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As we see with most bowed walls, there was a large horizontal crack in the block wall just below the frost line. You see, when water freezes underground outside your foundation, it causes the water to expand and push inwards towards your basement. Our repair is simple, but very effective. Our steel I-beams are very unique in their design and strength compared to most other steel beam options. Our PowerBraces, as we call them, are made of a high strength steel that prevents rust and other types of failures that you see with other I-beams. They are also designed to prevent damage to your floor joists and floors through weight dissipation. Lastly, they are also able to turn bowed walls straight again over time under the right circumstances. If you think this is a method you may be interested in then call us today for a free inspection!
When we inspected this basement to give a free estimate for a waterproofing job in Irvine, Kentucky, we noticed a beam needed a little extra support holding up the floor joists, so we also recommended we install a SmartJack post. This post is covered in galvanized steel to prevent rusting. Not only were we able to waterproof, but we were able to straighten out their floors as well!
This house was built on a slab foundation, meaning the footers were pretty much on top of the dirt. We often witness foundation problems for structures built on slabs because the footers do not sit beneath the frost line, (the frost line is where the soil is able to freeze underground). Because the footers of the foundation sit above the frost line, the soil beneath it often goes through periods of shrinking and expanding, causing havoc on the foundation. Although scary, we were able to fix this side of the structure relatively easily by underpinning the foundation with steel piers. After lifting the foundation back with the red attachment on the piers, (seen in the after picture) we then take the attachments off and backfill the piers, leaving them completely concealed from the ground.
The wall in the garage of this home was bowing in from built up water on the outside soil of the garage. In order to keep this wall stable, we installed a system of PowerBrace steel beams. PowerBraces are not just your everyday steel beam product. They have unique qualities like special brackets that prevent damage to floor joists. They are also made of galvanized steel, so they won't rust like other options. The result of this project brought peace of mind to the homeowner that their wall won't shift again.
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