget gets tight, I'd rather you cut something you can see and fix later than the prep at the bottom of the trench, because once that's buried the only fix is a jackhammer.
Footings aren't always the whole answer. If the trouble is a house that has already settled, with sloping floors or doors that won't close, foundation raising may do more for you than new concrete. When a new footing has to go through an existing driveway, garage floor or patio, we use concrete cutting to open a clean section so the rest of the slab stays in one piece.
Work that often goes with footings
Foundation raising
When cracks keep growing across walls and floors inside the house, lifting and resupporting what's already there can make more sense than pouring new.
Concrete cutting
Saw cuts open old slabs and walkways in straight lines for new footings, drains or repairs, without cracking the concrete you're keeping.
What happens after you call about footings in Duarte?
Call or send a message
Call (626) 416-2143 or use the form with your address and what you're building. I still answer the phone myself, which surprises people more than it should.
I come out and look
I walk the spot where the footings go, look over your plans and ask a lot of questions. You get a written estimate that breaks out the digging, forms, steel, concrete and haul-off, so you can see where the money goes.
Sort out the permit first
Before anything is scheduled, we find out which office handles your address and tell you who is taking care of each piece. In Duarte, plans go in person to the Community Development Department counter because the city takes none online or by email, and a first plan check usually takes one or two weeks, so that wait comes before any digging.
Dig, pour and walk through
Our crew does the prep, forms and pour while I'm on site checking the work, and the city's inspectors check the major phases against the approved plans, with a final inspection that closes the job out. Once that's done, I walk the finished work with you.
What people ask about concrete footings
Do I need a permit for concrete footings in Duarte?
Yes, for footings that are part of a building or structure, because the City of Duarte requires a building permit to build, alter, repair or demolish any building or structure, or any part of one. A garden wall that doesn't hold back soil is handled a little differently, since the city's Planning Division has to approve its height and location.
How much do concrete footings cost?
A residential strip footing, the continuous kind that runs under a wall, usually costs about $5 to $19 per linear foot installed across the US, counting concrete, labor, digging and forms. That's a national range, not a Duarte price, so your own number comes from the estimate once I've seen the site and the plans.
Can a homeowner or an unlicensed worker build footings in California?
A homeowner can get a Duarte permit for their principal residence by meeting the owner-builder conditions, but an unlicensed worker can't take on permitted footing work, even for under $1,000. California drops that small-job exception once the work needs any permit or the person hires help, and in Duarte the permit otherwise goes to a General Building contractor with a Class B license. We're fully licensed and insured, so a low quote from someone without a license is worth a second look.
What causes concrete footings to crack or sink?
Usually it's the ground, not the concrete, either loose fill that was never packed or water running toward the footing and softening the dirt underneath. Concrete still cracks a little, because that's what concrete does, but a footing on firm, well-drained ground with steel in it holds its shape far better than one without.
What kinds of concrete footings are there?
The common ones are wall footings under walls, isolated footings under single posts or columns, and thickened slab footings, where part of a slab is thickened to carry a load. Which one your project needs comes from what it's holding up and from your plans.
How do I know if my Duarte address is under the city or the county?
Some homes with a Duarte mailing address actually fall under Los Angeles County, generally the ones west of Mountain Avenue and south of Duarte Road. If that's you, call the L.A. County Department of Building and Safety at 626-574-0941 instead of the city. We work on both sides of that line, in Duarte and the cities around it.
Get a free on-site estimate for your footings
Send your address, what the footings will hold up and any plans you have, and we'll reply within one business day. I come out, look at the site and write up a free estimate, and there's no obligation to go ahead. Backed by our satisfaction guarantee.
Explore our services and areas
Services
- Concrete driveway building
- Concrete patio construction
- Stamped concrete services
- Concrete sidewalk building
- Garage floor concrete
- Decorative concrete
- Concrete retaining walls
- Concrete floor installation
- Concrete pool decks
- Concrete steps construction
- Slab foundation building
- Foundation installation
- Concrete parking lot building
- Foundation raising
- Concrete cutting
Tell us what your footings will hold
Plan check comes before any digging, so getting your address and plans to us early is what moves the start date.