Foundation Repair Reference Articles and Books

Proper foundation repair begins with an understanding of the many factors that have influenced or may influence the concrete slab foundation or pier and beam foundation. It is helpful for the property owner to understand the engineering principles upon which a proper foundation repair are based.

Factors influencing foundation repair and house leveling include: soil type, soil and water interaction, water flow patterns around the structure, land slope, land movement including soil creep, land erosion, landslides, building site preparation, soil hydration at the time the foundation was poured, foundation design, wall and roof design, trees and vegetation, influence of neighboring structures, stability of retainer walls, dynamics of roofs and walls, building material flexibility (concrete, wood, brick, floor tile, roofing, bath tile) and finally foundation repair methods.

Techniques used to fix specific problems in concrete slab foundations and Pier and Beam foundation continue to evolve. This is why Granite Foundation Repair offers more methods than any other foundation repair company in the Dallas Fort Worth area. Some of the reference books herein date back 20 years and are included because they show specific foundation problems. The foundation repair methods in the books may be outdated or region specific. We have included Dallas Fort Worth specific articles on foundation repair, house leveling and costs as well as foundation maintenance.

In addition to providing answers to specific questions on the Foundation Repair Forum, we continue to add Foundation Repair Articles that are submitted by Dallas and Fort Worth area foundation repair professionals. These articles are written to serve the needs of residential and commercial property owners in the following Texas cities and surrounding areas: Arlington, DeSoto, Farmers Branch, Forney, Grand Prairie, Richardson, Mesquite, Garland, Allen, Plano, Carrollton Mansfied, Coppell, The Colony, Lewisville, Euless, North Richland Hills, Dallas, Fort Worth, Cedar Hill and Greenville.

Articles and white papers on foundation repair:

Comparison of Steel Piers and Pressed Concrete Piers for Residential Foundation Repair

Expectations of Concrete Slab Foundation Repair in the Dallas Fort Worth Region of Texas

DRAIN AWAY™ - An Improved French Drain System for Correcting Water Drainage Problems in the Dallas Fort Worth Area

Below is a list of recommended reading for those who want to learn more. Additional reference reading for foundation repair and house leveling may be obtained at a library.

ACI: American Concrete Institute, Repairs of Concrete Structures-Assessments, methods and risks, Seminar Course Material, 1989.

Addison, Marshall B., "Living With Expansive Soils", UTA, Arlington, Texas, 1996.

ADSC: The International. Association of Foundation Drilling and DR: Deep Foundation Institute, Drilled Shaft Inspector's Manual, 1st Edition, ADSC, Dallas, 1988.

ADSC: The International Association of Foundation Drilling and Earth Retention, "As Seen on TV: ADSC South Central Chapter Leads Effort to Expand Use of Residential Drilled Foundations", Foundation Drilling Magazine, By Ted Ledgard, March/April, 1996

Ambrose, James, Simplified Design Of Building Foundations, 2nd Edition, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1988.

Anderson, Brent , "Understanding Soil Conditions", Foundation Contractor, June 1992.

ASCE: American Society of Civil Engineers, Geotechnical Special Publication No.15, Measured Performance of Shallow Foundations, May 9, 1

ASCE: American Society of Civil Engineers, REHABILITATION, RENOVATION, AND RECONSTRUCTION OF BUILDIINGS, February 14-15, 1985.

ASCE: American Society of Civil Engineers, Geotechnical Special Publication No. 50, FOUNDATION Upgrading and Repair, October 23-26, 1905.

ASCE: American Society of Civil Engineers, Practical Guidelines for the SELECTION, DESIGN and INSTALLATION of PILES, June 1984.

ASCE: American Society of Civil Engineers, Drilled Piers and Caissons II, May 1, 1985.

ASCE: American Society of Civil Engineers, Advances in Analysis of STRUCTURAL MASONRY, September 15-18, 1981

ASCE: American Society of Civil Engineers, Serviceability of Earth Retaining Structures, Geotechnical Special Publication No 42, October 9-13, 1994.

ASCE: American Society of Civil. Engineers, SO YOUR HOW IS BUILT ON EXPANSIVE SOILS, 1995.

Benes, Rob, "Designing and building retaining walls", Landscape and Irrigation, August, 1998

Becka, Holly, "Uphill Battle-Sliding home's owners want someone to pay", Dallas Morning News, May 27, 1997.

Brown, Robert W., RESIDENTIAL FOUNDATIONS- DESIGN, BEHAVIOR AND REPAIR, 2nd Edition, Van Nostrand

Brown, Robert W., FOUNDATION BEHAVIOR AND REPAIR, 2nd Filition, McGraw-Hill, Inc., New York, 1992.

Brown, Robert W., Practical Foundation Engineering Handbook, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1996.

Carson, A. Briton, Foundation Construction, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York, 1965

Cernica, John N., Geotechnical Engineering: Foundation Design, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 1995.

Corley, Judith B. and Marsh, J.H. III and Susan M. Quiring, "Maintenance of Existing Foundations on Expansive Clay Soils", Home Construction Series, Texas A & M University,1985.

Day, Robert W., "Differential Movement Of Slab-On-Grade Structures", Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities, Vol. 4, No, 4, November, 1990

Eastwood, David A. and Peverley, Richard W., "Development Of Design And Remedial Measures For Lightly-Loaded Structures Founded On Expansive Soils With Trees In Mind".

FEMA: Federal Emergency Management Agency, Rapid Visual Screening of Buildings for Potential Seismic Hazards: A Handbook, Applied Technology Council, April 1988.

Freeman, T.J. and Littlejohn, G.S. and Driscoll, Richard M., Has your house got Cracks, Institution of Civil Engineers and Building Rese Establishment, Thomas Telford House, I Heron Quay, London, England, 1994.

Garrett, Howard, "Trees and Shrubs to avoid in North Texas", Dallas Morning News, December 4, 1998.

Goodwin, Charles J and Segner, Robert 0. and Claycamp, Carrol D., and Quiring, Susan, "What Prospective Custom Homebuyer Should Know About Foundations", Home Construction Series, Texas A & M , 1985.

Greenfield, Steven J., and. Shen, C.K., Foundations In Problem Soils, PRENTICE HALL, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1992

Handy, Richard L., The Day The House Fell, ASCE Press, N York, New York, 1995.

Holtz, Wesley G.o and Hart, Stephen S., "Home Construction Shrinking And Swelling Soils", National Science Foundation, October, 1978.

Jones, D. Earl and Karen A., "Options for Building on Expansive Clay soils.",1986.

Koenig, Arthur S., "Slab-on-grade deflection: How much is too much?", 7th International Conference, Dallas, Texas, 1992

Kozicki, Paul, Engineering Foundation Package Designed To Perform In Areas With Potentially Active Clay Soils, G.E. Ground Engineering LTD, 1992.

LePatner, Barry B. and Johnson, Sidney M., STRUCTURAL AND FOUNDATION FAILURES, McGraw Hill, New York, 1982.

Liu, Cheng and Evett, Jack B., Soils and Foundations, 2nd Edition, Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J. 1987.

Meehan, Richard L. and Lawrence B. Karp, California I-lousing Damage Related To Expansive Soils", Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities, Vol. 8, No. 2, May 1994.

Meyer, Kirby T., "DEFINING FOUNDATION FAILURE", Fall Meeting of Texas Section of ASCE, 1991.

Mitchell, James K., and Raad, Lutfi, "Control Of Volume Changes In Expansive Earth Materials", FHA Workshop, December 1345, 1972.

Raabe, Steve, "Soil Problems Can be Curbed", Denver Post, February 3, 1994.

Rainger, Philip, Movement Control in the Fabric of Buildings, Nichols Publishing Co., New York, 1983

Warren, Susan, "Builders Could Do More to Avoid Foundation Problems, Critics Say", Texas Journal- Wall Street Journal, Wednesday, June 19, 1996.

Wilcox, F.E., "Everything you always wanted to know about foundations, but, were afraid to ask", 3rd printing, 1992.

Repair Methods

• Steel piers
• Helical piers
• Concrete piers
• Soil injection
• Mudjacking
• Drainage
• Tunneling
• Root barrier

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Foundation Problem Signs

• Brick cracks
• Sloping floor
• Sticking window
• Cracks in walls
• Cracks in floor
• Cracks in tile
• Sunken floor
• Bouncy floor (Pier & Beam)

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Granite's Lifetime Warranty

All of Granite's foundation repairs are guaranteed by a fully transferable warranty. Our goal is to fix it right the first time and we stand behind our work. Learn more about our lifetime transferable warranty...

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