Hi all,
I am looking for some advice on the type of crawl space I should have
when I renovate my cottage. I am demolishing about 1200 sq. ft (the
living room and kitchen area of the cottage) Currently the building
sits on blocks.. For this renovation I am only allowed to build on the
existing footprint. So I cannot put in a basement - they consider that
additional living space. However, I can have a crawlspace. Max. height
from the floor is 5'9". So if including the joists, the walkable space
under the cottage would onlly be 4'8" approx. I will be having a
proper foundation put in this time, no more cinder blocks. I am
wondering what do do about the crawlspace area. Insulate the walls?
concrete slab? I can't imagine that keeping it as a dirt floor makes
sense....

Also, what if I only had crawlspace under a portion of the cottage to
hold plumbing, furnace etc. and the rest no crawlspace at all? Would
it just be a concrete slab then?? Then I thought I would put in the
radiant floor heating into the concrete.

I live in Ontario, Canada. The soil where the construction is taking
place is very very sandy.
Any advice or ideas would be welcome.
Thanks