Old house no footings

[Ash9090]

hi everyone,
After a bit of help, we’ve bought a Devon longhouse which is 200 years old. It had damp lower walls as the ground level outside was a lot higher than inside so we’ve started to dig it out and put a French drain in. We’ve since found out the original part of the house seems to have no footings. It looks as though it’s sitting on clay. Is this right/okay?
http://www.photobox.co.uk/album/5320726774

[Argyll]

Didn't you get a structural survey before purchasing? It may tell you on that.

[steviejoiner74]

I’ve worked on many properties simply built on bedrock,clay or even sand and they were all standing into the 21st century with no problems.

[Job and Knock]

I live in a Victorian house which has stone footings on one side but on the other side the walls are raised straight off the bedrock. We are on a steep hill but despite that the house hasn't moved in 150 years. I've lived in an even earlier house in this area (1605) which had no footings and rubble infill walls. That one's still standing as well, although the Victorian lean-to extension looks like it could do with some work on it. In neither case were there any adverse comments in the (full) survey

[mick.mh2racing]

Concrete footings are a fairly modern invention. I had a victorian terrace that was built without concrete footings. Think it might be called a spread footing where you dig a hole and put about 4 bricks wide. Next course up down to 3 bricks wide and so on.
In your case, the house has stood for more than a century so it's unlikely to move now.

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