Your home is most likely the biggest investment, as with most homeowners. Knowing this, you must routinely maintain and take care of your house to ensure it remains in the best condition possible, especially the foundation.
However, foundation repair is one aspect many homeowners overlook despite its crucial role in maintaining your home’s structural integrity. And if you do this, your home’s foundation will slowly weaken and require a complete overhaul.
But you can best avoid being caught off-guard by knowing the signs of foundation repair. Continue reading this guide to learn more about this below. Let’s get started.
- Cracks In The Drywall
The presence of cracks inside or outside your home signifies that all might not be well with your home’s overall structure. This is especially true if these cracks are deep and stair-patterned, vertical or horizontal. These cracks, which come about due to foundation issues, might be caused by different reasons, including poor soil quality, unbalanced settlement, and slow structural movement.
While cracks in the drywall aren’t a good enough sign of a foundation issue, it’s an excellent place to start when finding out whether it has any problems.
- Poor Water Drainage
Another common sign you need foundation repair is poor water drainage. And this isn’t a surprise considering that water is known as one of the leading causes of foundation issues. It does this by gradually accumulating around the foundation. Over time, the soil will expand and pile additional pressure on your home’s walls and foundation.
As a result, cracks start forming outside and inside your house. You can best avoid this issue by routinely inspecting all areas of your home to check for drainage issues. For instance, the soil is too dry even after heavy rains or wet soil, even though it hasn’t rained in months. Such signs are clear signs of poor water drainage and urgent foundation repair.
- Sticking Doors and Windows
Wood typically expands when it comes in contact with too much moisture. And when your home’s windows start becoming hard to open and close, you should take this as a warning of excess humidity, resulting in a possible foundation issue. This issue could indicate that your home’s foundation is shifting, especially if you don’t live in a humid area. And when this happens, the window or door frames move out of place and become sticky.
- Sloping Walls
If you notice the walls of your home sloping or bowing, this indicates a serious foundation issue. The situation is especially dire if the foundation has sloped over three inches. In such cases, you’ll need to schedule foundation repair immediately by qualified professionals who install wall anchors to straighten and stabilize the walls.
If the foundation repair contractor notices a leaky pipe or flooding problem, they might be forced to dig out and rebuild the whole foundation afresh.
- Uneven Floors
Another noticeable sign of foundation problems is uneven floors in your home. This usually arises because of the continued movement of the foundation. It can also be caused by a lack of proper waterproofing of the foundation, thereby leading to leaks which cause the floor to become uneven. When this happens, you need to schedule foundation repair right away.
Photo by Phil Hearing on Unsplash
