What Will Be Your Step when Foundation at Home Settles?

Unstable ground, and for good reason, is always a concern with homebuilders. Built on the soil, homes can start settling in the ground, as their weight makes them sink. This can lead both to damage to the foundation and to cracks in the walls. It can even lead to situations in which the home begins to break up – if this is the similar condition at your home, call a structural engineer.

Soil Shifting

For a number of reasons, the ground can become unstable, and the soil composition is the most common. For instance, when there is too much sand in the soil, the soil won't hold together and may shift under too much pressure. Others will cause soil to contract and expand in unusual drought and excessive rain, making this instability. Finally, soil not adequately compacted can begin to change when it is built on.

While everything is done to ensure soil stabilization prior to construction, it is unfortunate that even the best efforts do not sometimes find any signs of unstable soils. Prior to construction begins, soil stabilization methods like excess moisture drainage, exhale and substitution of soil and chemical stabilization can be used by builders. Soil stabilization contractors can also inject spray asphalt into the soil in order to strengthen it. However, the story is different if a homebuilder discovers that the land is changing unexpectedly when the home is founded.

Soil Stability

Home builders can learn, too late, however, that the soil on which they have constructed the foundation is unstable. In that case, the foundation does not change, and there is no further soil erosion, they still have several possibilities. The anchoring of the foundation in a solid base is usually carried out with helical anchors - these are attached into the ground by the unstable ground and make the foundation more stable to rest. It is relatively nonintrusive to install helical anchors with relatively small devices.

It is also important to prevent future soil erosion around a foundation to protect the foundations of a new house on unstable soil. The installation of retaining walls or the creations of stepped patios on inclined properties are some of the most common methods for preventing soil erosion. In extreme cases, contractors for the soil stabilization of nets or meshes may have to act as a barrier to protect and maintain soil. However, soil erosion can in most cases be prevented by strategic landscaping, because roots can help maintain the top soil and prevent it from being drained in rain. The plants also help to regulate humidity in the soil so that it is not too wet or dry.

The situation with which no homebuilder wishes to face is a shifting basis caused by unexpectedly unstable soil. However, although this situation is possible, even after the foundation has been completed it can be mitigated. Steps to correct the situation and avoid further soil erosion will help ensure that the building of the house remains solid for a long time. Call us Ramjack by American Leveling for structural engineer in OKC.