Foundation installation in Simi Valley CA - a house that holds its shape on your lot
Planning a house or addition on a flat or sloped lot? We match the foundation to your ground so the frame above stays square.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free quotes on site.
- Replies within 1 business day.
Should your Simi Valley house sit on a slab or a raised foundation?
Foundation installation means building the base your house rests on, either a slab poured on the ground or a raised foundation over a crawlspace. In Simi Valley, we pick between the two based on your lot's slope, its soil and your budget.
Most people who call about a foundation have a lot and a set of plans, or a lot and an idea, and the first thing I want to know is whether the ground is flat or falls away. That one answer moves the price more than anything else, because a slope can mean more digging, more forming and a different kind of foundation altogether. The schedule mostly turns on the city's plan review and inspections, and on what we find once we're in the ground. If you're already leaning toward a slab, our page on slab foundation building goes deeper. Either way, your own figure comes from the written estimate I give you after I've walked the lot.
How can you tell a foundation isn't holding up?
Cracks running through the slab
Cracks in the concrete under your floors that keep growing, or one side sitting higher than the other, usually mean the soil is moving and the slab isn't stiff enough to ride it out. Waiting lets that movement keep working on the framing above, and then a concrete problem becomes a carpentry problem too.
Floors that slope
If a marble rolls to one corner or a room feels like you're walking downhill, part of the foundation has usually dropped or lifted. It's worth a look early, because the fix gets bigger once walls and door frames start leaning with it.
Doors and windows that stick
Doors that suddenly rub, windows that bind and cracks opening at the corners of drywall often trace back to the foundation, not the walls. If the ground is pushing the house around, patching the drywall only hides it for a while.
How our foundation installation works, slab or raised
It starts with the lot, because whether your ground is flat or sloped shapes the whole plan, so I go over a slab versus a raised foundation with you before anything else gets settled. I'll also ask whether you think you'll want to get under the house later for plumbing or a remodel, since that can tip the choice. From there our crew lays the foundation out, digs, sets the forms and the rebar, which is the steel that keeps the concrete from pulling apart under load, and then pours. The parts I care about most are the ones you won't see once the house is up. If a budget has to get trimmed, I'd rather it come off something you can change later than off the ground work and the forms, because nobody gets a second shot at those with a house sitting on top.
A raised foundation stands on concrete footings, the wider pads of concrete under the walls and posts that spread the weight into the ground, and we pour those as their own job too. Property owners building on a commercial site can also talk to us about concrete parking lot building for the ground around the new building.
Slab on grade
A slab poured right on the ground suits a flat lot and a fairly simple floor plan, since there's less to dig and form. The trade-off is that pipes and lines end up in or under the concrete, so changing them later means cutting into it.
Raised foundation over a crawlspace
A raised floor on footings and short concrete walls called stem walls suits a lot that slopes, or an owner who wants to reach plumbing and wiring later without breaking concrete. It takes more digging and forming up front, and the crawlspace is the payoff.
Foundation for an addition
When a new room has to tie into an existing house, its foundation has to meet the old one at the right height and hold its line. That's the kind of fitting job we like, and it's where I ask the most questions before we start.
Get a free on-site estimate for your foundation
Send your address and a note on whether the lot is flat or sloped. We'll get back to you within one business day, and I'll come out and give you a free written estimate with no obligation.
(805) 261-5009- Based in
- Simi Valley, CA 93065
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 6 AM–9 PM, Sat–Sun: 8 AM–10 PM
What happens after you call us about a foundation?
Here's how a foundation job runs from your first call to the finished pour, and who you'll be dealing with along the way.
Call or send a message
Tell us your address and whether the lot is flat or sloped, and we'll set up a time for me to come out. If you have plans drawn already, have them handy.
I walk the lot with you
I look the site over, ask a lot of questions about the ground and what you want from the house, then give you a written estimate. If something can't be known until we dig, the estimate says so instead of guessing, so you know where the number could move.
Sort out permits and prep
Once you say go, we sort out any permit with you and get the site ready for the crew. You'll know which office is reviewing the job before any digging starts.
Our crew pours, I check in
A crew lead runs the work day to day with our crew, and I stop by at the steps that matter most, like checking the forms and steel before the pour. When it's done, we clean up and walk it with you.
Why Simi Valley homeowners call Custom Simi Valley Concrete for foundations
Framer first, then concrete
I framed houses for years, got curious about what was under the walls, and learned concrete on flatwork crews, pouring slabs, driveways and patios, and on foundation crews before starting this business in 2017. When I plan your foundation, I'm also thinking about the walls that have to sit square on it.
Licensed, insured and glad to show it
We're licensed and insured, and I'll show you both at the site visit. With a crew on your lot for a job this size, it's worth asking anyone you're comparing for the same.
I walk every lot myself
I come out myself to look at the job, and sloped yards and slabs that have to meet an existing house are the jobs we're known for around Simi Valley. If the ground raises questions only digging will answer, I'll tell you that instead of guessing.
If you've got a lot and a set of plans, send us your address or call (805) 261-5009 and tell us whether the ground is flat or sloped.
Foundation and footing work on Simi Valley ground
Simi Valley's Building and Safety Division handles plan review and inspections for projects in the city. When a job needs a permit, we tell you that's the office, and we can pull the permit as your contractor or help you pull it yourself. The ground plays into that review, because weak soil or rock in a state-mapped hazard zone can fail in a strong earthquake unless grading and construction account for it. Ventura County's Seismic Hazard Zone map marks where liquefaction, when shaking makes soil act like a liquid, and landslides may happen, and the city publishes its own Geotechnical Guidelines for soil and ground studies. If your lot sits in a mapped zone, you may be required to have the hazard looked into as part of permitting, so we find that out before the foundation design is settled.
On the jobs themselves, we see a lot of sloped yards and trees planted close to the house. Roots pull moisture out of the soil under a slab and make cracking worse, so we talk through what's going in next to the walls before the pour, and we see the same mix of hillside and flat lots on jobs in Thousand Oaks and Moorpark.
Questions about foundation installation in Simi Valley
Which foundation is best for a sloped lot in Simi Valley?
One structural engineering firm advises a raised foundation for sloping lots, because it handles the grade without massive retaining walls or hauling dirt away. For relatively flat sites, the same firm points to a post-tensioned slab, a slab with steel cables tightened after the pour, as the more economical choice.
How much does a new foundation cost in Simi Valley?
We price each foundation after walking the lot, because slope, soil and the choice between a slab and a raised foundation move the cost more than anything else. That same engineering firm notes that a slab generally takes less labor and formwork, the wooden forms that hold concrete in shape, than a deep raised foundation, which keeps first construction costs down. The written estimate after the site visit gives you your own figure.
Who reviews and inspects foundation projects in Simi Valley?
The city's Building and Safety Division reviews the plans and does the inspections. You can reach its front counter at (805) 583-6723 with questions about your lot.
Does a foundation contractor need a license in California?
Yes. California's contractor license board says a license is required whenever the work needs a permit of any kind or the person doing it hires workers, even on a project under $1,000. A foundation job with a crew falls under that, so check the license of anyone you're comparing before you sign.
How do I find out if my lot is in an earthquake hazard zone?
You can look up your address on the state's EQ Zapp map, which works on a computer, tablet or phone. The state exempts single-family frame homes up to two stories, outside a development of four or more units, from its hazard zone requirements, but local agencies can be stricter. If your lot falls in a mapped zone, it's worth raising with the city before the foundation design is final.
What causes a foundation slab to crack?
Most slab cracking comes from soil that pushes and pulls on the house, and a foundation that isn't stiff or deep enough bends along with it. Over time that shows up as cracked slabs, sloping floors and damage to the framing above, which is why we design around the ground first and the surface second.
Related concrete work for foundation projects
If you're adding a room, a deck or a wall rather than a whole house, footings carry the weight down and keep that new piece from settling.
A paved lot takes car and truck traffic every day, so it needs a heavier, well-drained section than a home driveway, poured on the same site.
Service areas around our Simi Valley base
Custom Simi Valley Concrete is based in Simi Valley, California, and we take foundation jobs across the cities around it, including Camarillo and Agoura Hills. These 12 cities have their own pages here, and if yours isn't listed, ask us.
Simi Valley, CA
Book a site walk for your foundation
If you're still choosing a lot, a walk before you buy can tell you which foundation it's likely to need and what that does to the budget.