Who will dig my holes?

September 25, 2009 3:45 PM

What tradesman or trade area should I look to to dig the footers for my wood deck?

We've decided to install a deck on our Chicago Bungalow and I have confidence that I can do it all myself except for one part. Installing the footers for the posts. They have to be 4 feet deep by code and based on the plans there are going to be 14 of them. A little more digging than I am willing to do. I also want them to be stable and well done. My question is, what trade area or tradesman should I look to for this part of the project and would they even be willing to do such a small part. Any specific recommendations in the Chicago area would be welcome as well.

posted by blackjack514 to home & garden (6 comments total)

Ditches and such come under the Laborers Union. The International is LiUNA, and you can find a local from their website. The local can either point you to a contractor or, in this climate, let you talk to someone out of the hall.

You might also talk to the Operating Engineers; the work may be performed more efficiently with a bobcat with an auger.
posted by notsnot at 3:54 PM on September 25

I recently had to repair some fencing that had the same requirements. We rented an auger at Home Depot. We had to do four holes. I dug one by hand and realized four feet sucks. We went to home depot and rented the auger. It took us like one minute per post hole to dig. Definitely worth the money. Just make sure you have two people for the auger and for 4 feet you will likely want an extension. The auger we used could drill up to 4 feet without an extension but that mean taking the engine all of the way down to ground level and back up. just easier to start out are 6 or 8 feet and not go all of the way down. Then again if you have decided you really don't want to dig these on your own you can ignore my answer.
posted by DJWeezy at 5:36 PM on September 25

I don't know if you have equipment access, but if you felt competent, you could rent a mini skidsteer with an auger attachment for about 250 bucks (depending on where you live) and do it in a day if you didn't hit a shit-ton of rocks. It depends on your code what happens then. The skidsteers usually come on a trailer you'd need a big pickup to haul, though some places will deliver them for a fee. Sometimes it can be cheaper to rent a larger one, the minis are so specific that they're a little pricey for what you get.
This doesn't answer your question. If you get someone else to do it, I think you could call some builders or people who advertise small building projects; you'll still have to pay for someone to come out for a dinky job, it costs them a good bit of money to mobilize, haul equipment and cover overhead. Unless you know someone with a machine, desperate in this economy, willing to work to just cover themselves for part of a day.
Either way, make sure and call in to have your utilities marked, it's almost always free and you'll avoid hitting a sewer line or buried electric cable. If you own the house, you should know where your utilities are; if you don't, then for shame.

But seriously. This is not a difficult or dangerous thing to do, if you're thorough and careful. But don't do it if you feel too freaked out by it.
posted by Red Loop at 5:46 PM on September 25 [1 favorite]

One option I've had success with in the Chicago area for small jobs like this is Craigslist - you get a lot of tradesmen with day jobs who want to make a few extra bucks on the side. Put a clear description of exactly what you want on craigslist (jobs/skilled trade) and be prepared for a flood of responses. You'll get everything from one sentence replies to entire resumes - what I'd be looking for are qualified people who happen to be out on another job anyway and who are willing to swing by and do a bit of extra work for a bit of extra cash. For example, I had a union plumber who mostly did work for the city come by and plumb a bathroom - I was on his way home and he came by two nights in a row and knocked it out.

As for an actual recommendation do have a good porch/deck contractor in Chicago. They've been flexible with me about the scope of jobs in the past, so they would probably just do the footings for you. If you're interested just mefi mail me and I'll send you their info.
posted by true at 7:10 PM on September 25

Decks in Chicago? Why, ChicagoDeckBuilders.com of course.
posted by Neiltupper at 4:30 AM on September 26

Landscape contractors do this. I agree that with the right tools you can do it yourself.
posted by oneirodynia at 9:46 AM on September 26