"John Wheeler" wrote in message
...
Hello,

I am not a handyman. I received a home inspection report that has a
defect which reads:

In the crawl space, under the front porch, I observed a structurally
unsupported stud wall vertical support structure for several floor
joist ends. The stud wall's 2x6 wood bottom plate rests soley upon the
vapor barrier, with no observable concrete footer support -
recommended further evaluation by a structural professional.

Is this a big problem? Can someone with knowledge on this matter
explain what is going on in layman's terms and what the potential
ramifications are?

Thanks

Sounds like he is saying that the porch floor is supported by a short stud
wall that is resting solely on dirt (with a vapor barrier over it) without
the recommended (required) concrete foundation. I would think this might
lead to the porch settling at some time in the future. That being said, my
house, front third and back third, being old porches that were converted to
year round living space are supported by piles of brick, block or wood that
the builder had on hand when the porches were built. These sit right on the
ground, without even a vapor barrier. The house is 89 years old... my
family has owned it for the last 55 of those years and there has never been
any settling. No cracked walls, ceilings, etc. But then we sit high on a
hill over the river with no water drainage problems and only about 6 inches
of soil before sand and gravel starts. I figure it'll outlast me and the
kids can sell the riverfront lot for more than I paid for the house, when
I'm gone.

Tom.