1. If your home’s foundation was poured over buried construction or natural environmental material, such as tree roots, mulch, sticks, plywood. That material can start to degrade, and pockets and voids could start to form.
2. If the soil is improperly backfilled or compacted before the foundation is even poured. builders must excavate the ground to get it ready for the building process to begin. If the builders took out too much dirt from the site, they must replace and compact the soil. Failing to compact the soil properly can cause your house to settle.
3. If the builder ignores existing soil conditions, such as expansive soil, your home could settle. Expansive soil is rich clay soil that swells and expands when gets wet and shrinks when dry. Constant expanding and shrinking cycles put stress on your foundation and could cause your home to settle.
4. If you don’t have a proper drainage system to prevent pooling around your foundation, water can wash away the soil under your home.
5. Tree roots, they can get under the foundation and raise up the building, or they can shrink the soil by removing water from it.
6. Soil creep (aka downhill creep), is when soil slides down a hill and causes lateral movement against your foundation. It generally occurs over large areas. Three types of creep occur, seasonal movement or creep within the soil due to seasonal changes in soil moisture and temperature, in example frost heave.
There are several effective ways to fix a sinking foundation. The solution designed for your home will depend on the extent of the damage, the type of foundation, the weight of your home and of course – the cost.
Here at B.A.M! Basements and Masons of Des Moines, we use push piers to lift the home back to maximum practical recovery. First, we excavate the exterior of the home. We then push the piers into the ground then lift the house with the heads of the piers. Once we have achieved maximum practical recovery the area around the home that was excavated is backfilled with soil.
If you have noticed any warning signs in your home, don’t wait! Call B.A.M! Basements and Masons of Des Moines today for a free estimate for a custom-designed solution to stop the settlement for good GUARANTEED!