Having a basement with walls bowing walls is something that makes any homeowner uneasy. There is, of course, the concern about the house's structural integrity, there is the risk of collapsed walls and mud filled basements, and the imminent loss of the property's market value, if you happen to be selling such a home. You simply can't sell a home with a bowing foundation wall, and you can't hide it either.
Basement walls start to bow when moisture and seasonal changes in the soil around the foundation cause a pressure that exceeds the home's load-bearing capacity.
The first signs of this kind of problem are usually small horizontal or "stair step" type cracks on the walls, with or without water seepage. Because they start small, some homeowners tend to dismiss or patch them up. A mistake that can cost them dearly, a few months down the road.
Stair step cracks in block walls and horizontal cracks in concrete are always a reason for concern, and the longer you take to act, the more expensive will be the solution.
Fortunately there are today, cost effective options to deal with a bowing foundation wall, which do not involve complete foundation wall replacements.
Foundation replacement should be only thought of as a last resource, because of the enormous amount of work, expense and disruption involved.
The foundation needs to be dug out and literally rebuilt, and the new, freshly backfilled soil may cause the same problems that caused the walls to bow in the first place. Foundation replacement should only be considered when there aren't any options left.
A slightly more effective approach, often used by NC area contractors, are Helical Anchors: long rods with a corkscrew ending that are drilled into the ground through a big hole open in the basement wall. If the basement has a block wall, as much as an entire block may be removed to install the anchors. Once they are in place, the hole is filled with concrete and a steel plate is placed on top.
Southeast Foundation Repair, a family-owned foundation repair company serving Fayetteville, Wilmington and nearby towns in NC, offers two, state of the art alternatives to deal with bowing, cracking basement walls.
For block walls that need stabilization and reinforcement, the FiberForce™ Wall Reinforcing System , by Foundation Supportworks: a Fiber-Reinforced Polymer that is 10 times stronger than steel and is specifically designed for basement walls. The carbon fiber technology used in the FiberForce system is the same technology used by the US Department of Defense, Army Corp of Engineers and aerospace engineers to reinforce skyscrapers, bomb shelters and bridges around the world.
It installs easily, tipically in just one day, with minimal disruption, no drilling or excavation needed, and will effectively reinforce and stabilize your basement wall.
For severely bowing walls, the Foundation Supportworks, Inc. (FSI) Wall Anchor System offers a reliable and lasting solution that will not only stabilize and secure the wall, but has the ability to effectively counter soil pressure against the foundation and return the wall to its original, straight position.
If you live in in southeastern North Carolina area, including the Greater Wilmington and Fayetteville, or northeastern South Carolina, including Charleston, Myrtle Beach, give Southeast Foundation Repair a call, as soon as you notice problems with foundation walls.
If you are selling or buying a house with bowing foundation walls, let the experts at Southeast Foundation Repair inspect it for you. Only when you know what the problem is and how much it costs to solve it, you can make informed an profitable decisions in real estate deals.
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