Archive for May, 2006
Local Man Gets Foundation Repair
His name is Dennis and he lives down the street from me. I was coming back from an errand and drove past his house. All the tell-tale signs of a concrete foundation repair job in progress were there. Piles of dirt, piles of pilings, piles of caps. I went home, grabbed my digital camera, walked [...]
Posted: May 31st, 2006 under Methods of Repair.
Comments: 2
Enough with the sticking door already
I don’t know why it happened this morning but I couldn’t take any more of the silent taunting from the door that leads from the kitchen to the garage. “I’m just really hard to open and close,” it would say, “and your handy-man skills are puny. Go back to your computer.”
Maybe it was watching the [...]
Posted: May 26th, 2006 under You might need foundation repair if...
Comments: none
Is it foundation movement or something else?
If you are seeing weird things with walls or floors inside or outside of the house you may be wondering if the foundation needs repair or if something else is going on. Are those cracks in the garage walls the result of concrete foundation movement or because the space has become the rehearsal hall for [...]
Posted: May 25th, 2006 under Trade Associations, You might need foundation repair if...
Comments: none
Consider a Structural Engineer
It’s hardly ever a bad idea to seek out advice especially on a project with the expense of concrete foundation repair. In most cases for a few hundred dollars you can hire an independent professional structural engineer to inspect your foundation and recommend a method of repair that’s best for you.
You should look for a [...]
Posted: May 17th, 2006 under Choosing an Engineer, Trade Associations.
Comments: 11
Record Rainfall in Northeast U.S.
It’s pretty safe to say that once the flood waters recede in Massachusetts, New Jersey and surrounding states, some homeowners are going to need to have their concrete basements and foundations checked for possible damage.
I’ve mentioned the NRWSRC website before. You can search for listings of member contractors in your state.
It’s a place to start.
Posted: May 16th, 2006 under Choosing a Contractor, Trade Associations.
Comments: none
Foundation Repair Texas
If you have a suspect concrete foundation in Texas, the Foundation Performance Association website has a listing of geotechnical, structural, forensic, and civil engineers, inspectors, consultants, concrete foundation repair contractors and related businesses. (FPA) is a non-profit corporation in Texas.
The website says “FPA is a professional organization dedicated to advancing the knowledge and professional [...]
Posted: May 16th, 2006 under Choosing a Contractor, Trade Associations.
Comments: none
Foundation Repair Methods
How shall I level thee…let me count the ways.
Because each home and underlying soil condition can be different, there is no easy answer that applies to all concrete foundation repair situations. Each case needs to be examined individually by an independent structural engineer or professional foundation repair contractor. Some contractors will have biases to one [...]
Posted: May 15th, 2006 under Choosing a Contractor.
Comments: none
Reading the Cracks
Think diagonal.
Vertical cracks in the interior walls are not usually a sign of structural failure unless they are obviously wider at one end than the other. Your concrete foundation may be OK.
Vertical cracks in the interior walls may be unattractive and honey-do worthy, but are not usually an indication of structural failure unless they [...]
Posted: May 12th, 2006 under You might need foundation repair if...
Comments: none
Foundation Repair Trade Groups
If you are looking for information on concrete foundation repair, here are two foundation repair trade associations with websites:
The National Association of Waterproofing and Structural Repair Contractors (NAWSRC) calls itself “A professional trade association serving the public and waterproofing, structure, and foundation repair industries. Members of the NAWSRC are required to uphold strict standards of [...]
Posted: May 11th, 2006 under Choosing a Contractor, Trade Associations.
Comments: none
Who ya gonna call
I sat down with the Greater Dallas Area Verizon Yellow pages and counted concrete foundation repair contractor listings. I threw out listings for satellite offices or what appeared to be different numbers for the same or a sister company. Very unscientific to be sure, but I still ended up with 96 foundation repair contractors in [...]
Posted: May 10th, 2006 under Choosing a Contractor.
Comments: none