Hi Danny :) We lost our home to fire just this last November, I can relate to your current fears. Have you already chosen a builder? I ask because we chose one pretty quickly and he has helped us to navigate how insurance claims work and eased our fears tremendously. Our initial estimate didn't include replacing the joist system either, and, like you, I was ready to be really upset. But our builder calmed me and said this is just how it works. Apparently, this is standard operating procedure. It is far more expensive to mitigate than to just replace in most cases, but insurance companies want proof of that. He sent them the estimates and cleaning/sealing was way more expensive than tearing it out and replacing it. So here we are today, finishing demo and my builder tells me they are paying to replace the joist system. Apparently, it is twice as expensive to keep it. So I wouldn't go all "guns blazing" just yet. Your builder can make the case to replace instead of repair. Our insurance company sent our initial checks to replace the house (policy limit payout) around the same time we were hiring our builder. The builder has since submitted claims for code upgrades and claim changes... and the insurance company has sent those checks along in a timely manner. We also have replacement coverage and he will make the claim for those funds after the items are installed (though very little was "depreciated" in our claim even though the house was 50 years old). When I was interviewing builders and discussing some of the things I was concerned about regarding Insurance replacement, they all said pretty much the same thing, "Don't worry about that, that's our job". Knowing that he knows when/how/the right time to argue a point, makes my role in this so much easier. I can't recommend a Public Adjuster because we didn't use one. And in hindsight, I'm glad we didn't. We didn't end up needing one. But even if we needed one today, we could still hire, so no need to get in a hurry. They'll still be there if for some reason you did need them later. At the end of the day I just couldn't pull the trigger on paying someone $$$$ to "do battle" for me, when I wasn't even sure there was gonna be a fight. It turned out to be the right choice for us. Our claim has been paid at full policy limits for structure, we are able to put our home back and even make improvements with the settlement with no problem, and our builder has made code upgrade claims that have been paid without issue. Our contents claim is not finished yet, but I did the inventory after the fire myself. It took me 4 days, and it was very cold and WET, but I saved myself $14,500 by not hiring the PA. The initial itemized list the insurance company gave us after their inventory was reasonable... but there were some things I saw that were missing (things that one would have to dig under the debris to locate... and I knew we would get a better resolution if I put in the work to locate and document them. I have not seen the settlement yet, but my contents adjuster says to expect it to be at or very close to policy limits...and that we also have 3 years to buy everything back and submit receipts to recoup additional replacement costs. So NOT hiring a PA has saved me $55,000... and hiring my well qualified/experienced large loss builder - early in the process has saved me a ton of stress. I hope this helps in some small way. Hang in there.

We just moved a 1300 sq ft old frame house 8 months ago. We moved it 13 miles. The moving company also built the foundation. It was 2' wide by 2' deep concrete chain walls with cinder block pillars. We wanted the house raised 3 1/2' off the ground. The move took 9 hours and had its drawbacks due to our parish and city authorities being the usual #$#holes they are. The problem involved low hanging Oak tree limbs and no utility companies showing up to raise the wires. Out house had to be cut in half to move it down our narrow country roads. The company did an excellent job and unless you're looking at the floor between the door jamb of the hall/den, you can't tell it was ever cut. We're in the process of totally remodeling the house right now and adding on an additional 500 sq ft. I'm having a blast and would love to do it again! Here is a link to all my Haulin' House pics and the inside of the original house. Here is a link that might be useful: Haulin' House

Hairline cracks in a newly poured concrete foundation walls are normal and are caused due to concrete shrinkage during curing stages. Hairline cracks 1/16" wide vertical cracks. Some vertical cracks 1/8" or wider could be a sign of distress and they might have to be evaluated.

Big is a relative term. Is it big as in LONG? Like 10’ feet long? Or big as in spread WIDE APART, dividing two areas of concrete with a chasm? i assume you are talking about a flat horizontal surface - the floor. No?