Concrete Footings in Chesterfield MO - A Solid Base for the Posts and Walls Above
Building a deck or addition, or watching an old post sink? We dig to the right depth and pour footings that carry the load.
What do concrete footings do, and when do you need them?
Concrete footings are the concrete a deck post, column or wall sits on, carrying the weight of the structure above and passing it down into the soil, and at Caliber Chesterfield Concrete Company we dig and pour them for homeowners and builders in Chesterfield, MO.
Most people call because a deck, porch or addition is about to go up, or because an old post has sunk and they're wondering whether new footings or foundation raising is the fix. The price moves with how many footings you need, how deep they go and how hard the site is to work, and the schedule mostly waits on permit approvals and a stretch of weather fit for a pour. Your written estimate puts your own number on it.
How do you know your deck or porch needs new footings?
Footings sit out of sight, so you usually find out about them from what's above. These are the things that tell me a post, porch or wall needs new support or a proper footing to start with.
A deck post sitting on a block or bare dirt usually means there was never a real footing under it.
A deck that bounces, leans or pulls away from the house often has footings that settled or sit too shallow.
Posts that rise a little each spring are usually too shallow, so freezing ground pushes them up.
Cracked or tilting concrete around the base of a post usually means the support underneath has moved under load.
A porch roof or beam that sags between posts can point to one footing sinking faster than the rest.
Plans for a deck, addition, garage or pergola mean footings come first, before anything else goes up.
If a post has started leaning or the deck moves when you walk across it, call before anyone puts more weight on it.
What happens after you call about footings in Chesterfield?
Here's how a footing job runs with us, from the first look to the walk-through. Most of the waiting happens before the pour, while the permit and the weather line up.
I come out to look
After you call or send the form, I come out myself, look at where the footings go and ask what they'll be holding up. How you'll use the deck, porch or addition tells me a lot about what has to go under it.
You get a written estimate
It comes in writing with what's in the price and what isn't, so you can see where the money goes. If I think the job isn't worth doing the way you pictured it, I'll tell you then.
We line up permits and weather
Once you say go, we line up the permit steps for your address. Then we pick a pour date the weather agrees with.
We dig, pour and walk it
A small crew does the digging, forming and pouring with me working alongside, so the person who wrote your estimate is on the job. Afterward we walk the finished work with you and go over how to care for it that first season.
Get a written footing estimate for your project
Send the form with your project and where the footings go, and we'll reply within one business day to set a visit. The on-site estimate is free, comes in writing and carries no obligation.
- Call
- (636) 237-0079
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 8 AM–11 PM, Sat–Sun: 7 AM–11 PM
Footing types, rebar and the bottom of the hole
Footings come as isolated pads, continuous strips, trenches, footings built into a slab, and piers or pilings, and the project decides which one fits. A pad sits alone under one post or column, while a thickened slab builds the footing into the floor slab. If a footing has to land inside an existing patio or walk, we use concrete cutting to open a neat hole instead of breaking out a big section.
Some footings are plain concrete and some carry rebar, steel bars set inside that help the concrete hold together under load. The residential concrete code covers both, and which one your job gets follows the plans and what the footing has to hold up. When steel is called for, it goes in before the pour, tied and lifted off the dirt so concrete gets all the way around it.
The part I won't skimp on is the bottom of the hole. A footing belongs on firm, untouched soil, not loose dirt that fell back in while we dug, because loose dirt packs down and takes the post with it. Nobody admires the bottom of a footing hole, which is why it's the first thing cut when a budget gets tight. I'd rather tell you a job isn't worth doing than pour one on mush.
Concrete footing questions we hear in Chesterfield
How much do concrete footings cost in Chesterfield, MO?
Across the US, concrete footings usually cost about $5 to $18 per linear foot, and that's the going national range, not a quote from us. Where your job falls in it comes down to the size, depth and site points above. Your written estimate puts a real number on it.
Who issues building permits in Chesterfield, MO?
The City of Chesterfield's Building Inspections & Permits office issues building permits for projects in the city. A permit is the city's check that a project is structurally sound and meets its building and zoning codes. We're fully licensed and insured, and for addresses in the cities around Chesterfield in St. Louis County and St. Charles County, we find out which offices yours answers to and handle the paperwork with you.
How do I find out how deep footings need to go in Chesterfield?
Ask the local building office, because for decks the American Wood Council's deck guide says footings bear on undisturbed soil at least 12 inches below the undisturbed ground surface or below the frost line, whichever is deeper. That guide sends builders to the local building authority for the frost line. So we get the depth for your address from that office instead of guessing.
How close to the house can a deck footing be?
Closer than 5 feet to your house's foundation wall, the same deck guide says a deck footing has to bear at the same level as the house's own footing. With a basement, that can mean a deep hole, so the guide recommends a caisson, a round, column-shaped footing that cuts down the digging along the basement wall.
Can concrete footings be poured in winter?
Yes, with planning, because the concrete industry's cold-weather guide treats it as cold-weather work once the air falls, or is expected to fall, below 40°F while the fresh concrete is being protected. One concrete supplier's guide says most mixes kept at 50°F gain enough strength to take a single freeze within 48 hours. In cold months we clear snow and ice out of the holes and forms first and have a plan to keep the concrete warm.
How do I keep new footings away from septic and utility lines?
The deck guide says to contact your local utilities by calling 811 before digging, and to keep footings off septic systems, leach fields, utility lines and enclosed meters. We find all of those before anyone digs. It saves time if you tell us where your septic and meters are when you first call.
Other concrete work that often goes with footings
Foundation raising
If part of your house or a slab has already settled, raising it back toward level may come before new footings, and we'll tell you which makes sense.
Concrete cutting
If an old slab or footing sits in the way of new work, sawing it out in clean pieces beats breaking it up and leaves less mess.
Tell us where your footings go
We're open seven days a week until 11 PM, so call (636) 237-0079 or send the form with your project, where the footings go and where your septic, lines and meters sit.
Mon–Fri: 8 AM–11 PM, Sat–Sun: 7 AM–11 PM