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Home Repair

Major Signs That Tell You Need Foundation Repair

For many home and building owners in Texas, the discovery of structural problems in their home may come as a shock, and further discovery that they have foundation problems is a nightmare. Foundations are the basic structures that give your home and building stability and support that is required for a long time. While you consider patching up the crack with mortar, the cause of the problem when not discovered and quickly fixed could persist for longer, bringing with it the uncertainty of safety. In San Antonio, the clay soil poses a huge problem for homeowners during the different weather seasons and could interfere with the foundation of homes.

Common Signs to Look Out for

The causes of major problems vary, but for the residents of San Antonio, the recurring cause seems to be the soil type. When you hire Foundation Repair in San Antonio, TX, they should properly compact the ground around your property to ensure it doesn’t get loose over time and cause settling.

When your home experiences settling, major problems such as shifting of the piers and beams happen. Settling is the leading cause of structural damage and the signs are visible as cracks in brick and block walls, cracked basement walls, doors, and windows that won’t open freely, wall rotation, and separated chimneys. Cracked block is the most visible sign to observe, and while patching it up with some mortar and a fresh coat of paint might seem like the best solution at the time, the root of the problem is the foundation of the structure, and it could recur at any moment. Cracks render the structural integrity of any building weak, and they are the main sign of problems. Cracks appear mostly in basement walls and other surrounding structures due to the sinking of the soil around the building.

  Another sign to look out for is wall rotation, which typically happens when a soil contraction due to excess water around your foundation that creates excess pressure on your walls causing them to buckle or rotate. Early discovery or the exact cause of wall rotation could come in handy when tailoring the best solution to use in the repair. Wall rotation is the leading cause of cracks, and it mostly indicates a greater underlying problem such as drainage issues.  For those homes with chimneys, any separation from the supporting wall is an indicator of a compromised foundation. Chimneys detach from the support structure due to the shrinking of the soil around the structure. The shrinkage causes separation and sinking and later on, the chimney could fall off the rest of the wall completely.

A universal sign that might be overlooked by many homeowners is windows and doors that won’t open or close freely. The movement of doors and windows is an indication of separation of the frames from the walls because of settling. The disturbed frame could change the shape of the frame hence causing the doors or windows to be faulty when opening. Tenants and homeowners should inspect their basements frequently as these are the areas more prone to the effects of settling as they are closer to the foundation.