Helical Piers Installed In Basement Interior In Grand Rapids, MI

Monday, March 20th, 2017 by Brian Bigger

Challenge

This homeowner called about some cracks in the basement wall. No water was coming in but they wanted to address the issue before it did start leaking. Generally, this is the best attitude to have towards a wet basement. It's much cheaper and more beneficial to address these problems early on. In this case, however, the issue was more than just a water issue. The stairstep cracks that found in the wall were caused by a sinking foundation. More than just waterproofing the cracks, the foundation needed to be supported so that it didn't continue to sink as the soil beneath it shifted. Without support, the cracks would just expand and become worse overtime. Waterproofing would have addressed symptoms. What we needed to do was address the root issue.

Solution

In order to lift the home into its original position and support its weight permanently, we planned to use a series of 6 helical piers. These are long steel shafts, advanced deep into the ground to competent soil. The footing of the home sits on top of these shafts using a heavy duty steel anchor. Generally, we install these anchors by excavating some soil around the exterior of the home down to the footing and advancing the piers there but in this case, the wall in question was surrounded by a large amount of concrete, making the excavation and subsequent repair process more difficult. The great thing about this peiring option is that we could install them either on the interior or exterior. We opted for the interior. A small amount of the slab foundation was removed in the basement and the piers were advanced into the ground. Compacted stone filled the hole and the slab foundation was replaced. The cracks were filled and job was complete. The home should be supported for the rest of its life and the cracks should no longer be a concern.