Effective and affordable solutions for all your foundation issues

Bowed foundation walls occur as a result of hydrostatic pressure pushing against the wall. This pressure, compounded by depth and other factors, as well as lateral forces, surpass the foundation’s original resistance to these loads. Over time these factors can produce lateral loads and the foundation wall becomes bowed. This condition also produces significant cracking of the mortar joints and block face. If left unattended, this condition will worsen with time jeopardizing both the structural integrity and resale value of the property. A common repair for bowed walls is installing steel I-beams or carbon fiber straps. Click here to learn more about Carbon Fiber Repair.

There are few things in life that can be certain, but one of them is that concrete will get hard and concrete will crack! Generally in horizontal concrete like your basement floor or concrete driveway, the installers will put saw cuts or tooling marks to help control where and how the concrete will crack. This is simply not possible in vertical concrete like your foundation walls. Although horizontal cracks are rare in foundation walls, you will have vertical cracks. Vertical cracks generally occur in areas such as beam pockets, midpoint of long walls (20 feet or more) and windows. When concrete cures, it shrinks and causes cracks. Most general shrinkage cracks are fine, as long as they are not leaking water or showing displacement. Displacement is when the lateral forces on the wall has pushed the wall inward. The best way to tell the difference between a shrinkage crack and displacement is to run your finger across the crack. If your finger catches on the crack, there is displacement and it needs to be repaired immediately.