foundation inspection

Foundation Repair-Underpinning with Hybrid Piers

The three most common ways of underpinning a home foundation in need of repair are steel piers, pre-cast concrete cylinders (or push piers) and the drilled bell bottom piers. Each method has it’s pros and cons and affects the cost of foundation repair.

Steel piers can be shoved into the ground deeper than concrete cylinders because they have a smaller diameter. Using concrete cylinders provides more surface area for the “skin friction” concept of engineering. The drilled bell bottom piers is the oldest method of foundation repair and still widely used although this method takes the most time.

I’m watching TV the other day and here comes a commercial for the Olshan foundation company pitching a combination of steel and concrete cylinders for a foundation fix.

Here’s the claim: (more…)

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Link To Foundation Inspection Report Repaired

In 2006 I had my concrete slab foundation inspected by a local structural engineer and wrote about it on this blog. I also scanned his report into a PDF file and posted it. However, in the throes of changing hosting companies the link to this report was broken and remained so for some time.  The link to the inspection report has now been fixed. My apologies for taking so long to do so.

If you’d like to see a sample of the kind of information you should get back when hiring an independent structural engineer to inspect your slab foundation you’ll find the link in this post.

You’ll need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the report and you can get it here.

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The Smart Way to Use Foundation Repair Coupons

You have the classic signs of concrete slab foundation distress. OK, your house does. Doors and windows don’t work right, you have cracks around the frames or cracks in your brick veneer. You think your foundation is going to need some work. Then you open the mail or the newspaper and there it is. A “valuable coupon” offering a tidy little sum off the foundation repair job.

The fine print says you must present the coupon at the time you receive your free estimate. It also says you only have a couple of weeks to make that call or the coupon expires. What to do?

First, take a deep breath and rest in the knowledge that these coupons will be coming back around every few weeks. Unless you have really sudden and severe damage to your house and foundation you have some time to make an educated choice. (more…)

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