Foundation Repair Methods for Slab Homes
- Pressed concrete piers
- Short precast cylinders pushed down under the edge beam with a hydraulic jack until they reach the resistance the plan calls for.
- Steel push piers
- Steel sections pushed down the same way, able to reach deeper.
- Helical piers
- Steel shafts with screw-like plates turned into the ground, for lighter loads, porches and additions.
- Crack sealing and brick repointing
- Done after the movement is fixed, to close cracks in the slab and the brick.
Foundation Repair Methods for Pier and Beam Homes
- Re-shimming
- Jacking the beam and replacing dried, crushed wood shims with steel ones.
- Resetting or adding piers
- Replacing blocks that tipped or sank, and adding supports where the spacing is too wide.
- Beam, sill and joist repair
- Replacing wood that has rotted, usually from a damp crawl space.
- Crawl space encapsulation
- A liner, closed vents and a dehumidifier, so the repair stays dry.
How a Job Runs in Corpus Christi
- Visit and estimate. The contractor measures floor levels, cracks and doors, and proposes a scope in writing.
- Engineer and permit. Inside the city, foundation repairs need a permit with an engineered, sealed foundation plan. The engineer may visit before the plan is drawn.
- Plumbing test. On a slab home, many contractors ask for one before lifting.
- Locates and prep. Buried lines are marked, and plants or flatwork along the work area are moved.
- The repair. One to a few days for most pier or re-leveling jobs.
- Lift and record. The house is raised slowly, and each pier's depth and reading is written down.
- Restore and report. Holes are backfilled, and the engineer or contractor provides the final documents the plan calls for.
Can You Live in Your House During Foundation Repair?
Almost always. Piers under a slab go in from outside, and pier and beam work happens under the house. Plan for noise, digging in the yard and a crew coming and going from the crawl space access. Water may be shut off briefly for a plumbing test.
During a lift, doors may stick or swing differently and some drywall cracks may close while new hairline ones appear. Things usually settle down when the work is done.
Afterward
- Keep the contract, engineer documents, permit, pier log and warranty together for when you sell.
- Keep gutters clean, downspouts long and the soil around a slab at a steady moisture.
- Mark any remaining cracks and check them over the following year.
More on house leveling and foundation piers, crawl space repair, foundation crack repair and concrete leveling.