Good point.

Well, after much research and talking to the wife and builder, I've decided to go with a slab foundation and with the money I save, do stained concrete floors inside the house and stamped concrete on the front patio.

That'll look really good it might be cold tho not sure just a thought

I have a house like that insured, daaaang it's sweet!! The current owner doesn't know the story, they just bought it that way. It's totally level, 4-5 blocks high, super clean and lighted. I wouldn't ever do it simply because of the unnecessary cost, but I would've bought that house simply for that reason!

I also like the look of a slab house, I like the windows being closer to the ground.

True, but you can get the same thing from upsizing your floor joists. That being said, it's hard to beat a slab.

Many years ago I watched my Aunt and Uncle dig through a slab in their den to get to a leak and hope they had the right spot before busting more concrete. I was maybe 10 and I thought to myself...I will never put pipe under a slab. Fast forward a couple years ago and the inlaws have piping running up the walls and through the ceiling due to an addition to the home some years back. The extra hard freeze we had last winter popped a water line in a spot where a critter had eaten through the insulation. It ruined the ceiling some of a wall and the couch. I thought to myself.... I was a smart 10 year old!

I want my nest above the ground not a part of it. Cheaper for a reason.

No, not if it’s done right and encapsulated correctly, you will not have any issues

Actually for the southeast, it's the preferred foundation, due to the humidity. It's cheaper because of less labor. No piers, it's more solid than a crawl space and the horror stories everybody has heard about slab foundations are the ones where people didn't use plastic and gravel under the pad and it was before pex was invented. My builder builds them all the time and says he pulls in an extra pex water line. Keeps out rats and bugs, spiders like it dark and damp.

Builders prefer it because it is easier and less cost variables. A properly built house on a crawl space with mechanical ventilation will alliveate moisture issues.

Correct...id avoid a crawlspace like the plague so long as my concrete guys know how to build a slab or rather a good base.

That's what we did when we built our house. Are the floors cool in winter? Yes. Are the floors cool in the hellish summer? Yes. With 9 months of infernal heat and maybe 1 month of real cold, it is a no brainer.

Just know that everything you drop, will break. Glasses, plates, tv remotes, pocket knives... there is no give in stained slabs.

Pulling in 90% humid air shouldn't alleviate issues it will make it worse, according to the people I've talked to.

I'm in houses, under houses all the time with my work. A large % of my work deals with water intrusion and construction defects.

If a home has foundation water issues you will have problems, period....crawl or basement. Slab houses simply don't have as many of THOSE types of issues. All foundations have pros and cons and are very site specific and owner "wants" dependent as variables. To me the best foundation is a elevated slab on a poured concrete wall foundation, concrete floor with built in drainage...either crawl or basement.

90% humidity isn't the real culprit. 90% humidity is common many places, not just the south. Stagnant humid air without circulation/transfer-exchange is the real problem causer in a home without other water intrusion issues.

Slab all the way. I am in the real estate business and I see mold issues more often than not under pier houses. I built mine on an elevated slab a block and a half high at the lowest point with extra large footings w/rebar. Not a single issue in 28 years! I will also never own a two story house.

Winner^^^ if you only have foundation vents in your crawl space without mechanical ventilation the air will be stagnant and cause the mold/mildew issues.

Just know that everything you drop, will break. Glasses, plates, tv remotes, pocket knives... there is no give in stained slabs.[/quote]

Ha, everything you drop on any floor is gonna break 99% of the time.

Build on a basement, best of both worlds.

If you build on a crawl space, just make sure the crawl space is plenty high enough for what you may want in the future. A new house could easily have the space encapsulated from the get go, that way you wouldn’t have that musty wet bugs nest that outback was talking about.