Seeing you guys meet Matt Risinger and Home Renovision guy made my day. These are the few guys I follow on YT and it's cool to see the builder community come together.
You guys should check in with the French Drain Man here on RU-vid, he would probably have some advice on a drainage plan for the property, which will be crucial to not have ongoing water issues down the line. With so much clay and a seemingly high water table, the water won't percolate through the soil fast enough to effectively drain, so you'll require a yard drain to divert the water elsewhere, such as into the storm sewer. By doing this, you'll ensure you have a nice solid lot to enjoy for all the years to come, rather than a lot that is often swampy and a breeding ground for bugs and mosquitoes.
Where is any indication of high water table? They are on solid clay and there are street storm drains. It appears they had excessive rain which was contained by clay. If not for the hole they dug, the rainfall likely would have run off.
All 5 houses up hill from me now have water in their crawl space. I was lucky and put in a French drain a decade ago so the water was not getting to my foundation perimeter drain. It seems like it took 25 years of constant water for all the perimeter drains to clog. Mine is only dealing with water from storms that happen 3-4 times a year. So it is now only a backup for when my French drain gets overwhelmed.
I have been enjoying this father and son dynamic and learned a few things myself. I appreciate the willingness to say, "You know what? It doesn't make sense to keep sinking money when we can hire a pro and move dirt faster than us." That speaks of y'all characters.
Ugh, MS In construction engineering / ground modification. Spent time as a Geotechnical Engineer. I've seen seasoned operators have to walk away and take 5 in soils like you have. It just becomes frustrating and you start hemorrhaging cash. Good fill and a good operator can be a lifesaver (and a budget saver). You guys do great work, and you know when to call in reinforcements. I am the same, I want to do it all myself. But a wise person knows when to get help. Your channel is wonderful, educational with what you are good at and knowing when to call in others.
That was rental dozer- he had rented it for the day to do a one day job he thought. Justin is solid gold- he stuck to his contract and delivered the job, period stop. Hope he gets lots of love and seat time- he's worth what he charges. FR
Big respect to Justin the Bulldozer guy. Being a solo contractor you end up having to work at least twice as hard to make sure clients are happy, because you're not well known, which means you're always going to be working harder than everyone else for possibly less.
It made me happy to see so many other people I recognized from RU-vid. Jeff Thorman looked very happy. Soil guy is nice to let you use the pump even if you decided not to hire him. Love the shot of the dog looking out the window. LOL. Justin was a trooper. I'm glad to see progress. Hope it didn't rain again before they fill could be put in.
Respect for Brock!! Being videoed for hundreds of thousands of viewers and future customers... potentially millions of views.. That was a real gamble on his part! I would definitely give him a call if I lived in the area!
@@StudPack Hey guys, it looks like someone is using your name on telegram offering prizes. Please, check my comment on the water disaster video. I've got a warning email on my gmail account if you would like me to forward it to you. Take care and keep the working flowing!
I was knocking on my screen trying to point out that red switch to them, but nobody paid me any attention! I about fell off my stool when Jordan finally got the hint! FR
Justin is awesome! What a trooper. I'm sure he was re-thinking what he got himself into but he didn't back down from that challenge. I hope everyone shows him some love. That is one good and very knowledgeable man!
Wow. The amount of dirt that had to be removed was massive. That said, this place is very unlikely to have foundation problems like 80 percent of the homes in Houston.
Paul and Jordan, You made the right move in hiring Justin to move all that wet, soft soil that was making a mess of your yard. The foundation is the key to the entire structure, You can not scrimp or try to shortcut this phase. This step is crucial to a stable and solid building. I hope the fill dirt will make things a little less messy and possible raise your spirits a little. Good Luck, and I know the Stud Pack is going to do this the right way, or as I call it, "The Stud Pack Way".
100% getting in a pro was the smart thing to do. Being honest with your self about what skills you have and what jobs you can do effectively is going to save you a ton of money and stress in the long run. Keep at it guys... looking good.
Absolutely this! I love the Stud Pack, but you guys can't possibly do everything and do it well. Your skills will definitely pay off in the long run, but it's wise to know your limitations.
about 8 hours in watching the pro struggle had to be a good feeling. Not because its hard for him, but because you realize you were right in hiring this out. You guys were getting pretty comfortable on the machine, but there's no replacement for years of experience and the knowledge of what to look for and when to adjust based on ever changing conditions. Coming along nicely boys!
Time laspe is THE way to go with this type of work. The close -ups don’t do justice 😢 Long shots really show the amount of work these machines can do Love it! ❤
I absolutely love your channel. Don’t hesitate to post things that you think are mundane, I’d watch you guys install a fence post. I wish I was your neighbor I’d be at the fence all day.
Damn Jordan those camera shots of the dirt getting pushed were on point man, loving the series so far. Also I'm upset with youtube for not notifying me properly when this video was released. "18 Hours Ago" WTF IS THAT RU-vid. THE BELL IS CHECKED DANGIT. Also don't worry about the price if it's a place you plan on living in man. You only live once so let's make it right the first time. Love you guys love the content can't wait for the next video brother.
I genuinely love the transparency the stud pack family has the genuine run downs and struggles and decisions to cope with and trouble solve stressful situations. I'm also grateful for the content you provide I am 26 yo Male from Australia who's father passed away when i was 15 and I'm currently looking to buy my first house weather it be as a investment or it to be a home is undecided yet but i must admit i live vicariously through your videos as i know that if my old man was still around we most definitely would have tackled something like this as you both are as the father and son duo. please keep up the great content i wish you both all the best and cherish that relationship use have don't let the stress of the channel or the house get in the road of that. I am and always will be a loyal stud pack subscriber thank you for the amazing and most importantly informative content.
All I can say is welcome to Houston Soil....it sucks. Word of advice ..... the foundation costs in that part of texas are tough......Always and I mean ALWAYS do more than one bore hole. It pays to know . As you found out your excavation costs are totally out of line with projections based on what you thought. It also screws up your disposal plans. once the selct fill is in place I would strongly suggest getting rid of the soil at that point. that way it wont mess with your construction of the garage and demo of the old house. This is the rainy season and if you thought Louisiana was wet, Houston can be just as bad
About 10 minutes ago I was wondering if there’s a new video… And BAM! Here it is. 😂😂 Oh the joys of building! Unfortunately, you never what to expect until you dig the hole. Be happy you do find an unground spring, that will really mess up your day. Carry on, glad to see ya guys back at it.
Lake Stud Pack? More like a Swamp... That soil, if you can call it that, looked nasty. And that bulldozer was a beast! I think it was a good call to let someone do the earthworks for you... some big progress was made.
Yall are tackling real world challenges in real time, filming it, and sharing with us FOR FREE. Like what??? This has been nothing short of invaluable to us all. The fact that you aren't shying away or sugar coating these literal bumps in the road makes yall the real ones!
Jordan, please keep sharing the cost breakdowns! Would love to know how much the day of the dozer cost you. Then curious how much the fill was suppose to cost and what it cost you now. These are real life situations that happen to us every day in this industry that most youtuber's cover up and give viewers false expectations. Then when contractors show up, the homeowners believe what they saw on RU-vid was not holding back valuable information.
Nothing beats a good ole boy with some heavy equipment. Glad you found a decent resource for your project needs. That’s some Texas ingenuity right there.
The Stud Pack crew is now officially on their way, glad you found Justin, I feel his frustration but he did an amazing job and seems like a great guy. They say you get what you give and hoping doing that job gets him some consideration when anyone nearby needs work done. I look forward to your next video.
It definitely depends on what part of the state you are talking about. I live in the D/FW area and it's pretty dry here and there aren't these kind of issues. Down South, near Houston and the surrounding area it's a real mess.
Great lesson here some times it costs way more to do it yourself than to have someone help for the right price. And that earthwork guy earned his money, what a great video. Looking forward to seeing what comes next
Had to do a basement foundation once on a lot that seemed to be 99% loose coarse sand. We ended up digging a hole, filling it with a clay plug, and digging the basement out of that. Luckily drainage wasn’t a problem. :) The joys of living near the shore margins of ancient glacial lakebed… you go from 40 feet of dense impermeable clay, to endless sand in a few miles.
Man I am so glad you guys finally decided to sub that digging out. You seriously picked like the world’s worst site to learn how to dig a foundation on. Bet you’d like to be back in SoCal right about now lol
Hey Stud Pack I live a barrier island here at the New Jersey shore, the water table on this island is probably less than a foot. To build anything here on the ground surface is absolutely impossible. My home here sits on pilings that are driven into the ground almost 50 ft to bed rock . I have no idea if that is a practical application for you situation , but perhaps its worth looking into when you actually start the second phase construction .
I'm glad you hired it out. This was so satisfying to watch! Love how you got a small guy to do the work. They usually take great pride in their work, similar to you guys.
made the right decision here guys:) this is going to be epic! best of luck to you guys and be safe :D a little tip, put in some extra pipes from the garage to the house that you can use for more electrics, water, internet etc :)
You were 100% correct bringing in the contractor for this stage. There are times when no matter how much you can do yourself, it's much more cost-effective to pay an expert like Justin to help make everything happen correct and quick. Please keep the great videos coming.
We had a flooding problem our back yard. We installed multiple drains, including a 12” main drain with a large cast iron grate, a 6” diameter grate and triple 6” French drains that circle the house and run to the street in front. The back yard still floods when it rains but at least the water now has somewhere to go. You may want to think about adding underground drainage and French drains before you start on the house. If not, you may end up with a swamp. Plus, raising the yard’s elevation may cause drainage problems for your neighbors for which you will be responsible.
Wow! That's tons of work, literally! Every builders nightmare, running into conditions that are far more severe than originally expected. Good news is it looks like you guys have a handle on it. Good luck with the rest, we'll all be watching! Thanks for taking us along!
I can really relate to this video. My second house build was on clay , with a ton of swampy like features. I do all the work with my dad, learning from videos like yours. I had to deal with so much mud, water, clay, drainage issues and crap to get the foundation sitting properly. We ended up draining our water to a dug sump hole and built up the entire land with 2-3' of sand to give the land time to drain before building up water level again. I've got 3 more weeks to finish the build and I'm so happy to be done this one. Cheers!
Every time the dozer would look like it was getting stuck I'd have a heart attack for you guys!!! 😬 So glad you were able to get to solid ground....that other stuff is a mess! Good luck with the concrete pour. 👍
I’d highly recommend you guys get a silt fence and a swale drain set up lol. Raising the grade that much is going to cause issues for your neighbors. Also consider the long term maintenance on a house with that high of a water line. You’re basically building a lake house at this point. You’ll want a good thick continuous vapor barrier for under the slab
Love your work guys. I’m a diy guy and appreciate the honesty that it took to pay someone for their expertise. Who would have thought it would have gotten so deep. A diy job would have ended up short and then you would have needed to call this guy. Even though it’s a lot more than expected you save time and have confidence for a good foundation. Keep it up.
Oh man! What a bummer to learn that the soil analysis was taken from the “optimistic” end of the site 😅. I’m sure it took the wind out of everyone’s sails knowing that you had to get the hole dug down to solid ground even though it was way deeper than expected. After all, you had to be ready for that fill dirt being delivered the next morning. Justin showed up in a big way for you guys and saw this through! What a stud! If there were a Stud Pack challenge coin, this guy has earned one. Keep up the good work guys. I’ve been looking forward to this video all week.
I live in a house with a sinking foundation in one corner. I don't think people understand the importance of a solid foundation, you guys are doing a great job.
My uneducated guess was that the quicksand might be deeper than two feet, but that really caught me off guard. Kudos to everyone for sticking with it for a long day to make sure it's done right! wow!
As a retired old fart building his last house I found the IBS a great asset. We, my wife and I have been to (2) of these shows.... In my case I've had problems I'm my rural setting finding people who want to use the best techniques. In my case it was a Mitsubishi whole house split system. I finally made a deal with an installer... he knew he needed to move to this technology and eventually close his sheet metal shop... but he wanted me to pay for what I estimated to be easily twice the labor.... I had to convince him to look at some of the videos by Mitsubishi and Ductless Plus to get him off his chair... Anyway, congratulations on going and achieving your goals...
A small new development went in around the corner from me here in Denver. Watching the project, I’m guessing they replaced 4-5 feet of soil across the entire 3-4 acre site. Now I understand what they may have been up against. Great work on Lake Studpack!
We have the opposite problem here in Northeastern NM, 7,800 ft elev. It's so dry, (Even when it snows) we spit cotton. Our soil is so alkaline, we have a 2 ft chalk layer at 3 ft depth. Wells have to be dug 100 ft to get more than intermittent water supplies. And we're only three miles from a lake! And you're son is a good natured cad. The best kind.
Not sure why you'd haul off the top soil instead of using it to raise the grade for the entire property.. You're almost at water level so going higher would be beneficial.
They can't go so far above grade with regards to their neighbors fences. Probably some regulations regarding diverting water onto neighbor's properties as well, which raising the grade would do.
@@anonanon8252 there isn't that much dirt when spread equally across the entire proper to divert water to the neighbors as most is on ground and not on ground run off. The property also needs tile/drainage pipe installed on ground.
Seeing you guys with Jeff from Renovision, Matt Risinger, and the Perkins brothers builders was pretty darn cool. Glad you had fun. Thanks for the highlights!
would you guys consider getting a second, or third camera and just mounting it in a static location as well for shots while the machine and you are working. love the content either way.
See what the soils engineer says. You will need to proof roll the subgrade BEFORE any fill goes in, and then you'll need to compact the fill in 8 inch lifts, by someone who knows what they're doing. You will need to completely fill the excavated area, THEN dig your footers. Also, plan on getting rid of everything you dig up as it will take centuries to dry out. Many people are suggesting French drains, you will need to have a topographic survey to determine if that's even possible. From what I've seen so far, I don't think that's an option. Stormwater drains will be the way to go I think. I give you guys credit, there's going to be a lot of lessons learned on the Stud Pack plantation! ps...SILT FENCE will be your best friend...especially when the inspector stops by.
Hey guys, long time fan here. Just a thought, you may want too consider Helical Screw Piles for your house foundation. I've used on similar foundations and also in worse conditions-with great success. They are both cost-effective and go in quickly. Keep up the great content, appreciate it.
Oh my gosh! Let’s not talk about contractors, a lot of them never respond or they feel we are doing them a favor. Sometimes they show up and give you a quote and never follow through after, then you’re the one that needs to call them leaving messages to call back and they never do. It’s hard to find good loyal contractors...period P.S. The dog on the window was classic 😅
Wow! Joe Walsman, Matt Risinger, Perkins bros and Crew, Johnny Brooke, Jeff Thorman hanging out with the Studpack Crew. That is so cool. I enjoy watching all these guys. They're some of my favs with some of the best You-Tube channels with great content, and you guys definitely fit in well with them. I would love to see a collab sometime, that would be epic! Thanks for taking us along with you on your projects, can't wait for the next video!
I would be excited to see the main house get helical piles (helical piers) for the foundation solution. They appear to be well suited to challenging soil situations and maybe allow some cost/time savings. Seeing it compared to the other solutions your engineers will offer would be great to learn about in what appears to be a very challenging situation.
I strongly recommend that whoever needs to rent/purchase any heavy machinery....you rent/purchase one with Tractor Tread like that as opposed to tires...as you can see...it rarely gets stuck regardless of the terrain!!! And YES...I know the tractor treads will rip up the lawn and everything around it...but with a little seed, it all grows back!
with that soil I would go for "some" self-drilling piles. Here in the Netherlands we use them all the time since the soil here normally is worse than in the video. the idea is that you get the piles to the level of the compact soil and that you carry your foundation on that. Ask your local structural engineer about it.
Enjoyed the video. I am a general contractor who builds hospitals and found every bit of this entertaining. Glad to see you brought in a dozer. That mini ex didn’t stand a chance
You are absolutely, positively right about doing whatever needs to be done to get the foundation right. With foundations, an ounce of prevention is worth a ton of cure.
It's my experience, it seems like big holes in the Houston area just begs for rain. You continue doing great vids. I know you make great contacts at the conference, too. Looking forward to the continued saga.
I don't know guys, It looks like a mess. Soil sample in only one spot, all that mud just piled up the ground doesn't look level. I didn't see the guy put down any steaks to gauge or mark level off of. I cant wait to see the reaction of the crew that is supposed to put the fill in and roll it flat and compact it stable. That was a pretty small dozier as well.
You won't regret the proper foundation. You are showing your neighbors the right way to build in that space. Your home will stand the test of time. Good job.
This is already the best build series. Awesome to see your positive attitudes and honesty with the challenges. Keep up the work, we're rooting for you!
