Thanks for watching The Big Dig! If you liked this, be sure to subscribe and check out our other vids, including the new Northwoods Cottage Adventure series: ua-cam.com/play/PLiqwpyKCVgsotmUkytdqE5ox_QpstM6lS.html. We're getting our hands dirty at our new (soon-to-be) idyllic lake cottage.
I was internally complaining about hand digging a trench since and then I saw this video. I joyfully dug my trench today with no griping. Holy smokes! That's a big project. Thanks for the sds drill tip. That is making things go a lot faster now.
I worked as a project manager for an architect. Nice job on your basement. We did lots of basement digs but the one I handled personally was the one I did on a huge lot with a tired old house that was almost torn down. The front set back had been encroached many years before by progress and eminent domain. The house was over 120 years old and the basement was really just piled up rocks. It was so unstable the house was settling bad. I came up with the idea to dig a whole new foundation behind the house. A modern water tight, ceiling height and addition to restore a part of the house that had been dismantled earlier. When it was done we had a house mover slide the house onto it's new foundation. A historical restoration construction company was hired to restore the missing section of the house based on a single existing photo of that side of the original house. All the stone from the old basement was used to cover the new foundation material. From the outside, it looked like the original stone foundation. The front yard was graded and landscaped and a new porch added as per the original complete with salvaged brackets and gussets. The best part is we were able to restore the setbacks giving the house some much needed curb appeal. There was a seperate two car garage on the site plan that was rebuilt and the entire yard fenced. Every time I go back to NJ I try to drive by the house. Last time I saw it, there was a family living there with kids and a dog. It was great to see. Good luck with your project. I like seeing stuff like this.
I used to be a gravedigger as a young fella and I still remember an old guy watching me smash the concrete top off a grave I had to dig. He smiled and pointed out that by smashing the concrete into rubble I'd made my job harder. He showed me that with some well placed shots I could break it into larger hunks that I could lift out as big pieces which took less time and effort to break and was much easier to clean up.
Just seeing the bags of concrete move from one location to another caused me to throw my back out. This is an amazing amount of labor you put into this.
I was a basement waterproofer for a decade and I know how much work you put into that. I too have a short basement and have thought about doing this but damn... You're a man of commitment.
I'm glad you had an Engineer provide help and there were no issues. Where I live you need to make sure you only remove a 3' wide section then leave at least 6' before removing the next section. Digging straight down beside the footings removes the angle of repose under the existing footings and is a very common mistake that can lead to a structural failure. Anyone doing underpinning should always consult an Engineer and get a building permit.
The 3 pin method you describe is the standard where I live also but it wasn't always the case. It used to be dig 5 leave 5 and the slope had to be a 5/7 from the footing and you couldn't dig 2 corners on the same wall at once. This case here has here is basically all clay and it will hold if there isn't torrential rains leaking in or earthquakes, it may be risky but he pulled it off with no problems. The 3 pin method was put into place when people couldn't see the difference between clay, soil or sand and dug straight down in sand leading to collapse....they ruined it for the rest of us as all my basement digs pretty much doubled in price.
Huge congrats on the basement man the amount of work you put into that is insane, you must be really proud of it each and every time you walk into it. Thats what is all about man.
Respect for this man... I’m never seen such great dedication and hard work like this in my life. It’s not just the hours put in, but the endurance of hard back breaking labour.
I love your epoxy window! When I was growing up, people living in a house up the street jacked up their 1400ish sq ft house.... over the next decade they worked on it two or three weekends each month and a couple afternoons a week as they had money for materials. They turned that little house into a two story plus basement and three stall garage, at least three thousand square feet of living space. They didn’t take out loans for the materials and ended up paying very little for a very large house.... they still live there, and still seem to like the result of their efforts.
Wow the work that went into this, and the knowledge and the skill are awesome. Some never take advantage of their basement and use it just for storage. I finished ours and in 2012 had to fix a leak that ended up causing a complete gutting of our bathroom to fix it and remove the mold from the leak. Just grateful I knew someone with a backhoe that dug out where I needed to fix the leak, saved me a lot of digging.
Many moons ago I did this type of work all the time...it kept me in good shape when I was young! But, I didn't know when to stop and now in my mid 70's.....getting out of bed is a feat! Keeps you young and makes you old....all at the same time!
I did a similar job 50 years ago, ( different reason and I only went down about three feet) I was 23 and it almost killed me. It was not too far out of the ordinary then and I saved over $10,000.00 . Today you are one in a million and saved a bit more, if you could even find someone to do it, Congratulations .
Ehhhhhh...... Bobby M...... Agree 10,000% sir !!! I think the video is "GOLD" !!! Hell, nobody would Believe SOMEBODY / anyone could do it !!! AND ya show 'em the vid !!! ... EXCEPT...... , I saw a fellow do a DIG, and it was EXCELLENT but it was a Movie.... Shawshank Redemption ; ) Heck he SHOULD get a Prize from UA-cam for DOING the Project..... Pretty MESMERIZING considering ..... I could be told........ "You either do it or your dead".....my reply...... " go ahead and kill me cause even if I COULD do it.....it would Kill Me Anyway " ; ) 👍👍👍✌️😷😱😳🤪😋🙄😬🤔🙃👍
Thanks for sharing. I live in a 10,000 square foot, early 1900s general store. It has a huge basement with really low ceilings. I’d love to do something like this some day. Thanks for sharing!
48 seconds in and I am so happy that you went ahead and did the electrical while you could reach the ceiling pretty easily. My goodness, I have no idea how many times I thought of something like that after I've started a project. Great thinking!
Your efforts in attempting and completing this project are only surpassed by your outstanding video work in documenting it from start to finish and editing it to a watchable length . Kudos!
This is alot of work... My dad earned a living most of his life by doing full basements under houses and buildings. Either by digging like you or lifting the house as a whole. Some houses can be lifted but some houses have too many extensions or are too heavy to be lifted. When I was a kid my dad digged a basement under an apartment building. It was the las one he did before retiring at 57. I think it was enough for him. lol
Winch idea=EINSTEIN LEVEL thinking! Was Planning on doing the same with 5gal buckets!!! Hahaha I’d have 20” arms but quickly need reconstructive back surgery….great idea about insulation/electrical when you can still REACH the ceiling!
The beauty behind this. That it beats every single gift even on a special occasion. Lots of folks don't get it. The satisfaction of the project and the outcome is just endless. Years will go by and on a normal Tuesday just because You stand there with a smile and you say I DID THIS. I DID THIS. Now that's a gift that will never stop giving. Grate Job Grate Job.
Just me watching this video made me feel exhausted. You're absolutely amazing. What really made me happy and gave me that warm and fuzzy feeling inside was the fact you was always happy, smiling, spent time with family and friends. For that your project is priceless ❤️😊.
Great job, man! When I rebuilt my house, I lifted it 14" and hand dug a foundation to replace the piers. Love seeing projects like these done by the homeowners is a safe and professional manner. And theres no better full body strength workout, than a shovel!
that's an insane transformation! I have a 150 year old house and I gutted the top floor. Removed all the plaster and lathe myself. This video makes my job look easy. Awesome job!
Dedication. Great work, passion of existence.. looks really nice and i'll bet you wouldn't trade it for the world. I've been contracting for over 20 years, and it's so rare to hear a story like yours, of someone who actually jumped in and got it done the right way. Kudos
I just bought an old farm house built in 1900 and yeah, it's bad. Your video helps me imagine how to go about digging out a basement in order to resupport and repair the foundation. Anything less just won't do. Great video! Thank you.
Thanks so much for sharing this, i was digging out so much hard clay soil with a pick axe then was debating what level of better tool was needed. The SDS 12lbs really does the job. Really impressed by the new form footer walls you did. Great work!
One of the most amazing UA-cam uploads I have ever seen. What an incredibly challenging project, to finish this in less than a year is a monumental accomplishment
That’s an inspiring amount of hard backbreaking work. One of the best DIY project outcomes on UA-cam as I was waiting for you to run into some type of catastrophe or money suck as has happened to me all too often. Congrats.
You are a better man, then I & younger. When I dig my green house I am using a backhoe. You saved a lot of money & put a lot of work equity in the house.
I've got a basement that needs lowering and pretty much everything you've done.. however, I got no friends and I work 12h shifts monday to friday... ☹ What a marvellous job. I'm planning to get the builders in to do it for me... not sure how deep can I go through, I'm in the uk and our grounds can be tricky once you start digging.. I'm well inspired by your work though!!
OMG. WOW. OMG. Good job! Impressive. Im finishing my basement now, (just drywall, ceiling, floor and a bit of new framing). Its 8’ tall snd for a minute I considered looking into digging out another couple feet to get higher ceilings. For a minute.
Wow! Nice job! I built a retaining wall in my basement to shore up a pudding stone foundation that was structurally compromised and creeping in. I hauled, mixed and poured 96 bags of Quickcrete. I thought mine was a major project until I saw your video! Congrats!
WellDone! BRAVO! I have been contemplating a dig project for a while, you have provided inspiration. My last project was. barn, completely above-ground. I’m going to miss people parking truck, walking across field to stand there with their hands in their pockets, to tell me that I could have built a pole barn. I recognize a little bit of what drives you, by the artsy touches. Great Project, good luck to you, in your every endeavor.
I had a panic attack watching this. I simply couldn't believe he was going to do it. I was just waiting for the video to get to the gotcha part. But holy moly this guy is one of the rarest breeds of man on this planet. The amount of effort, stamina, rigor, and aplomb this guy has is just unmatched. Wonderful job man.
Great video! I owned an old farm estate in Northern Maine with a very low basement ceiling. Lowering the floor was one of many home improvements that were never completed before selling the property a few years back. My current home sits on the side of a hill with a nice, finished basement with 8' ceilings but I've often though about adding another floor below the current basement that goes under the side of the hill so only the access stairs would be inside the footprint of the house
Dedication!!!! Love how you kept going!!! Such motivation!!! I don’t think much people realize how much of a hard work and dedication you put into this. This why I don’t judge people!!!
My family did this in our first home, except we were able to drive a bobcat into the lowest level (house is on a hillock). Lots of buckets, concrete, a trip to the doctor for stitches in my brothers head, but it took us about 12 years, not a summer. Great work!
I love seeing big projects. Very impressive. Some knowledge, a vision that was bugging him to death, a lot of persistence, YOUTH, helpful friends and hopefully, a patient wife. He earned his man-cave. I've kinda been there with some overly ambitious large home and landscaping projects in my 40s and early 50s. You work full time then spend every evening and weekend on your vision. Several times into the project you wonder about your sanity. Wife and most visiting female relatives will usually remind you how crazy you are (just gives you more determination). Later you look back with pride and sometimes amazement that you did that yourself. Great job.
Good for you!! What a boatload of work and vision. And it's a real lesson in what one can accomplish if they get up every day and go work on a goal. Very nice. And you deserve the pleasure you've created for yourself and your family. Nice job.
Great job. Looks amazing. When I renovated my basement I did the matte black ceiling as well. Best decision I made. So easy to add pipes and wiring for upstairs now.
EXCELLENT VIDEO! Makes me wish I were young again, haha! Used to love taking on projects like that but my old bones won't allow me to any more. Well done and God Bless!
Wow,that was a buttload of work...A lot deeper than I imagined you would go.You're very creative with how you finished it all...That looks like a hell of a lot more than $10,000.00! Beautiful job,hope you enjoy it!
This is the most intriguing video I have ever watched, you did an amazing and most immaculent job. I cannot phanthom doing anything like this to a basement! . My hats off to you!!!!!! Thank you for sharing!!!!
Well done young man , in the uk we say we built a basement but we always get builders to do the work and only slow them down with stupid ideas , you did it all and did it your way . You are the truth .
Nice job! Huge undertaking! Happy for you! Thanks for sharing, I feel much older and lazier now. I never knew there was a shovel option for hammer drills. Interesting.
Heck yes!!! This is so inspiring, I love that you did this and took the extra effort to film and photograph it so that you could share the story. WEll done, and THANK YOU! :D
Its amazing the amount of effort and drive u have ive been in the construction trade 33yrs and to see a homeowner tackle this amount of work and complete it and it looks amazing is jaw dropping.. the only thing i think u should of done it cut the foundation wall and installed a beam to carry the weight of the house instead of leaving the post it looked like it was 2ft from the wall other than that superb job just awsome thanks for sharing
What a Great video and project! We live in a 100 year old home, so I can relate to the amount of work any project requires. I appreciate and respect ALL of the hard work it must have taken to complete it. Now it's time to go get some S**t done... Rock On!
Great video this reminds me of a job my father and i did, we jack hammered out a 60'x60' concrete floor. I am jealous of your winch we werent so lucky we carried out 36,000 pounds of concrete and fill. I bought a single big plastic tote from walmart and used it to carry every single pound out. I carried the front well pulling up the stairs as he carried the rear and pushed. I fully agree about jack hammering it is honestly fun and what i like is you can easily see the progress you make.
Renovating a Home with my dad at the moment. This is A LOT of work. But you just got to keep reminding yourself to take it a little bit at a time. If you take a BIG job and break it down into little jobs it wont seem so overwhelming
Brings back memories for me. Relatives and friends thought I was crazy. I built a folding form, mixed my mud and poured into the form. The first work was a concrete block bearing wall down the center of the basement. What I had for bearing wall was ridiculous and I don't worry about sagging floors in my old house. I framed out a bedroom, a laundry room, a storage room and a computer center. The finished basement is worth it. Your space looks good and I bet you are the same as me, now. Digging a hole or handling a shovel is now an easy task.
Very impressive, I am well aware of what was involved, I single handily built a 450 sq ft extension to my house a couple of years ago when I was 75, including hand digging 130 tons of soil and concrete
Not only was this short film informative, it was really enjoyable and well made. Love your system for taking out material. Thinking outside the box is hard to do but you sir are amazing. Also, did you find anything cool at that depth 🤔
KUDOS to you!! I am in the same boat with a 105 year old home, no head room and partial brick foundation. I have thought about doing the same thing myself. Thanks for sharing!! You must have had some sore days crawling out of bed.
Oh my goodness this brings back memories. We underpinned our 1 and a half story and finished in 2018. Took me two years to hand dig the crawlspace down to ten feet plus underpinning the foundation. I was cringing watching you bring buckets out of the basement, I hand bucketed 110 yards of pit run and clay out of our basement. Turned out so awesome, then we moved to a new house before we could even enjoy the heated concrete floor. Groan! Great job, like the epoxy window, nice touch.
Mark G You did that much work on a house and moved? If I do that much work on a house, I’m living in it for life, and the house will be put in a trust and orders in the trust and my will both shall indicate my being buried under the house.... maybe a mausoleum built into the basement.....
It’s so weird. I’ve been thinking of doing this to my crawlspace. I haven’t told anyone or searched how to do it. Then this video pops up. I don’t even know where to start.
![Lp. Сердце Вселенной #60 РОЖДЕНИЕ ЛОЛОЛОШКИ [Финал] • Майнкрафт](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/YoR0pAV9FVQ/mqdefault.jpg)
Thanks for watching The Big Dig! If you liked this, be sure to subscribe and check out our other vids, including the new Northwoods Cottage Adventure series: ua-cam.com/play/PLiqwpyKCVgsotmUkytdqE5ox_QpstM6lS.html. We're getting our hands dirty at our new (soon-to-be) idyllic lake cottage.
I've been a cement finisher for 25 years I know how long it takes to take out old concrete what a painstaking job my hat's off to you
Was expecting a 1-2 foot basement dig out, not what I was expecting at all, not even close.
Creativity level 💯
Hardwork ethic off the charts
I was internally complaining about hand digging a trench since and then I saw this video. I joyfully dug my trench today with no griping. Holy smokes! That's a big project. Thanks for the sds drill tip. That is making things go a lot faster now.
I worked as a project manager for an architect. Nice job on your basement. We did lots of basement digs but the one I handled personally was the one I did on a huge lot with a tired old house that was almost torn down. The front set back had been encroached many years before by progress and eminent domain. The house was over 120 years old and the basement was really just piled up rocks. It was so unstable the house was settling bad. I came up with the idea to dig a whole new foundation behind the house. A modern water tight, ceiling height and addition to restore a part of the house that had been dismantled earlier. When it was done we had a house mover slide the house onto it's new foundation. A historical restoration construction company was hired to restore the missing section of the house based on a single existing photo of that side of the original house. All the stone from the old basement was used to cover the new foundation material. From the outside, it looked like the original stone foundation. The front yard was graded and landscaped and a new porch added as per the original complete with salvaged brackets and gussets. The best part is we were able to restore the setbacks giving the house some much needed curb appeal. There was a seperate two car garage on the site plan that was rebuilt and the entire yard fenced. Every time I go back to NJ I try to drive by the house. Last time I saw it, there was a family living there with kids and a dog. It was great to see. Good luck with your project. I like seeing stuff like this.
would the concrete walls be cold?
Very cool story, we are about to take on a similar (little less ambitious) project in MI.
In the 1930's my grandpa's house didn't have a basement so he dug it out by hand. Cool to see people still do this!
I used to be a gravedigger as a young fella and I still remember an old guy watching me smash the concrete top off a grave I had to dig. He smiled and pointed out that by smashing the concrete into rubble I'd made my job harder. He showed me that with some well placed shots I could break it into larger hunks that I could lift out as big pieces which took less time and effort to break and was much easier to clean up.
Just seeing the bags of concrete move from one location to another caused me to throw my back out. This is an amazing amount of labor you put into this.
I was a basement waterproofer for a decade and I know how much work you put into that. I too have a short basement and have thought about doing this but damn... You're a man of commitment.
I'm glad you had an Engineer provide help and there were no issues.
Where I live you need to make sure you only remove a 3' wide section then leave at least 6' before removing the next section. Digging straight down beside the footings removes the angle of repose under the existing footings and is a very common mistake that can lead to a structural failure.
Anyone doing underpinning should always consult an Engineer and get a building permit.
The 3 pin method you describe is the standard where I live also but it wasn't always the case. It used to be dig 5 leave 5 and the slope had to be a 5/7 from the footing and you couldn't dig 2 corners on the same wall at once. This case here has here is basically all clay and it will hold if there isn't torrential rains leaking in or earthquakes, it may be risky but he pulled it off with no problems. The 3 pin method was put into place when people couldn't see the difference between clay, soil or sand and dug straight down in sand leading to collapse....they ruined it for the rest of us as all my basement digs pretty much doubled in price.
Huge congrats on the basement man the amount of work you put into that is insane, you must be really proud of it each and every time you walk into it. Thats what is all about man.
Who needs a gym in their basement when they just spent 740 hours on physical labor. 😂
Respect for this man... I’m never seen such great dedication and hard work like this in my life. It’s not just the hours put in, but the endurance of hard back breaking labour.
I love your epoxy window!
When I was growing up, people living in a house up the street jacked up their 1400ish sq ft house.... over the next decade they worked on it two or three weekends each month and a couple afternoons a week as they had money for materials. They turned that little house into a two story plus basement and three stall garage, at least three thousand square feet of living space. They didn’t take out loans for the materials and ended up paying very little for a very large house.... they still live there, and still seem to like the result of their efforts.
Wow this just made me realize how lazy I am... I think I would rather sell the house, buy a new one than do all this myself with friends
This will be a fond memory. Some peoples put their soul into their homes. Some just see it as a place to sleep
That's nothing, I installed a new handle on my toilet this morning all by myself
Robert Peters u think your cool, I changed a light bulb
That's cute, I made a peanut butter jelly sandwich ALL BY MY SELF!
I got you all beat, I installed a water hose nozzle. I can now water my yard form a distance. No more thumb woohoo!!
@@fahralyacoub8970 Psh, bet you couldn't even cut the crust off!
@@fahralyacoub8970 thats cute i made my bed with out help
Wow the work that went into this, and the knowledge and the skill are awesome. Some never take advantage of their basement and use it just for storage.
I finished ours and in 2012 had to fix a leak that ended up causing a complete gutting of our bathroom to fix it and remove the mold from the leak.
Just grateful I knew someone with a backhoe that dug out where I needed to fix the leak, saved me a lot of digging.
Many moons ago I did this type of work all the time...it kept me in good shape when I was young!
But, I didn't know when to stop and now in my mid 70's.....getting out of bed is a feat!
Keeps you young and makes you old....all at the same time!
Bought my first house and it’s a fixer upper. Definitely saving my low ceiling basement for last.
Back in '39, I helped my dad dig out a crawlspace into a full basement. It took well over a year to accomplish.
The winch and the cart for hauling out: Genius! That's working intelligently. Bravo!
I did a similar job 50 years ago, ( different reason and I only went down about three feet) I was 23 and it almost killed me. It was not too far out of the ordinary then and I saved over $10,000.00 .
Today you are one in a million and saved a bit more, if you could even find someone to do it, Congratulations .
Ha, I did same when I was 24, I'm 31 now. I would never repeat the experience ever. :))))
i have done it also....i was in my 20s.... it was great....
Ehhhhhh...... Bobby M...... Agree 10,000% sir !!! I think the video is "GOLD" !!! Hell, nobody would Believe SOMEBODY / anyone could do it !!! AND ya show 'em the vid !!! ... EXCEPT...... , I saw a fellow do a DIG, and it was EXCELLENT but it was a Movie.... Shawshank Redemption ; )
Heck he SHOULD get a Prize from UA-cam for DOING the Project..... Pretty MESMERIZING considering ..... I could be told........ "You either do it or your dead".....my reply...... " go ahead and kill me cause even if I COULD do it.....it would Kill Me Anyway "
; ) 👍👍👍✌️😷😱😳🤪😋🙄😬🤔🙃👍
probably would have been 150k job depending on where he is. This is a LOT of work. Not many would take it on at all.
Thanks for sharing. I live in a 10,000 square foot, early 1900s general store. It has a huge basement with really low ceilings. I’d love to do something like this some day. Thanks for sharing!
48 seconds in and I am so happy that you went ahead and did the electrical while you could reach the ceiling pretty easily. My goodness, I have no idea how many times I thought of something like that after I've started a project. Great thinking!
Your efforts in attempting and completing this project are only surpassed by your outstanding video work in documenting it from start to finish and editing it to a watchable length . Kudos!
This is alot of work... My dad earned a living most of his life by doing full basements under houses and buildings. Either by digging like you or lifting the house as a whole. Some houses can be lifted but some houses have too many extensions or are too heavy to be lifted.
When I was a kid my dad digged a basement under an apartment building. It was the las one he did before retiring at 57. I think it was enough for him. lol
Winch idea=EINSTEIN LEVEL thinking! Was Planning on doing the same with 5gal buckets!!! Hahaha I’d have 20” arms but quickly need reconstructive back surgery….great idea about insulation/electrical when you can still REACH the ceiling!
I don't think I've ever seen a more perfect definition of "sweat equity."
The beauty behind this. That it beats every single gift even on a special occasion. Lots of folks don't get it. The satisfaction of the project and the outcome is just endless. Years will go by and on a normal Tuesday just because You stand there with a smile and you say I DID THIS. I DID THIS. Now that's a gift that will never stop giving. Grate Job Grate Job.
"our ceilings were a little low so I added a golf course." lol. it looks amazing. Bob Ross and Bob Villa would be proud
It's absolutely ridiculous how talented you are. A master of all trade.
Next time I hear someone fuss about something being to much work I will make them watch this. Very inspiring!
Just me watching this video made me feel exhausted. You're absolutely amazing. What really made me happy and gave me that warm and fuzzy feeling inside was the fact you was always happy, smiling, spent time with family and friends. For that your project is priceless ❤️😊.
Great job, man! When I rebuilt my house, I lifted it 14" and hand dug a foundation to replace the piers. Love seeing projects like these done by the homeowners is a safe and professional manner. And theres no better full body strength workout, than a shovel!
that's an insane transformation! I have a 150 year old house and I gutted the top floor. Removed all the plaster and lathe myself. This video makes my job look easy. Awesome job!
Dedication. Great work, passion of existence.. looks really nice and i'll bet you wouldn't trade it for the world. I've been contracting for over 20 years, and it's so rare to hear a story like yours, of someone who actually jumped in and got it done the right way. Kudos
I just bought an old farm house built in 1900 and yeah, it's bad. Your video helps me imagine how to go about digging out a basement in order to resupport and repair the foundation. Anything less just won't do. Great video! Thank you.
Absolutely admirable! Tenacious spirit, determined. God bless you, your family and your friends!
Blows my mind what you have done. Not only labor intensive but your are an artist too.
Crazy, this video was recommended for me to watch.
It was a nice time lapse. You did a great job man.
Thanks so much for sharing this, i was digging out so much hard clay soil with a pick axe then was debating what level of better tool was needed. The SDS 12lbs really does the job. Really impressed by the new form footer walls you did. Great work!
I admire your visualization to the space. Congrats to you and your friends for the finished project. WOW!!
One of the most amazing UA-cam uploads I have ever seen. What an incredibly challenging project, to finish this in less than a year is a monumental accomplishment
One of the most awesome jobs I have ever seen done!
That’s an inspiring amount of hard backbreaking work. One of the best DIY project outcomes on UA-cam as I was waiting for you to run into some type of catastrophe or money suck as has happened to me all too often. Congrats.
You are going to look back on this decades from now and say “ I can’t believe I did that!”
You are a better man, then I & younger. When I dig my green house I am using a backhoe. You saved a lot of money & put a lot of work equity in the house.
I've got a basement that needs lowering and pretty much everything you've done.. however, I got no friends and I work 12h shifts monday to friday... ☹
What a marvellous job. I'm planning to get the builders in to do it for me... not sure how deep can I go through, I'm in the uk and our grounds can be tricky once you start digging.. I'm well inspired by your work though!!
OMG. WOW. OMG.
Good job! Impressive. Im finishing my basement now, (just drywall, ceiling, floor and a bit of new framing). Its 8’ tall snd for a minute I considered looking into digging out another couple feet to get higher ceilings. For a minute.
Wow! Nice job! I built a retaining wall in my basement to shore up a pudding stone foundation that was structurally compromised and creeping in. I hauled, mixed and poured 96 bags of Quickcrete. I thought mine was a major project until I saw your video! Congrats!
WellDone! BRAVO!
I have been contemplating a dig project for a while, you have provided inspiration.
My last project was. barn,
completely above-ground.
I’m going to miss people parking truck, walking across field to stand there with their hands in their pockets, to tell me that I could have built a pole barn.
I recognize a little bit of what drives you, by the artsy touches. Great Project, good luck to you, in your every endeavor.
I had a panic attack watching this. I simply couldn't believe he was going to do it. I was just waiting for the video to get to the gotcha part. But holy moly this guy is one of the rarest breeds of man on this planet. The amount of effort, stamina, rigor, and aplomb this guy has is just unmatched. Wonderful job man.
Great video! I owned an old farm estate in Northern Maine with a very low basement ceiling. Lowering the floor was one of many home improvements that were never completed before selling the property a few years back. My current home sits on the side of a hill with a nice, finished basement with 8' ceilings but I've often though about adding another floor below the current basement that goes under the side of the hill so only the access stairs would be inside the footprint of the house
Dedication!!!! Love how you kept going!!! Such motivation!!! I don’t think much people realize how much of a hard work and dedication you put into this. This why I don’t judge people!!!
My family did this in our first home, except we were able to drive a bobcat into the lowest level (house is on a hillock). Lots of buckets, concrete, a trip to the doctor for stitches in my brothers head, but it took us about 12 years, not a summer. Great work!
I’ve done big projects and when finished, it’s hard to believe the work I did. Nice job on your basement project.
I love seeing big projects. Very impressive. Some knowledge, a vision that was bugging him to death, a lot of persistence, YOUTH, helpful friends and hopefully, a patient wife. He earned his man-cave. I've kinda been there with some overly ambitious large home and landscaping projects in my 40s and early 50s. You work full time then spend every evening and weekend on your vision. Several times into the project you wonder about your sanity. Wife and most visiting female relatives will usually remind you how crazy you are (just gives you more determination). Later you look back with pride and sometimes amazement that you did that yourself. Great job.
Man! That's one heck of a weekend DIY project my back aches just from watching the video! Nice work!
Good for you!! What a boatload of work and vision. And it's a real lesson in what one can accomplish if they get up every day and go work on a goal. Very nice. And you deserve the pleasure you've created for yourself and your family. Nice job.
I have a hard enough time trying to find the motivation to paint a room. No way in heck could I do something like that! Nice work!
Great job. Looks amazing. When I renovated my basement I did the matte black ceiling as well. Best decision I made. So easy to add pipes and wiring for upstairs now.
EXCELLENT VIDEO! Makes me wish I were young again, haha! Used to love taking on projects like that but my old bones won't allow me to any more. Well done and God Bless!
Wow,that was a buttload of work...A lot deeper than I imagined you would go.You're very creative with how you finished it all...That looks like a hell of a lot more than $10,000.00! Beautiful job,hope you enjoy it!
This is the most intriguing video I have ever watched, you did an amazing and most immaculent job. I cannot phanthom doing anything like this to a basement! . My hats off to you!!!!!! Thank you for sharing!!!!
Well done young man , in the uk we say we built a basement but we always get builders to do the work and only slow them down with stupid ideas , you did it all and did it your way . You are the truth .
Absolutely spot on mate, what a fantastic job, I love the artwork too,you should be very proud ,much love from England 🇬🇧
Nice job! Huge undertaking! Happy for you! Thanks for sharing, I feel much older and lazier now. I never knew there was a shovel option for hammer drills. Interesting.
Wow! I didn’t know what to expect when I started watching this video and that came out way better than i could’ve ever imagined! Fantastic job!
Heck yes!!! This is so inspiring, I love that you did this and took the extra effort to film and photograph it so that you could share the story. WEll done, and THANK YOU! :D
Your children will be 60 years old one day and still tell the story when their dad made "the big dig"
Its amazing the amount of effort and drive u have ive been in the construction trade 33yrs and to see a homeowner tackle this amount of work and complete it and it looks amazing is jaw dropping.. the only thing i think u should of done it cut the foundation wall and installed a beam to carry the weight of the house instead of leaving the post it looked like it was 2ft from the wall other than that superb job just awsome thanks for sharing
Holy cow. Nice job. My wife bought me a book “working along”. This should be in there.
That wagon was such a great idea! Incredible work
You my friend are insane in the membrane! Mad RESPECT
My dad and uncle did the same back in 1954 with my grandparents crawl space. Very cool, thanks for the tour!
What a Great video and project! We live in a 100 year old home, so I can relate to the amount of work any project requires. I appreciate and respect ALL of the hard work it must have taken to complete it. Now it's time to go get some S**t done... Rock On!
I really love work. I think it's great. I can watch people doing it all day.
It is amazing, what do you and your friends have done.
I can t imagine how mach energy and power you have put in .
You did an amazing job and added a huge amount in your properties value. This gives a whole new meaning to sweat equity! Great job 👏🏽 👍🏽 👌 🙌🏽 🎉🎉🎉
Amazing!! Nice to be young. I used to take on projects like that. Killer job!!!
Great video this reminds me of a job my father and i did, we jack hammered out a 60'x60' concrete floor. I am jealous of your winch we werent so lucky we carried out 36,000 pounds of concrete and fill. I bought a single big plastic tote from walmart and used it to carry every single pound out. I carried the front well pulling up the stairs as he carried the rear and pushed. I fully agree about jack hammering it is honestly fun and what i like is you can easily see the progress you make.
There’s so much more room for activities now ! ! Great job that’s a lot of hard work and determination but I’d say it pays off beautiful
Done a few basements.....there rarely nice to do, this is a credit to your hard work and determination.
Well done and enjoy........
Alright “Clint Eastwood,” sounding man, this is one of the next level basements I have seen! Amazing!
Oh Boy, i need the shovel bit too! I'm saving for the same project right now, gonna be around 83m² and 1m deep digging. Greetings from germany!
Lol! I love the sing-a-long. This is outstanding. You can live a proud life after this project. You’re done.
Renovating a Home with my dad at the moment. This is A LOT of work. But you just got to keep reminding yourself to take it a little bit at a time. If you take a BIG job and break it down into little jobs it wont seem so overwhelming
Brings back memories for me. Relatives and friends thought I was crazy. I built a folding form, mixed my mud and poured into the form. The first work was a concrete block bearing wall down the center of the basement. What I had for bearing wall was ridiculous and I don't worry about sagging floors in my old house. I framed out a bedroom, a laundry room, a storage room and a computer center. The finished basement is worth it. Your space looks good and I bet you are the same as me, now. Digging a hole or handling a shovel is now an easy task.
Wow! The amount of work that went into this.
Truly amazing. It show when hard work and some thought, you can achieve anything! Thank you for sharing.
Very impressive, I am well aware of what was involved, I single handily built a 450 sq ft extension to my house a couple of years ago when I was 75, including hand digging 130 tons of soil and concrete
Not only was this short film informative, it was really enjoyable and well made.
Love your system for taking out material. Thinking outside the box is hard to do but you sir are amazing.
Also, did you find anything cool at that depth 🤔
I do not have words to say that is such an amazing work that family did😮😊
You're a smart cookie! Fantastic job, man! You seem to have an inclination to this type of work. Really great job!!!
Gotta hand it to ya. Great job. I don't see how anyone can have the time and energy to manage a family, work life, and still do this project.
Awesome project!! Love the detail, the planning that went into it and the year later thoughts.
KUDOS to you!! I am in the same boat with a 105 year old home, no head room and partial brick foundation. I have thought about doing the same thing myself. Thanks for sharing!! You must have had some sore days crawling out of bed.
Oh my goodness this brings back memories. We underpinned our 1 and a half story and finished in 2018. Took me two years to hand dig the crawlspace down to ten feet plus underpinning the foundation. I was cringing watching you bring buckets out of the basement, I hand bucketed 110 yards of pit run and clay out of our basement. Turned out so awesome, then we moved to a new house before we could even enjoy the heated concrete floor. Groan! Great job, like the epoxy window, nice touch.
Whew, sounds like that was a more herculean task than mine. Nice work!
Mark G
You did that much work on a house and moved? If I do that much work on a house, I’m living in it for life, and the house will be put in a trust and orders in the trust and my will both shall indicate my being buried under the house.... maybe a mausoleum built into the basement.....
It’s so weird. I’ve been thinking of doing this to my crawlspace. I haven’t told anyone or searched how to do it. Then this video pops up. I don’t even know where to start.
Oh hell naw all that work and you couldn't even enjoy it?! 😭
Sir, you need to be very proud of yourself. You and your family will enjoy this for years to come. I wish I had 10 percent of your dedication.
That is seriously one of the coolest transformations I've ever seen!