Concrete footings in Santa Ana CA - a solid base set on firm, untouched ground
Planning a wall, garage or addition? We dig past loose fill to firm ground and pour footings that carry the load.
Plan your footing job before anyone digs
The permit and any soils report come before the first shovel, so call (714) 439-5472 or use the form and we'll check what your lot needs.
What goes into a concrete footing in Santa Ana?
We dig, form and pour concrete footings in Santa Ana and the cities around it across Orange County, giving your wall, garage or posts a wider base that spreads their weight into the soil.
Most people who call about footings are planning something bigger, like a block wall, a garage, an addition or a patio cover, and the footing is the part nobody sees once it's done. The price moves with how deep we have to dig to reach firm ground, how long the footing runs and how much steel goes in it, and the schedule turns mostly on whether the city wants a permit or a soils report first. I'll give you the numbers for your own lot in a written estimate.
Why Santa Ana property owners call C&M Santa Ana Concrete Company for footings
I look at every site myself
I come out to see every job myself and ask what's going on top, since a wall and a post load the ground differently. You get answers from the person running the work.
Licensed and insured, start to finish
We're licensed and insured, and our crew does the forming, pouring and finishing with me on site for most of it. You know who's working on your lot and who's in charge.
Working in Santa Ana since 2017
I started this business in Santa Ana in 2017 after years on my dad's crews. That's 9 years of finding out what's under the lots around here, old fill and all, before we pour.
With footings, what matters most is the ground under them, because it's hard to fix once the wall is up. Tell us about your project and I'll come take a look.
How we build concrete footings
I start by working out where the weight lands, then we dig the trench or holes down past any old fill until we reach firm, untouched ground. That's what the building code calls for, undisturbed natural soil or engineered fill, which is fill placed and packed to an engineer's design, and it's what keeps a footing from settling along with loose dirt. We set the forms and the rebar, the steel bars that help the concrete hold together when the ground moves, and on permitted jobs we don't call the concrete truck until the city has signed off. Then we pour, finish the top so the wall or posts sit level on it, and clean up.
Some footing jobs start with concrete that's already there. When an old patio or garage floor sits where a new footing has to go, our concrete cutting work opens a clean slot through it, and when an existing footing has settled and taken a wall or room down with it, foundation raising is usually a better fix than a new pour.
Continuous footings under walls
A continuous footing runs the whole length under a wall, so it suits block walls, garage walls and room additions. If what you're building carries its weight along a wall, this is usually the one.
Pad footings under posts
A pad footing is a single block under one pier, post or column, so it suits patio covers, carports and porch posts. When the weight comes down at a few points instead of along a wall, pads do the job with less digging.
How do you know if you need new footings?
Stair-step cracks in block
You see a crack zigzag along the mortar joints of a block wall. That usually means the footing under it has settled or was too small, and the crack keeps opening as it moves.
A wall or fence leaning
The top of a wall or fence sits out of line with its base. Usually the footing is too shallow or sits on loose fill, and the lean only gets harder to fix.
Patio cover posts dropping
A post looks shorter than it used to, or the beam above it dips. Posts set on a thin slab with no footing under them tend to sink, and the cover sags more each season.
Something new going up
You're adding a garage, a room or a wall. Each one needs footings sized to what sits on top, and sorting that out early lets the rest of the job go in order.
What happens when you call about footings in Santa Ana?
Look at the site together
You call or send the form, and we set a time for me to come out. I look at the ground, walk you through the options and send a written estimate.
Dig, form and get signed off
Once you say go, we sort out any permit, dig to firm ground and set forms and steel, then leave room for the city's inspection before the concrete truck is called.
Pour and walk it together
We pour and finish the footing, clean up the site and walk it with you at the end, so you see what's going under your wall or posts before it gets covered.
Footing questions we hear most
Here's what Santa Ana owners usually ask before a footing goes in. If your question isn't here, call and ask me about your own project.
How much do concrete footings cost in Santa Ana?
Footing cost in Santa Ana comes down to how much digging, concrete and steel your project takes, plus any permit or soils report. A few pad footings under patio cover posts cost much less than a continuous footing under a garage or addition, and having to dig past old fill or add steel raises it. You'll get the figure for your job in a written estimate after I've seen the site.
Who issues building permits for footings in Santa Ana?
The city's Building Safety Division issues building permits, and anyone planning to build, alter, repair or demolish a structure applies to the building official before work starts. The city's list of work that doesn't need a permit includes fences up to 7 feet high and retaining walls up to 4 feet, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall. For anything else, we check with the city before we dig.
Do I have to pull the permit myself for a footing in Santa Ana?
You don't have to, because many types of permits in Santa Ana can be issued to a licensed contractor as well as to the property owner or an authorized agent. When your footing needs one, we can pull it as the licensed contractor, and if you have questions about your own lot, we'll point you to the right city office.
Does my project need a soils report in Santa Ana?
Your project needs a soils report unless it's on Santa Ana's exempt list, and the report has to come from a California registered geotechnical engineer, an engineer who specializes in soil. Patio covers and carports at an existing single-family home and fences and block walls 10 feet or less are exempt, and so are a detached one-story garage, a one- or two-story addition and a new detached one-story ADU up to 750 square feet when they meet the city's minimum foundation requirements. We'll go over which side of that line your project falls on before any digging starts.
What is the best way to plan footings for Orange County soil?
Plan the footing around earthquakes and, on some lots, shifting soil, because an Orange County foundation policy the city accepts places most cities in the county in Seismic Design Category D, an earthquake design rating, and notes expansive soil, which swells when wet and shrinks as it dries, in some areas. The building official can also ask for a soils report on any lot with questionable soil or an unstable slope, even for a garage or patio cover that would normally skip one. That's why I look at the ground and the slope before I write anything up.
How do I check that a concrete contractor is licensed in Santa Ana?
Ask for proof of a license you can verify with the California Contractors State Licensing Board, and check that they hold a current City of Santa Ana business license, because the city asks contractors for both. Ask any contractor you're considering for both before you sign.
Get a footing estimate for your project
Send your address and what's going on top, like a garage, addition or wall, and we'll reply within one business day. I'll come look at the ground and send a free written estimate, no pressure and no obligation.
Footing work in progress
Work that often goes with footings
Foundation raising
If an older footing has dropped and pulled your floors or walls out of level, lifting the existing foundation can beat tearing it out.
Learn moreConcrete cutting
Adding a post or wall where there's already a patio or garage floor? A saw cut keeps the rest of the slab intact around the new footing.
Learn more