If your foundation is settling or your walls are leaning, and foundation piering isn't the solution, Peak Basement Systems has custom solutions to level your home.
Most often, sister wall designs require reinforcing steel in the wall and the construction of one-sided concrete wall forms. Once wall steel and forms are in place, concrete is pumped into the forms and allowed to set. The forms may then be removed, and the job stands completed. Sister walls generally do require a building permit and inspections by the building authorities.
In certain cases, a process known as "shotcrete" may offer additional advantages and cost savings over a sister wall approach. With shotcrete, no wall forms are needed, and the job may therefore be streamlined even further.
Usually, reinforcing steel mesh is installed against a failing dirt embankment, or in some cases, an old foundation wall. Then, a relatively dry concrete mix is blown or "shot" onto the area with a high volume of compressed air, and may be built up to several inches in thickness, depending on the specific conditions and needs of the job.
Foundation Maintenance—it's not something that we usually think about, but it's especially important in older homes with brick and mortar foundations. Mortar's life span is significantly less than the surrounding brick, so it will crumble away as it ages. This opens up the door for all sorts of structural problems. Checking your mortar is part of proper foundation maintenance and can greatly extend the life of your vintage foundation.
So what do you do if the mortar is crumbling away? You replace it—this maintenance process is known as "tuckpointing".
How do you know if your stone foundation could benefit from this process?
If the mortar between the stones on your older foundation is brittle or crumbles when you apply light to moderate pressure with a blunt object, or if you see voids where mortar has already crumbled and fallen out over time, then you can be certain that the mortar has reached the end of its service life and needs to be replaced. This is where tuckpointing comes in.
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