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Show Foundation in Home Shows Its Condition Several suggestions that will help every one wdio Is contemplating Che purchase of a house are made in a letter contributed by a reader to Liberty." "J'.efore you buy a house," he writes, "you should start with the basement and examine the walls for water stains and horizontal water lines caused by water seepage, or water standing in the basement, "Tlie foundation and retaining walls should be inspected for proper thickness," thick-ness," be continues. "A minimum width for main foundation walls below grade for a light-frame structure of cue or two stories should not be less thun 10 inches, if of concrete ; 13 inches If of brick, and 18 inches for stone. "Concrete walls having a sandy or clayey appearance are deficient in cement, ce-ment, or else are constructed of bank sand and gravel containing a large percentage of loam. Such walls should be examined for sand and loam pockets, pock-ets, which are detrimental to the walls' structural strength and permit the entrance en-trance of water. "The wall plate or mud sill, which lies directly upon the foundation and upon which the floor rests, should be minutely examined for dry rot and decay. de-cay. This Is generally the first member mem-ber of a dwelling's superstructure that goes bad." |