Are you concerned about your house foundation?
Error in designing and construction is generally the major reason that affects the structural balance of your building. But the big question is how do I know that my foundation needs to undergo a foundation repair?
Let us learn more about the signs that tell you that your foundation is weakening and you will need the expertise of a reliable foundation repair service provider.
Signs that Shows Foundation Damage:
One of the most obvious signs that your foundation is falling is when your floor or walls show cracks. The reason behind these cracks can be associated with many factors such as changes in soil, water damage, climate or shrinkage of concrete.
- Not all cracks are the reason to worry, if the cracks are verticals then they can be easily repaired and there is no serious threat to your building structure. But if you notice deep horizontal cracks then yes you need to contact a foundation repair expert immediately.
Are the door and window of your house jammed? Many think that a sticking door and window is due to the change in climatic condition. But, that is not always the case, many a time the problem can be caused by settling of your foundation. If not taken care, over the years these could lead to other issues such as leakage and wall cracks.
A sloping floor is generally hard to notice and can be tested by placing a ball on the floor, and when it will roll towards the sloping side you come to know that you have a sloping floor. The floor tends to sag or dip when the pier and beam foundation is affected. This happens when the foundation has settled or sunk unevenly which can pose a risk to children and elderly staying in the house.
If you see your furniture tilting away from the wall than your foundation most certainly needs to be inspected. Initially the gap can be negligible, but in no time it can grow as big as an inch. This is caused due to the foundation movement leading to uneven shifting of walls.
Now that you are aware of the signs, you will need to hire a licensed structural engineer to carry out an accurate foundation inspection to identify any underlying problems in the base of your property.
What to Expect During an Inspection?
A qualified structural engineer will cover the following areas to give you a detailed analysis of your foundation structure.
The first thing the inspector will do is ask you a question to understand the timeline since you first noticed the signs of structural deterioration. Once done with the initial questions the inspector will walk through the exterior of the house to check any indication of uneven loads on your sub-structure. The foundation repair Knoxville inspector will check the wall alignment and identify any potential water damage due to pipe leakage or cracks in the wall.
Once done with the exterior the inspector will then check the interior walls of your structure. Any sign of cracks, gaps between the floor and wall due to foundation shifting and the sloping floor will be accounted to understand the extent of damage caused to the foundation.
The Inspector will also check the door and window alignment to know if it is operating smoothly or is jammed.
If there is a sign of paint flaking on the walls the foundation repair inspector will have to identify if it is caused due to a leaking pipe.
Checking of sub-structure support is very vital while conducting a foundation inspection. The substructure support needs to be in the level without any kind of buckling issue which may be critical for your foundation strength.
Last but not the least if you have a crawl-space ensure to inform the inspector about the same. The inspector will look for any sign of moisture and mold in your crawl space, which in the long run can rot the wood supports and weaken the structure.
The above mentioned are the basic steps that an inspector needs to take to conduct a thorough foundation inspection of your structure. Failing to do so will result in inaccurate reports. So make sure to go through all the vital steps of foundation evaluation with the foundation repair inspector.
Time to Take a Call:
Do not let your foundation worsen, contact foundation repair Knoxville experts at the first sign of foundation damage and safeguard your foundation from further damage.
