How to Repair Foundations

The first rule of repairing your foundation is: the sooner you start, the better.

Even if your house is still on safe footing, unless you correct the causes, even the smallest foundation issue will continue to get worse until it becomes a big problem.

How you fix a foundation depends on the problem.

• Sagging Foundation

  • What is it?: When the earth surrounding it does not support a foundation evenly, it will sag in certain spots.
  • Symptoms: Doors and windows jamming, wall cracks, tilted chimneys.
  • The Fix: A piering system beneath the home, attached to dense soil or bedrock will give your foundation solid support
  • Recommendation: Clarke’s Foundation Supportworks’ push piers and helical piers

• Bowing Foundation Walls

  • What is it?: Severe pressure outside a foundation wall will cause it to bow.
  • Symptoms: Cracked foundation wall, partial or complete collapse of the wall, extensive damage to the house above
  • The Fix: The best solution is a wall anchoring system – it is adjustable, so if the problem recurs, correcting it is simple, and wall anchors do not take up much space in your home
  • Recommendation: Clarke’s Foundation Supportworks’ wall anchor system featuring galvanized steel wall plates and earth anchors joined by steel connecting rods.

• Crawl Space Repair

  • What is it?: Homeowners somtimes forget about their crawl space, but it is an important part of the support system of your home. Crawl spaces are often exposed to very damp conditions, which makes the soil around the crawl space unstable.
  • Symptoms: Dampness from the soil can damage crawl space support beams, which sag and cause damage elsewhere in the home.
  • The Fix: To stop and correct sagging, a jack can be installed on a solid base to support the structure of your home.
  • Recommendation: Foundation Supportworks offers the SmartJack as part of their crawl space structural support system. SmartJacks not only stop crawl space problems, they can put your home’s structure back in line.

• Street Creep

  • What is it?: Believe it or not, the road in front of your home can affect your foundation as it expands and contracts in winter’s cold and summer’s heat. The movement can push your driveway concrete against your garage pad or foundation.
  • Symptoms: Foundation wall deflection and cracking, especially where the garage floor and foundation meet.
  • The Fix: When refinishing your driveway, expansion joints can be installed between the driveway and garage to allow for the expansion and contraction. However, these joints often fill with stones and debris, which stop the joints from doing their job...
  • Recommendation: Foundation Supportworks Wall Anchor System will stabilize your garage floor, which means no more damage to your foundation wall.

The sooner you identify and repair your foundation problem, the easier it will be to fix and the more money you will save.