How is a Home’s Foundation Repaired?

If you have had an excess of water in your basement lately, or have noticed that cracks have formed on your basement walls or on the outside of your home close to the ground, then pick up the phone and dial your local repair company or home contractor. This is no overreaction; you could possibly have a problem with your foundation. Yes, your foundation -the very thing that is holding up your home.

How Can It Be Repaired?

When it comes to repairing a foundation, every case is unique, says Stan Grabowski, manager of Small Home Repairs LLC in New Jersey, which is why it’s so important that you contact an experienced professional in your area who specializes in this line of work. First, before any work is done, your foundation problem’s cause must be confirmed so that the contractor can determine how he’ll approach the repair, which method will be used, and if any outside assistance is needed as (like an architect for example).

There are a number of reasons that your foundation could have been damaged, explains Grabowski. But one of the more common dilemmas is a shift or crack in the footing. The footing of your foundation, he says, is a poured concrete base that supports the foundation walls. It’s possible that a footing can shift or crack if no steel rebar was used when the footing was originally poured. Another possibility, he adds, is that if rebar was in fact used, but it was not positioned in the correct spot according to the building code, the footing may give way over time and cause cracks to appear.

Grabowski and his team were recently called to a job where they needed to reinforce a concrete block foundation wall. They tackled the job by building some new solid masonry piers (concrete-filled blocks) that were reinforced by steel. The new piers, he says, were built in the basement of the home directly in front of the cracked and damaged foundation wall. Then, the piers were anchored to the basement floor using a steel rebar that was set in place by a masonry epoxy and properly secured

In this instance, the finished product was a 16 inch by 16 inch protrusion along the interior wall of the basement, says Grabowski. They appeared to be columns, so they were not unsightly, he adds.

What Will It Cost?

Because foundation repair solutions are so diverse, it is hard to pinpoint a price range. Grabowski’s example of the reinforced concrete block cost the homeowner a total of $1,800 he says, including the architect’s fee for the two piers.

It’s important to note that this definitely isn’t a repair that you want to put off until you can find a cheaper rate. After all, your foundation is the base of your entire house. So, the more your foundation weakens and cracks, the more it will cost you to repair it, Grabowski advises. And because of the detailed techniques that are used, and the requirement for a vast knowledge on the subject, you never want to attempt this type of repair yourself, he adds. Rather, it should be left in the hands of a seasoned professional.