Home Failed Inspection Due to Foundation Issues, Laconia, NH

Monday, February 7th, 2022 by Travis Kellogg

Challenge

The owners of this 1990's home in Laconia, New Hampshire called EFS about concerns with their foundation. The homeowners had recently put their house on the market and had received a number of offers. However, the home inspector for the buyers was concerned with a couple of areas of the foundation and determined some major repairs would be needed to deem the property safe. Ultimately, the sale fell through and the homeowners took steps to repair the issues.

A few issues the homeowners were experiencing included:

Foundation Cracks
Movement in Foundation Wall
Sagging Beam
Moisture and water concerns

A Design Specialist from EFS went through a thorough inspection process. The inspection process included an exterior and interior inspection.

Exterior Inspection: The exterior of the home was inspected by the Design Specialist physically walking around the perimeter of the home and checking for issues such as foundation cracks, wall cracks, grading issues, the type of structure, type of drainage, bowed retaining walls, large trees close to the foundation, and any type of obstruction that may or may not influence the repair process.

Interior Inspection: The interior of the home is visually inspected. Items such as floor cracks, wall cracks, sloping floors, uneven areas of the home, signs of water entering, and bowing walls are all carefully looked for. The design specialist took lots of measurements and utilized his laser level to determine benchmarks.

Solution

Design Specialist Michael LaMalfa inspected the home very thoroughly, and he found;

Big and small cracks in the foundation wall
Front foundation movement over time
Sagging main support beam
Dampness and water staining on basement floors

The soil around a home can expand and contract. Expanding and contracting soil can cause movement in foundation walls. This movement can lead to cracks in the foundation wall or full failure of the wall. EFS has some products that aid in stabilizing those walls and ensuring the wall won't crack or move again. Two products that we use at EFS to stop foundation walls from moving are Geolock's and PowerBrace's.

Geolock's are a method of securing a foundation wall using two plates and a rod. One plate is secure in the ground around 10ft outside the unsecured wall. From that plate secured in the ground, a rod is drilled through the ground and the wall. Once the rod is through the ground and the wall, the rod is secured to a second plate. With the plate on the wall, there is a bolt that allows you to tighten up the Geolock's to the desired tension.

PowerBraces are a similar product to Geolock's, but they are instead installed 100% from inside the home. A PowerBrace is a long piece of galvanized piece of steel that will be installed against the inside of the wall. This system will use the home's weight to secure the wall. This long steel beam will be anchored at the bottom of the wall using an L-shaped bracket that is secured to the floor. The top of the PowerBrace will be anchored by a variety of different bracket styles.

Sagging support beams are typically caused by support posts beginning to fail. When there is a sagging support beam, Erickson Foundation Solutions will use SmartJacks to replace the old supports. A SmartJack is a galvanized steel support that is cut to the height of the beam. SmartJacks have a large footing that is used to spread the weight of the beam. This footing will make sure the SmartJack won't sink. The main differences between a traditional lally column and SmartJacks, is that SmartJacks have footings that help distribute the weight of the beam, and SmartJacks have adjustable tops to fit the beam during installation.

Water can enter a home in many ways. EFS has a selection of water mitigation methods, offering drains, sump pumps, heavy-duty dehumidifiers, crack sealants, and more.

A crew from Erickson Foundation Solutions installed: 5 Geolocks to the front of the home, 6 PowerBraces to the side of the home, 30' of Water Guard, 120sqft of CleanSpace, a Super Sump, and 4 SmartJacks to the home. In the end, we were able to address all the points of concern for the homeowners with permanent solutions. The warranty on the products and services is transferable, so they were then able to proceed with selling the property with confidence.