What you Must Know About Crawl Space Support Settlement?
When you don’t pay attention to moisture in your crawl space, it leads to severe damage to the home foundation. Your crawl space support may start to settle and then bring some other issues into your life. There is a need to understand what is supporting settlement in crawl space and how to fix it.
How to Know you are Experiencing Support Settlement?
If you don’t know that your crawl space support is at risk or not, then you need to pay close attention to every corner. Some signs that tell you that something is wrong with your foundation are Slopped and uneven floors, foundation cracks, bowing/leaning walls, etc. You may notice that beams and poles in your crawl space are sagging day by day. As this change is prominent, you become upset as they can be fixed only with professional help. If you have excess moisture in the crawl space, it will often cause the growth of mold and mildew.
What Causes Support Settlement in Crawl Space?
As you have noticed visible signs of settlement, you may be interested in knowing the leading causes behind this settlement. If that’s what you are wondering about. Time to know the main reasons below.
Weak Foundation Soil
Your crawl space column, posts, and supports are at high risk of collapse because its underlying foundation soil is weakened. The excess moisture content in the soil or temperature changes cause the soil to expand and shrink. Sometimes, the problem in the soil is from the very start of your home building. When a contractor doesn’t correctly compact the soil, it settles over time and leads to foundation issues.
Improper Pier Installation
This is another reason to support settlement in crawl space. Beams and posts in your crawl space don’t space appropriately. Therefore, they start to sag due to the overloading of foundation weight. Water damage in the crawl space also causes beams and support posts to begin rotting.
How to Fix the Crawl Space Settlement Problem?
As you have got an idea of what this settlement is and the main reasons behind this issue. Now you should understand the solution to this common crawl space problem.
Re-Stabilization of Support
As posts and beams have started sagging, they need support. You can replace them with a new one, but the replacement cost is higher than crawl space repair services in Clarksburg. Expert contractors will use helical piers or steel push piers. This process involves excavation, so you might have to rent another place during this repair. Experts will do underpinning to provide support to damage the structure. These p[iers are screwed into the ground and try to anchor in the deep soil layers. Once piers are correctly installed, the weight of the foundation will be shifted to them.
Waterproofing
Another service you should consider to deal with support issues in the crawl space is waterproofing the whole area. It requires you to hire an expert who will install a dehumidifier and vapor barrier in this space to prevent moisture-related issues.