If your home is getting older, the foundation may start having problems. The foundation is what holds up your house, so it is constantly under a lot of pressure. Below are some signs that you will need to contact a concrete foundation contractor.
See Horizontal Cracks
If you see vertical cracks on your foundation, you generally do not have to worry about this because they are normal and caused by foundation settling. If you see horizontal cracks, however, this is a sign your foundation needs to be repaired. This is because horizontal cracks are a sign there is too much water pressure on the foundation. This means the soil pressure is unbalanced which results in horizontal cracks. The more cracks you see, the worse the problem is.
You will need to hire a professional concrete foundation repair contractor to repair your foundation for you. If you do not, you will continue to get horizontal cracks and your entire foundation will eventually fail.
To repair your foundation, the concrete foundation contractor will reinforce the walls using anchors to put the foundation back into its original position. This will close up the cracks and keep water out. This repair will prevent your foundation from collapsing, which would result in expensive repairs.
Have Leaking Pipes
You may not consider plumbing having anything to do with your foundation, but it does. If you have leaking pipes, the water will seep beneath your home and then penetrate the foundation. Over time this will lead to foundation damage. How fast this will happen depends on how bad the leak is.
If you have this problem, you may see water dripping down the side of your foundation or may see mold and/or stains on the foundation. If you have a basement, go inside, and look at the interior foundation to see if you see any of these things.
To take care of this, contact a concrete repair contractor. They may also hire a plumber to repair the leaky pipes. This is generally done by injecting epoxy into the pipe, which creates a seal around the pipe. The contractor may also inject polyurethane, which will harden after injection to create a tight seal.
The concrete foundation repair contractor that comes to your home can tell you of other foundation problems you should watch for. This will allow you to get your foundation repaired faster, which can prevent larger problems from happening.
Contact a local foundation contractor to learn more.
