You have lived inside your house your whole life. However, you probably do not know its integral parts unless you were involved in building the house. In terms of structural components, the foundation is the first one built. After the foundation, the framing and the roof are next to be made.
Cinder blocks hold up most houses under the exterior perimeter wall of the house. Mortar holds them together and allows them to sit correctly to be there for a long time. On the other hand, the footer is placed under concrete blocks. For those who are unfamiliar with the term, the footer is the concrete poured to the ground.
If the house is built in an area with reasonably soft soil, the builder will often dig deeper into the earth, pour a concrete slab, and build the block foundation from there to make a basement. Digging less far down with no slab would be a crawl space. As a homeowner, you should know that water is the number one enemy of the foundation.
A healthy foundation does not have cracks, and if you look down the side of the wall from one end, you won’t see it leaning, bowing, or twisting. The most common problem can be found at the corners of the foundation. On the other hand, the frame is how the house is shaped and formed.
The wood framing consists of the wood from the foundation, all the way up to the roof rafters and roof decking. Around the outside of the home, the framers will tack sheathing, mostly plywood sheets, to the 2x4s. On the other hand, the roof is the shelter of every home, protecting you from environmental conditions.
There are parts of the house that are more vulnerable than others, and knowing these parts is essential for repairs. If you want to know what these parts are, you can check this infographic from Universal Contracting of Florida
