Thanks John and Ron for your thoughts.
Vibrations are an issue and that's why I'm trying to get as much information as I can. I'm sure if I had a pier the vibrations would be at a minimum, it's just working out how to do this neatly so that it's not an eye-sore in the rumpus room (old garage).
Thinking, thinking, thinking - it never stops!
Cheers,
Mario