If you’re a homeowner you know the one of the most important parts of your house is the foundation. After all the foundation is the canvas on which your entire house rests and having a strong foundation is crucial for the rest of your house.

But what happens when you don’t have a strong foundation for your home? It usually means you got an unlevel house which can cause a multitude of problems. How does your home become unlevel? It’s usually due to some sort of structural damage or some problem with the soil and when your home’s foundation.

When it comes to house leveling you may find several causes involving soil including:

• Weaker bearing soils which means soils that aren’t capable of carrying the load of a structure (the weight of your house).
• Tree roots and other vegetation which draw moisture away from the soil around your home’s foundation which ultimately causes a decrease in the soil volume and can contribute to uneven house levelling.
• Changes in the moisture level in the soil around your home’s foundation. You’ll find that excessive moisture causes soil to swell and loss of moisture causes it to shrink. A constant movement of soil can very easily cause house leveling issues and make it so that your foundation is very unlevel.

In addition to soil problems there’s plenty of reasons why you might run into house leveling issues. Regardless of the problem, it’s important to contact a foundation contractor or foundation repair specialist to come and inspect your home to figure out just what the problems are and how to fix them.

You may be wondering what are some signs of foundation failure and how can I identify them? Some Foundation failure signs include: floor cracks, wall cracks, bowing or leaning walls, ceiling cracks, a leaning chimney, windows and doors that stick and stair and stoop problems.

Knowing what to look for can help you cut off potential problems the pass and also help you explain issues to a foundation contractor in the event that you do need foundation repair.

If it turns out you do need foundation repair, there are many things that foundation contractors can do to help repair it and make your house level as it should be. Some of these methods include the use of steel piers, helical piers or helical tieback anchors.

Steel piers are driven into the ground hydraulically until they reach load-bearing stratham. Each pier is individually load tested before the weight of the entire structure AKA your home’s foundation and your house is lifted onto the piers. What this does is it helps stabilize the structure and helps prevent any future house leveling issues you may encounter.

Helical piers are also used for foundation leveling and foundation stabilization, especially in the cases of unstable basements or where homes have very deep low during layers. One advantage of these piers is they’re very easy to install and are used very commonly for unlevel foundations on porches chimneys and steps.

Helical tie-back anchors are used to fix bowing or leaning walls. They are simple and effective meaning that this repair can be done quickly without having to tear down or make any major renovation no changes to your house. A foundation contractor can install them by drilling a small hole into your foundations interior wall and then pull the wall back to its original level and strengthen and prevent any future bowing or leaning.

A foundation can account for up to 15% of the total cost of building a home. That tells you a home’s foundation is important and needs to be taken care of. If you’re having house leveling problems or notice that you got an unlevel house foundation, don’t hesitate to contact a contractor. Foundational issues are nothing to mess with and should never be ignored. Calling foundation repair contractors if you have an issue could be one of the best decisions you make for your home.