Concrete footings in Santa Paula CA - a base sized to what your soil can hold
Planning an addition, a garage or a wall and not sure what it should stand on? We dig, form and pour footings to suit your ground.
What do concrete footings do, and what will yours need?
Concrete footings are the wider band of concrete under a foundation wall or post that reaches past its sides and spreads the weight out over the soil, and at Santa Paula Concrete we dig, form and pour them for homes and small buildings in Santa Paula, CA.
Footings usually come up when you're planning a room addition, a garage, a block wall or a covered porch, and the plans call for something solid underneath. The questions are nearly always the same: what kind, how big and who pours it.
The price mostly comes down to how many feet of footing you need, how wide and deep your soil makes them, and how easy the site is to dig and reach. The schedule turns on whether a soil report, plans or a permit have to come first, and your estimate gives you the figure for your own job.
- Footings for room additions, garages, block walls, porches and the posts or columns under a deck.
- For homeowners, builders and small businesses, from a short run under a garden wall to a full foundation.
- Digging, forms, steel reinforcing and the pour, with the site left clean for whoever builds on top.
What happens when you call about footings in Santa Paula?
Here's how a footing job runs with us, from your first call to the walk-through at the end. I handle the estimate myself, and our crew does the digging, forms and pour.
Call or send the form
Call (805) 873-8640, use the form or email sales@santapaulaconcrete.com, and we'll set a time for me to come out. It helps to have the address, the kind of project and a rough length of footing in feet ready, since footings are usually priced by the foot.
I walk the site with you
I come out myself and ask a lot of questions about what's under and around the job, like the soil, any soil report or plans, and where the water runs. Then I write up the estimate line by line, so you can see what's in the price before you decide.
Our crew digs, forms and pours
Once you say go, our crew handles the prep, forms and pour, and I check in on the work as it goes. If the ground surprises us once it's open, like soft soil where we expected firm, I'll talk it through with you before we carry on.
We walk the finished footings
I walk the finished job with you before the framer or mason starts on top. We'll also tell you how long to let it cure, the wait while the concrete gains strength, before it takes a load.
Trenches, forms and fresh concrete from footing and foundation work
These photos show the kind of digging, forming and pouring that goes into footings and other foundation work. They're examples of the trade, so ask me at the estimate what your job will look like.
Decorative stamped concrete walkway beneath a covered porch with stone columns and garden beds.
Aerial view of a curved swimming pool and spa surrounded by a pale concrete pool deck and lounge chairs.
Curved concrete sidewalk runs beside a stone-faced house, with a bench, pebble bed, and potted plant.
Stamped concrete patio with gray stone-pattern surface, low masonry walls, and a circular fire pit beside a house.
A curved concrete pool deck surrounds a blue swimming pool and attached spa, beside covered outdoor seating areas.
Stamped concrete patio with a block retaining wall, outdoor chairs, and a lakeside lawn.
Get a free on-site estimate for your footings
Send the form or call (805) 873-8640, and we'll reply within one business day to set a time for me to come out. The estimate is free, done on site and carries no obligation.
(805) 873-8640Questions Santa Paula homeowners ask about footings
These are the questions I hear most about footings, from what they cost to whether you can pour them yourself. If yours isn't here, ask me at the estimate and I'll walk you through it.
How much do concrete footings cost per foot?
Installed residential strip footings across the US usually cost about $5 to $18 per linear foot, covering the concrete, labor, trench digging, forms and any rebar. That's the national picture, not our price, so use it as a rough guide while you plan.
Can a footing be poured as part of a concrete slab?
Yes, that's called a thickened slab, a footing built as one piece with the floor slab instead of poured separately underneath it. It usually makes sense when a new floor and its footing are going in at the same time, and at the estimate we'll look at whether it fits your plans.
Can I pour my own footings in California?
Yes, on your own main home, as long as the work comes before any sale, you've lived there for the 12 months before it's finished, and you haven't used that owner exemption on more than two structures in any three-year period. If you'd rather hire it out, the state's C-8 concrete classification covers contractors who form, pour and finish concrete, and the state licensing board suggests asking to see the contractor's pocket license. We're fully licensed and insured, and we're glad to show you.
Where do I apply for a building permit in Santa Paula?
You apply through the city's Building & Safety Division, which takes the building permit and plan review application. The division also posts a list of projects that need a permit and projects that are exempt.
How do I find out if my soil can hold a new footing?
A soil test before work starts shows how much weight your ground can carry, and weaker soil needs wider footings, which cost more. You can also type your address into the state's EQ Zapp map to see if the lot sits in a mapped earthquake zone for fault rupture, landslides or liquefaction, when soil briefly turns to something like quicksand. The state says those zones trigger geologic and engineering studies that can catch ground problems before construction begins.
What causes concrete footings to crack or settle?
Usually it's the ground moving under them, from a footing too narrow for weak soil, one sitting on loose fill, or clay that swells when it's wet and shrinks when it dries. The county's soil map for the southern half of Ventura County puts the most expansive clay generally in low-lying areas, and water running toward a footing makes any of it worse. If yours has already dropped, we'd look at raising it rather than pouring over the problem.