Do tree roots cause foundation damage?
It doesn’t take a genius to see that tree roots can do bad things to sidewalks. Like turn a section of one into a skateboard ramp. These are photos of oak tree vs. sidewalks in my neighborhood.
In some cases, the tree roots are winning. In other stretches of the sidewalks you can see slumping as the soil underneath erodes or settles. The question is can tree roots do damage like this to the foundation of your house? There seems to be a debate.
The websites of many foundation repair contractors list trees being too close to foundations as a possible source of damage. They often recommend a “root shield” solution where you (or they) install barriers all around the foundation to keep tree roots from getting under the slab. Can tree roots really lift a foundation with the weight of the house and all the stuff in it? Just wondering.
Filed under: Tree Roots and Shrubs
A tree branch has come through the basement floor underneath the porch. HOw can I destroy this tree from doing further damage. Can I drill a hole in the middle and put salt in it? Will this kill it. I need your help! Right now it looks like a miniture tree trunk, oval in shape about the size of a canaloupe and it has sap running out of it. in the same area a horizontal crack is running about in the middle of the wall. Could this branch be causing this?
It would be better to cut the branch at some point outside of the basement to stop it from coming in any further. As it dies you can speed up the decay by drilling holes and filling them with an organic fertilizer. If the budget allows I would have a tree company come over and take a look. Whether or not the branch is causing the crack, it needs to go.