Do-it-yourself house disassembly/demolition?

Question

Sooner or later I'm going to have to deal with an old house that's in such bad shape that its lot would probably be worth more without it than with it.

What can I safely and legally do myself to take apart the structure using tools I can fit in the trunk of a car so as to minimize the time and effort of the hired help with heavy equipment?

Even slightly relevant comments, tips, hints, tricks, and warnings are welcome.

Answer 1

DON"T try to take it down by yourself. Leave that to a professonal demolition company.

DO take out the copper pipes and wiring, after the power is turnerd OFF, as  that is worth money as scrap metal, up to $2.00 USD a pound for copper right now. Same thing for aluminium and galvanised metal gutters and siding.

A demo company can give you an estimate for a complete tear down and removal of all the materials, leaving a hole in  the ground. . They will also get the needed local  permits and they are insured and carry worker's comp on their  employees.

Please don't try to do the tear down yourself.

Count the cost of the demo as a  part of the  valure of the lot, when you sell it for a profit.

Jim B. Toronto.

Answer 2

You can definitely take down a house with a big enough sawzall. You'll need  plenty of blades of course, and you'll need to have everything cut off, like gas, water, electricity. You will be stirring up all kinds of asbestos and lead paint dust, and possibly have environmental hazards that require certified disposal.

Once you knock it down, how are you going to deal with all the building materials? For that, you are going to need several construction dumpsters. And how are you going to load an entire house worth of wood, plumbing fixtures, etc.? By hand?

My advice is to hire someone with a front end loader to knock it down and throw away all the stuff.

Answer 3

Now that everyone is into "green" you should look into a deconstruction service that will take any usable materials for recycling in new home builds, such as Habitat for Humanity, but there are other organizations out there as well.  You never know what value others can find in an old structure.  Good luck!

Answer 4

If you want some money from uncle sam... donate the house to your local fire department to be used as a training session, and then you can deduct the house on your taxes!!! easier to clean up after burn down plus it will be a controlled burn with the fire department there...