Foundation Wall Cracks Repair in Grand Rapids and nearby in Michigan & Indiana

What is Causing My Foundation Wall Cracks and How Can I Fix Them?

At Ayers Basement Systems, we can inspect your foundation at no charge, providing you with a written solution that's warrantied to permanently stabilize your home's structure.

In many cases, we may even be able to close the cracks, straighten doors and windows, and return your foundation to its original position.

Have you noticed cracks on your foundation walls?

Signs of Severe Foundation Wall Cracking:

• Horizontal Or Vertical Wall Cracks
• "Stair-Step" Or Diagonal Cracking
• Bulging, Buckling Foundation Walls
• Pushing In At The Bottom Of The Wall
• Sliding In At The Top Of The Wall

How to Fix It:

Each foundation wall crack is unique. It has its own causes and its own solution. Concrete walls may experience small cracks as they cure. These are normal and may be no cause for alarm.

Foundation piers are a solution to walls that are cracking due to foundation settlement issues.

Wall anchor system is used when foundation walls are failing due to expansive soils.

Repairing Foundation Wall Cracks

Whether the problem is expansive soils or unstable soils underneath your foundation, there are effective solutions that can permanently repair your structure. At Ayers Basement Systems, we use the following methods to restore structural integrity to compromised foundations.

Foundation Pier Systems provides a way to stabilize and potentially lift a foundation that is resting on soils that cannot support the weight of the home.

Foundation piers are a permanent solution for homes that are settling, and they can be installed during any season.

Push Piers stabilize foundations by transferring the weight of the home deep below the foundation, reaching to bedrock or competent strata.

Helical Piers should be used to stabilize foundations when there is sufficient knowledge of local soil conditions. They are advanced into the soils underneath the foundation via a helical blade.

Wall Anchor Systems are ideal for stabilizing and potentially straightening foundation walls that are buckling due to pressure from expansive soils.

Wall Anchors use the soils beyond the foundation walls to exert counterpressure on failing foundation walls. This holds the walls in place in the short term, and it allows your contractor to attempt to straighten the walls back to their original position over time.

This solution requires access to the soils beyond your foundation walls. If exterior access is limited or not possible, we recommend installing the PowerBrace™ Wall Repair System as an effective solution.

Temporary Fixes For Foundation Walls

Many contractors will try to lure you in by using a suggesting a cheap solution that they know will not permanently solve your problem. Solutions that hide your issues, such as painting over drywall cracks or tuckpointing cracks in brick are short-term solutions only. If the cause of the problem is not addressed, the cracks will soon reappear, and more covering up and patching will be needed.

Additionally, attempts to seal drywall or mortar cracks are easy to identify, due to variances in the finish or workmanship. When tuckpointing brick veneer, it's especially difficult to match original mortar colors. And if you decide to properly repair your foundation later, these "patches" may need to be removed before the repair can properly restore your walls.

So in the end, you're not hiding anything! Plus, you have to disclose the problem anyways if you ever plan to sell the house.

(Click each photo to enlarge.)

What If My Walls Are Not Cracked?

Do you have cracks on the drywall on the inside of your home but no cracks on the foundation wall?

Your problem may be a sagging crawl space and not settlement of your foundation walls. Alternatively, your floor could be sinking down or experiencing upheaval.

Many foundation problems occur even when your foundation walls themselves are not cracking.

Sagging Crawl Spaces

Crawl spaces can sag when the support beams sink into the ground or when mold and rot weaken floor joists and girders.

As crawl spaces sag, the floor above will also sink. As the floor sinks, it can pull on the partition walls attached to it, leading to drywall cracks.

More about sinking crawl spaces.

Heaving Or Sinking Slab Floors

Slab floors sink when the soils underneath settle or are washed away. Likewise, when the soils underneath a concrete floor expand, the slab will begin to lift upwards.

This movement of concrete floors can lead to cracks along drywall and the floor itself.

More about concrete floors that sink or heave.

We Do Foundation Wall Crack Repair In MI & IN

No matter what kinds of structural problems you're experiencing with your foundation walls, our in-house team of foundation experts is here to help. At Ayers Basement Systems, we repair foundations throughout Michigan & Indiana every day,

To schedule your free quote, call or e-mail us today! We serve Grand Rapids, Lansing, Kalamazoo, and surrounding areas such as Battle Creek, Elkhart, Muskegon, South Bend, Jackson, Mount Pleasant, Traverse City, and many areas nearby.

Looking for a price? Get a no cost, no obligation free estimate.