Concrete footings in Malden MA - a firm base sized to the weight it holds up
Planning an addition, porch or deck and need a footing that won't settle? We size it to the load and the soil before we dig.
- Fully licensed and insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- We respond within 1 business day.
What goes into getting concrete footings right in Malden?
The short answer: A concrete footing is the wider strip or pad of concrete under a wall, post or column that spreads its weight into the soil, and D&L Malden Concrete Company pours them for additions, garages, porches and decks in Malden and the cities around it.
Most people who call about footings have a plan in hand and a question about what goes under it. The price mostly moves with how much the footing carries, how deep it has to go and what the soil is like, because a soil test before work starts shows the weak spots, and weaker soil needs wider footings that cost more, so testing early tells you whether that belongs in the budget. The schedule turns on the permit, the wait to have underground lines marked and the weather on pour day, and when a permit is needed we file the application ourselves. Your written estimate spells out what your own job includes.
How do you know your project needs new footings?
A porch post sinking
A post that's dropped or started leaning usually sits on a shallow block or a pad too small for the weight on it. Left alone, the floor or roof above sags with it, and more of the structure ends up needing work.
Cracks stepping up a wall
A crack that climbs a foundation wall in a stair pattern usually means something under that wall has settled. The longer it goes, the wider it tends to get, and doors and windows above start to stick.
Plans for an addition
Any new wall, garage or deck that carries weight starts with footings, so they're the first thing to get priced and planned. Sizing them late can mean redrawing the plan or reworking the budget after the hole is already dug.
How we build concrete footings
A footing is sized to what it holds up, a full wall or a single post, so the first thing I ask about is the load and whether you have a soil test, and only then do we lay it out. Once the lines are marked, we dig down to undisturbed soil, ground nobody has dug or filled before, and clean out the bottom of the hole because loose dirt left down there settles later. We set the forms, place rebar, the steel bars that keep the concrete from pulling apart under load, and pour, then let it cure, the slow hardening it needs before anything heavy goes on top. Nobody sees a footing once the wall goes up, which is why it's the first place people want to trim the budget, and it's the last place I'd do it, because a lot of the cracks you'd see later in the wall start down there.
Footings often come with work on what's already standing. If the footing under an existing wall has settled and the house dropped with it, foundation raising brings it back up before anything new ties into it, and when a new pad has to go down through a basement floor or garage slab, concrete cutting opens the spot cleanly.
Continuous footing under a wall
This one runs the full length of the foundation, so it suits additions, garages and any wall that carries weight along its whole run. It's the usual choice when the load is spread out rather than sitting on a few points.
Pad footing under a post
A pad sits under one concentrated load, like a pier, a porch post or a steel column in a basement. It suits decks and porches where the weight comes down in a few spots instead of along a wall.
Bell-bottom pier
One form maker's guide says a straight tube suits standard piers, while a bell-shaped bottom spreads the load over a wider base. By that guide, the wider base reduces settling in softer soil and can cut the number of piers a deck needs.
What happens when you call about concrete footings in Malden?
Here's how a footing job goes with us, from the first call through the first winter, and who handles each part so you're not chasing the permit or the line marks yourself.
- Step 01
Call or send the form
Call (781) 288-8155 or use the form, and include your address, what the footing will carry and any soil test results. That lets me come out already knowing what to look for.
- Step 02
I measure and write it up
I come out, measure and ask how you'll use the space and what's going on top. You get a written estimate that spells out the mix, the joints, the drainage and what's included, so nothing about the price is a guess.
- Step 03
We clear the way to dig
Before anyone digs or pours, we line up the permit, call for underground lines to be marked and pick a pour date that suits the season. The required wait for the marks goes into the schedule up front.
- Step 04
We pour and explain curing
Our crew digs, forms and pours with me on site. Afterward we walk you through curing and first winter care, so you know when the footing can take weight and what to do and when.
What changes a concrete footing job in Malden
In Malden, permits go through the city's Inspectional Services, and whether your footing needs one is the city's call, so we ask before we dig. When it does, we file the application ourselves and keep you posted on where it stands, because state consumer guidance has the registered contractor pull the permit, and an owner who applies for it may not be eligible for compensation from the state's Guaranty Fund.
Calling Dig Safe gets most utility lines marked, but city water and sewer departments don't have to join it, so those lines may not show up as marks on your lot. We ask where your service lines come in and dig carefully near them, the same way we handle older lots on jobs in Everett and Medford.
Get a written estimate for your concrete footings
We reply within one business day, and the estimate is free, done on site and comes with no obligation. After you send the form, I'll set a time to come out, measure and ask what the footing will carry, and then you get your written estimate.
Why Malden owners and builders call D&L Malden Concrete Company
I see every job myself
I come out to look at every job myself, and our crew does the work with me on site. The person who asked about your load is the one watching the pour.
On our own since 2017
I ran crews, ordered the mix and laid out jobs for another contractor before starting this business in 2017. Owners and builders call us for footings and foundations, not only driveways and patios.
Licensed for Massachusetts work
We're fully licensed and insured. Massachusetts doesn't recognize out-of-state contractor licenses, so it's fair to ask anyone who bids your footings whether theirs is from this state.
Satisfaction guaranteed on every job
That's our promise, and it starts at the estimate. I'd rather tell you a footing plan won't hold up on your lot than pour one I don't believe in.
On a footing, the work that counts ends up buried under the wall, so send us what it will carry and any soil test, and contact us to set up a visit.
Concrete footing questions from Malden homeowners
How much do concrete footings cost in Malden, MA?
Concrete footings across the US usually cost about $5 to $18 per linear foot. Where a job lands in that range depends on its size, how deep the footing goes and the conditions on the site. That's the national market, not our price, and your written estimate gives you ours.
How deep do concrete footings need to be in Massachusetts?
One national deck-building guide says footings should rest on undisturbed soil below the frost line. That guide leaves the frost line to the local building authority and has the building official check the soil before the concrete goes in. We go by the depth the city sets for your job.
How do I check on a permit for concrete footings in Malden?
You can search and check the status of permits in Malden Inspectional Services' online permitting system. The office's number is 781-397-7030, and it's open Monday, Wednesday and Thursday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday until 7 p.m., and closed Friday. On our jobs we file the application, so this is mostly for checking where it stands.
How long does Dig Safe take before you can dig footings in Massachusetts?
The state requires a call to Dig Safe at least 72 business hours before digging, and Saturdays, Sundays and holidays don't count toward that. We make the call and build that wait into the schedule before any footing holes go in.
Who can build concrete footings for a house in Massachusetts?
On one- and two-family homes, the state requires a licensed construction supervisor or a registered design professional to oversee construction, and you can read the rule on the state's construction supervisor page. Work on an existing, owner-occupied home with one to four units also calls for a registered Home Improvement Contractor, though new construction and investment or vacation properties fall outside that law. Your city's building official can tell you about any added local licensing rules.
What causes a concrete footing to settle?
Usually it's the ground under it, such as fill that was dug and thrown back in, soil weaker than the footing was sized for, or water soaking in along the wall. Grading that sheds water away from the house helps keep the soil under a footing firm. If a footing under your house has already dropped, that calls for raising it rather than pouring something new on top.
Other concrete work that ties into footings
Foundation raising
When an older footing has already let a corner of the house drop, lifting it back to level first keeps new work from locking in the tilt.
Concrete cutting
A new post or column often lands inside an existing basement floor or garage slab, and a clean saw cut makes room without cracking the concrete around it.
Tell us what your footing will carry
Call (781) 288-8155 or use the form with the load and any soil test, so your first estimate is sized right instead of revised after the dig.