TREASURE ISLAND, Fla. — Sunset Beach resident Grant Smith and his wife decided many years ago that if disaster ever struck their 1940s cottage-style home, they would knock it down and rebuild.
Then after their home was flooded with between 3 to 5 feet of water during Hurricane Helene and they were faced with the tough decision on what to do next, they made the less obvious choice.
They wanted to save the home they had grown to love and instead lift it 14 feet to comply with building code and floodplain regulations.
“We liked the floor plan so rebuilding would have not changed our house,” Smith said. “It would have just given us a new house.”
Ultimately, Smith said, the biggest factor was cost.
When pricing out options, he found for his less than 1,000 square-foot home it would be about 20% of the cost to elevate it versus knock down and rebuild to current regulations.
“It was just over $100 per square foot to elevate it compared to $500 or $600 per square foot to rebuild,” he explained.
Smith got bids from three builders who specialize in lifting homes. Knowing the amount of damage his home sustained, he didn’t wait for FEMA’s substantial damage determination letter before deciding to move forward with the lifting process.
“I suspected there would be a number of people who were anxious to do this,” he said. “There’s not a lot of companies that I found that do this type of work.”
Smith signed a contract in December with JAS Builders and design work began soon after. In late May, crews started the lift.
Albert Jasuwan, owner of JAS Builders, said once they have broken ground the entire process takes about two to four weeks. The house is jacked up to the proper height using a hydraulic jack system that sits inside of cribbing, which contractors placed under the house.
In situations like this one with such sandy soil, contractors use foundations with screw-in systems.
“They’re called Helical piles,” Jasuwan explained. “We screw them down and then we pour the concrete that locks all of it in place. Those pilings actually help with uplift and downforce.”
Before a house is lifted, it is assessed for structural integrity. Jasuwan says all homes they have worked on recently in Pinellas County were eligible to be lifted.
The team also installs a permanent steel base on the home.
“That way the whole house is cradled. We’re not pushing up and stressing the house out at all, we’re literally lifting it up on a tray of metal,” Jasuwan explained.
After the structural work is complete, JAS construction will build a staircase and reconnect all plumbing and electrical to make the house move-in ready once again.
Smith said he can’t wait to see the final product.