Concrete Foundation Repair Methods

If you have noticed when looking at the outside of your home cracked foundation, displaced moldings, cracked bricks, or separation from windows or garage door you may have foundation issues. Inside your home, the warning signs include cracks in the floor and cracked sheetrock. The earth under your home can shift and move from rain or even earthquakes that are miles away, this can cause you to experience foundation issues that need to be addressed or the damage to your home or building can increase.

Throughout the years, there have been different methods used to repair foundations including pouring, turning or forcing something into the ground and slabs to try to support or repair the foundation. In most cases, these attempts did not solve the issue but only temporarily held the foundation in place for a short amount of time. The more successful method often involved moving out of the home or business while the foundation repair was being completed.

Today, with the advancements in technology, foundation repair is successful without moving workers, families, and all the furniture out of the building. When concrete sinks will need to b repaired or the damage will eventually cause even more damage to the structure. The methods today do not cause the same disruptions to life as they once did when repairing foundations.

The main foundation repair methods utilized today are hydraulic jacking, which is commonly known as piering and slabjacking. Hydraulic jacking is when steel posts are forced through the soil and the jack raises the concrete slabs that have changed due to the soil underneath. Slabjacking is done by pumping grout below the slab or beam that will cause it to life until it is at the correct level.

In order to decide which is the best foundation repair option, a professional will analyze the problem and learn what is causing the distress. After examining the trim boards, moldings, brick veneer, windows, and mortar joints along with the recent weather in the area.

In the majority of cases for swimming pool decks, driveways, and slabs for homes, slab jacking is often the best option. This method will involve pumping grout into small holes that are created in the concrete slab. This concrete will create a mass that will move the slab back into place and will also stabilize the foundation. In most cases, the concrete will be mixed with soil and lime to ensure better success of not having the same problem occur at a later date.

In cases of large buildings and homes in which the foundation has slipped, hydraulic jacking is often chosen. Mechanical jacks are used to lift the foundation beam that has settled into the ground. Once the beam is lifted to the proper height, it will be held in place by footing and pier. The footing will be set at the right depth to ensure that the load is distributed correctly at which time the pier will be tied to the footing with steel which will aid in supporting the foundation beam.