Foundation is an essential element for success. Successful relationships rely on friendship. The strength of one's character often impacts personal outlooks on life. At Foundation Repair San Antonio Texas, we want to help get your home back on solid ground so you can worry about the more important stuff life will throw at you.
Unless you’re a crooked little man, no one wants to live in a crooked house. Whether you’re a homeowner, first time home buyer, landlord, or a tenant, structural integrity in your home is important. Understanding what a foundation is a vital first step in determining when a professional must intervene to repair.
Foundations are the pads where your home sits. Most foundations consist of concrete poured over steel frames. Once poured, concrete is required to cure for up to 30 days in order to procure the highest durability and minimize cracking which could lead to structural damage later. Some concrete types cure sooner, based on additives added to the concrete mix, ambient weather, and amount of water present in both the concrete and the atmosphere.
Concrete is a porous material and responds to weather conditions. In extreme heat or when moisture changes in the air, concrete will expand or shrink, almost like a set of very slow moving lungs. What this means for your home, is that over time, settling will occur. Some cracking could occur, and this is normal.
Settling is something that happens in every home. Contractors, when they build a home, account for this and usually place foundations on solid soil bases. In places like Texas, the ground is drier. Drier climates can accelerate the settling process and lead to foundation problems. Sometimes, however, catastrophic natural disasters come along and can ruin even the most stable of infrastructures.
Although a professional, like the ones at Foundation Repair San Antonio, should inspect and diagnose the need for repair, there are some signs and symptoms you as a home occupant, can look for as signs that your home has settled further than normal. These symptoms include: •Cracking in the walls; usually seen as either a slant or a stair-step pattern from the corner of a doorway to a wall. This can be normal, so be sure to note if this is happening in one door or many. •Uneven or cracked floors. If you can roll a ball from one end of the living room to the other without effort, you may have a foundation repair need. •Doors or windows that won’t open or close properly. •Exterior cracks along windows or the top story of the home.