Archive for the ‘Signs of Foundation Problems’ Category

Foundation Problems and Wedge Cracks at Foundation Corners

Friday, August 27th, 2010

Here is an apparent sign of a foundation problem that is only  a superficial foundation problem.

In the photo you can see that the corner of the foundation has broken away. This wedge shaped failure  is common to foundations in Dallas and Fort Worth.  The wedge breaks away due to the weight of the brick above it.  This is a purely cosmetic foundation problem. There is no cause for concern.  If this is the only sign of a foundation problem, the foundation is not failing.

Wedge break in foundation at corner

Wedge break in foundation at corner

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Signs of foundation problems in concrete slabs.

Sunday, August 22nd, 2010

Foundation problems in concrete slabs need prompt attention.

Here are pictures of cracks in foundations. When cracks like this are evident, there are usually cracks in sheet rock and masonry or brick.

The price for repairing these foundation problems will be in the range of $2000 to $7000.  At Granite Foundation Repair we offer a number of reliable repair methods to choose from.

Price of foundation repair will require extensive analysis

Price of foundation repair will require analysis by a foundation repair specialist
foundation failure Granite Foundation Repair picture. Dallas Ft Worth Texas

Foundation failure Granite Foundation Repair picture. Dallas Ft Worth Texas

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Cracks in Brick..Do I have a Serious Foundation Problem?

Sunday, August 8th, 2010

Brick cracks are an early sign of  foundation movement.

The standard rule of thumb is that foundation movement in excess of 1 inch in 360 inches will cause brick to crack.  Cracks may appear either along a mortar line, or across bricks.

Whenever cracks appear in brick, it is time to have the foundation evaluated.   A trained professional can help determine if underpinning is warranted, or if the problem can be stabilized with drainage correction.

In a perfect world, all foundations in the Dallas Ft Worth area would be supported by piers.  The unfortunate reality is that most building codes inadequately protect the home and home owner against our expansive clay soils.

While it may be cost prohibitive to wrap the house with piers, stabilizing the wall which has brick cracks is warranted.  Cracks in mortar are easily repaired, but physical cracks in the brick demand costly brick replacement.

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Will my house builder fix my foundation problem?

Sunday, October 4th, 2009

First, you and the builder need to agree that the foundation needs to be repaired.

In the Dallas – Fort Worth area, all concrete slab foundations move with seasonal changes in soil moisture.  The foundations are designed with reinforcing steel to allow for some of this movement.

Brick veneer walls have expansion joints to allow for some foundation movement.   Sheet rock and hard floor tile are not as forgiving.

So when is a crack a foundation problem?

Often there is not a clear line between cosmetic foundation problems and structural foundation problems.  Some cracks are almost inevitable.   A good home builder can discern the difference and will fix a foundation problem.

There are a few bad apples in the home building industry who have never seen a foundation problem.  At least not with any home that they have built.

How do you resolve a standoff with your builder? You are still within the 10 year warranty period and the clock is ticking.  The best way to resolve a standoff is to have a professional evaluation of your foundation.  A reputable foundation repair company can spot the clear cut problems as well as the grey areas.  For the grey areas, your builder will most likely insist upon an evaluation by a professional foundation engineer.  Do yourself a favor, and hire an independent engineer who has not ties with the builder.   The evaluation will cost $350-$500, but the professional resolution is priceless.

Don’t fret about the problem.  Call a professional.  Once you have the professional’s report in hand, you will be in a better position to reach a satisfactory resolution with your builder.

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Cracks in my outside brick wall.

Monday, September 28th, 2009

Brick and mortar cracks in DallasCracks in a brick wall are an early sign of a foundation problem. Have your cracks and the  foundation looked at by a foundation repair specialist.

When a concrete slab bends, or curves downward along a brick wall, that brick wall will eventually break.

When a break or crack follows the mortar line, the damage from foundation failure is easily repaired with mortar touch up. When stress causes brick to fracture, bricks must be replaced.  Brick replacement may cost $100-$200 per linear foot.

Addendum: recently a reader who repairs foundations wrote in that most cracks can be closed with foundation underpinning.  In a lot of cases this is true.  But to raise customer expectations when it is not a sure thing is disingenuous. 

At Granite Foundation Repair, we advise our customers that cracks may close.  To say otherwise, to say that they will,  is promising the moon in order to close the sale.  We have seen brick cracks close almost completely on one side of a house, while cracks barely close up on another side of the same house.   This is why we always recommend that  foundation underpinning be performed early.   When a customer postpones foundation repair, it is not always possible to put Humpty Dumpty back together again.  

So if you think that you have a foundation problem, you can minimize your foundation repair cost by nipping the problem in the bud.   Cracks in mortar can be easily repaired/touched up.  And as we said earlier, cracks in brick are quite costly.

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Why is wooden trim separating at the top corner of my brick wall? Foundation is concrete slab.

Sunday, September 27th, 2009

Trim Separation

Trim separation suggests a foundation problem

Here is a photo of trim separation.  This problem was not caused by poor carpentry.

Corner trim separation is a tell-tale sign of a  foundation problem.

As the concrete slab drops on an outside  corner, the brick veneer walls in that area remain somewhat perpendicular to the slab, while the trim remains affixed to the roof system.  The result is that the brick veneer pushes outward on the trim.

One trick for hiding the foundation problem is to caulk and paint the trim.   A thick caulk joint at what should have been a perfectly aligned carpentry corner is a dead give-away of a foundation problem.

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Why can’t I lock my door?

Sunday, September 20th, 2009

The strike plate is the part of the lock that attaches to the door frame. The latch goes through the strike plate to form the secure lock or positive closure to the door.  When the latch is misaligned with the strike plate the door will not lock.

When the latch is misaligned with the strike plate, either the hinges are loose, or the door frame is warped.

Use a carpenter’s square to check the inside of the door frame.  If it is out of square, there may be a foundation problem.   Give the guys at Granite Foundation Repair a call for a no cost evaluation to the home owner.

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Why is my door sticking? Do I have a foundation problem?

Sunday, September 20th, 2009
4  things to check when you have a sticking door:
  1. Are the door hinges properly affixed and tight?
  2. Look at the threshold.  Has the threshold below the door worked loose and up, or have screws in the threshold worked loose and are rubbing against the bottom of the door.
  3. On an exterior door, is loose or worn weather stripping interfering with the door movement.
  4. Has the door frame been bent or warped from its normal shape?  Use a carpenter’s square.  If the frame is not square, you probably have a foundation problem.

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Why are there cracks in my concrete slab foundation?

Sunday, September 20th, 2009

Three reasons for cracks in a concrete slab foundation:

  1. Stress at an outside corner can cause a wedge shaped corner to crack.  This is not a problem.
  2. Surface cracks may have occurred as the cement was curing. This is not a problem.
  3. The crack could be indicative of a foundation problem.  You will need to call a foundation repair company such as Granite for a foundation evaluation.   Such inspections are usually free to the property owner when performed by a foundation repair company.

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I am buying an older home in Arlington. The home inspector’s report says there are some signs of foundation movement.

Saturday, September 12th, 2009

First of all, houses in Arlington are no more susceptible to foundation problems than houses in other parts of the DFW Metroplex.

Now let’s consider the home inspector’s report.  You’ve already spent several hundred dollars for a home inspector’s report, the clock is ticking on your option period, and there is a small red flag.  Prudence says.. hire a foundation engineer.  But still, you say, it was only three sentences in a thirty page report.

99 out of a hundred home inspectors behave beyond repute. If you got that 1 in a hundred, the bad apple, he may be more concerned with making the realtor happy, than causing your realtor to lose the sale.

In the Dallas Fort Worth area, it is going to cost around $400 for a professional engineer’s evaluation. Perhaps more than the cost of the home inspection.

Don’t be penny wise and pound foolish. Contact a professional foundation engineer and schedule a thorough inspection of that foundation.

You may say.. “what about a free foundation inspection from a foundation repair company”.  It is unfortunate, but the foundation evaluator may understate the extent of the problem.  He gets nothing unless you buy the house and have the foundation repaired.

At Granite Foundation Repair, we won’t fudge.  We call the foundation as it appears.  Occasionally that kills the deal.  That is why we charge for our evaluation to home buyers.

We always suggest that you get a professional analysis using a registered engineer with demonstrated competency in foundation inspections.  Call us and we will put you in contact with an engineer who has no skin in the game.

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Why is my ceramic tile floor cracking? I live in a new home in Frisco.

Saturday, September 12th, 2009

Rigid ceramic tile are particularly susceptible to foundation movement.   With seasonal changes in moisture, the clay soil in Frisco will cause some flexing of a concrete slab foundation.

There is no practical way to isolate rigid tile from foundation movement.  A properly constructed and reinforced concrete slab will withstand considerably more foundation movement than rigid ceramic tile.  The combination of steel and concrete is relatively pliable when compared to rigid tile. Carpet and wood flooring are much more tolerant of foundation movement.

You probably do not have a foundation problem. To be on the safe side, have your foundation checked by an independent foundation engineer.

If your foundation movement is within acceptable tolerances, consider changing to a wood or carpeted floor covering.

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Concrete is broken at an outside corner of my slab, do I have a foundation problem?

Saturday, September 12th, 2009

In all probability, you don’t have a foundation problem.  Due to stress from the walls, it is not uncommon for a wedge shaped piece of concrete to break off or crack at an outside corner.

Typically, at the top of the slab, the break will extend 4-8 inches from the corner, along both edges of the slab. The break will taper down to 1-2 inches at the bottom.  The concrete wedge may or may not fall off.

Now if you can see a post tension cable protruding from the concrete wedge, you probably need a post tension cable specialist to repair the concrete and assure proper cable tension.  It is important for all post tension cables and cable anchors to be well maintained.

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Why do I have a bump in the middle of my floor?

Friday, September 11th, 2009

A bump that appears over time in a concrete slab floor is called foundation upheaval.

The cause is most likely a plumbing leak.  When water seeps into our expansive clay soil, it expands.  The soil in many areas of Dallas and Fort Worth will expand by as much as three to eight inches. This expansion exerts a tremendous force on the concrete floor, and can create a bump or mound.

The leak may be in either a freshwater or sewer line.

Before you say.. but I don’t have any plumbing in that part of the house.. consider two scenarios.

  1. Water has drained from another part of the plumbing system. Water can follow a path of soft soil that was created during construction.   This commonly occurs when a design change occurs during construction, that re-routes either plumbing or a concrete beam.  They dig a new hole and loosely fill the old hole.
  2. Plumbing is normally layed out to feed from a central point to the various places of water usage.  Two bathrooms in opposite ends of the house will be connected to the sewer line in a Y connection with feeder pipe to save pipe and construction costs.  The leak may be in a feeder pipe.

A bump in the middle of a floor is seldom in itself a foundation problem.  The water leak can lead to major foundation problems when left alone.  If left alone, it will eventually undermine the soil supporting your foundation.

So if you have a bump in the concrete slab, call a plumber today.

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My doors don’t stick, so why may I have a foundation problem?

Friday, September 11th, 2009

It is a common myth.. “my doors don’t stick, so I must not have a foundation problem.”  We hear this a lot at Granite Foundation Repair, Inc.

The signs of concrete slab foundation problems are quite varied.   With respect to a sticking door, the door frame must be twisted out of rectangular for the door to stick.  If the door is over a foundation section that is uniformly sinking, there will be no twist in the wall, and no twist in the door frame. There will not even be cracks in the wall.

Looking to a wall at right angles to the wall and foundation that is dropping, you will find a cracked wall, probable stuck door, and cracks radiating away from the door frame. These are all  signs of foundation problems.

Crack in brick or masonry indicates foundation problem

Crack in brick or masonry indicates foundation problem

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My builder says I don’t have a foundation problem, but I am worried.

Tuesday, September 8th, 2009

Home builders do everything possible to build solid foundations.  But there are a few who will do everything possible to avoid admitting to a problem.

Sure, they will say, you have some movement.  There may be cracks, caulk failures around windows, widening expansion joints, or sticking doors, but that is “all normal for the Dallas – Fort Worth area”.

To that we say – “malarky”.  If you believe there is a problem, get the advice of an independent expert.

Give us a call at Granite Foundation Repair, and we will put you in touch with a professional foundation engineer. You need an independent advocate whose only role is to provide a fair foundation evaluation.

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