Fort Wayne Basement Repair: Walls, Cracks & Waterproofing
Fort Wayne Basement Repair
Fort Wayne experiences all the seasons—from spring rain, summer humidity to winter snow. While, it doesn’t sound like a problem, these seasonal weather conditions can cause water to negatively affect your home’s foundation or basement. When rainwater, melting snow and air moisture get into the ground, the soil absorbs it to capacity. The soil then expands and pushes against the concrete of the foundation, including basement walls. Concrete is susceptible to pressure and is porous. This doubles your risk of water damage.
As a Fort Wayne resident, you also have to worry about the Saint Mary’s, Saint Joseph and Maumee rivers flooding. What does all this mean for you? It means you need to get those basement wall cracks fixed.
Types of Damage
While you can lessen air humidity with a dehumidifier and water spots with a sump pump, you still need to address the root cause of water damage. Water damage can include minor and major concrete cracking, a leaning chimney, bowed basement walls and a shifting floor. There’s a lot of variance in terms of damage. A hairline crack eventually could lead to cracked ceilings.
The most severe problems are bowed walls and an uneven floor slab. These issues can affect the entire house from floor to ceiling. When a foundation shifts, floor joists and framing may shift, depending on the severity of the foundation’s movement. This can result in damage to floors, ceilings, doorjambs and windows.
Carbon Fiber Straps
Acculevel recommends carbon fiber Kevlar straps if the bowing of the basement walls is minor. Their effectiveness also is dependent on the floor being level, so if the floor is not level, take care of that issue first. A strong epoxy adheres the straps to the wall. The strap material is extremely tough and the epoxies are designed to go through both the straps and the foundation, creating the strongest possible bond. The straps are anchored at the bottom and top of each strap for added security. One bonus to using carbon fiber Kevlar straps is you can paint over them. Therefore, if you have a finished basement, you won’t have to worry about aesthetics.
Wall Anchors
Wall anchors help shore up the foundation via outside lateral pressure. Anchors have metal plates and a steel shaft. Your Fort Wayne basement repair professional will place the plates on the outside of the concrete and run a steel shaft through the concrete and soil to reach another plate. This lateral force helps with cracked and bowed walls.
Wall anchor installation does not require major digging. The damage to the surrounding landscape is minimal.
Helical Piers
When soil around and under the home is very loose, your basement repair expert may recommend steel helical piers. Helical piers also are effective in smaller areas such as crawl spaces. However, this method requires excavation. After the company you hired clears the area, helical piers are pushed deep into the ground until they reach stable soil. Helical piers are attached via plates and brackets.
Another option similar to helical piers are tiebacks. Tiebacks are screw-like shafts that can be installed at angles to provide lateral support.
Leveling the Floor
If the foundation floor is unlevel or at risk for further shifting, the floor can be raised before doing other repairs. Slabjacking is a relatively quick procedure, accomplished within one day. Small holes are drilled into the concrete to create injection points, then polyurethane concrete raising foam is injected. This environmentally friendly foam only takes seconds to accomplish its mission, expanding and filling in air and soil pockets, lifting the concrete slab. Our staff then patches the injection sites for a more finished look. Slabjacking is a very cost-effective solution to an unlevel foundation floor.
To DIY or Not to DIY?
Even the most handy of handymen and handywomen sometimes need help. Your home’s foundation is the most important part of the house. Without a strong foundation, you’re looking at major structural problems throughout the rest of the abode. It’s best not to take the risk of improperly repairing something.
A basement and foundation repair company, such as Acculevel, is your best option for an effective and long-lasting solution to damage water intrusion causes. This is especially true for dealing with mold, as one wrong move can harm your health and spread the spores.
Acculevel Is Here to Help
Acculevel is here to help with all your Fort Wayne foundation repair and basement waterproofing needs. Specializing in foundations since 1996, we pride ourselves on our work ethic and professionalism. We believe in only doing necessary repairs and will not try to get you to pay for anything not directly related to improving your foundation. Honest and reliable, our staff is ready to assist you. To schedule a free in-home estimate, contact us to speak to a friendly representative.
