Expert Foundation Repair Services In Wichita, KS

Over time, a structure will experience some foundation movement, and it can happen for a number of reasons. For example, expanding and contracting soil, invasive tree roots, bad weather, hydrostatic pressure, structural instability, and poor exterior drainage management are some of the more common issues that can lead to substantial foundation movement and damage.

In Wichita, where the soil is mostly clay, foundation movement will typically occur because the ground under the home will shift or shrink, and all parts of the foundation will experience some type of vertical movement, including settling, sinking, and sloping. As a result, this shifting can cause Wichita homeowners to experience significant cracks in their foundation and the interior of their homes.

Wichita, the largest city in the state, is located on the Arkansas River in south-central Kansas. Wichita began as a trading post on the Chisholm Trail in the 1860s and was incorporated as a city in the 1870s. Over time, it became a destination for cattle drives traveling north from Texas to Kansas, earning itself the nickname “Cowtown”. Today, the area is known as an industrial hub, acting as a regional center for media, trade, and culture.

Although Wichita is a great place to live and visit, it is not without its problems, especially when it comes to foundation issues that the Wichita homeowners often have to deal with. Yet, even though there are a variety of circumstances that can cause a house to experience significant foundation issues and failures, in Wichita, some of the more common problems that tend to occur include the following:

Improper Drainage Systems

If a drainage system is not correctly installed, it can become a huge problem that often leads to foundation failure. This is because the excess moisture that occurs from the inadequate drainage will often erode or consolidate the soils around the foundation and cause the foundation to settle.

In Wichita, this can become a massive issue during the state’s rainy season, which occurs in late spring, with May and June being the rainiest months of the year. During this time, flash flooding can cause ordinarily dry washes to swell with rapidly moving water and result in flooding. If a home does not have a proper drainage system, this extra water can lead to significant foundation damage.

Poor Soil Conditions

If soil conditions are lacking, it can lead to the soil continuously shrinking and expanding. Eventually, this constant compression and expansion can cause substantial foundational issues and require expensive repair measures, such as the installation of costly piers to correct these problems. These foundation issues are especially prevalent in Wichita, where the soil contains clay, and the extreme shrinking and expansion happens quite frequently.

Plumbing Problems

If your pipes are broken or have a leak, this dripping water can result in devastating shifting foundation problems. For instance, if you have a small pipe leak beneath your foundation, this leak will not only affect the soil where the foundation slab rests, but it will also cause foundation damage when the soil that supports the slab is washed away. Subsequently, as this foundation shifts, the slab foundation will crack, and the damage will become visible.

Improper Ground and Site Preparation Before Construction Begins

Usually, if the ground is not prepared properly before the foundation is put in, it can create numerous issues to the foundation. That is why it is imperative that cut and fill situations are prepared correctly to ensure that the ground is ready to support a structure.

Unsuitable Foundation Construction

If a construction project uses insufficient steel or inferior concrete, it can result in the slab moving or foundation that is extremely weak and more likely to suffer from soil movement. This can lead to costly foundation issues and expensive repairs that homeowners will have to take care of fast. This is an issue in areas where development is occurring frequently and contractors may rush to get jobs done on time, as is the case sometimes in Wichita.

Generally, the best way to prevent a foundation problem is to stop it from happening in the first place. This means spotting problems early and taking care of them before they escalate into major issues. Taking these preventative measures can not only stop the situation from spiraling into sizable damages, but it can also save you a significant amount of time, stress, and money in the long run.

That is why, as a homeowner, you need to be on the lookout for the following warning signs that can indicate that your foundation is in trouble and needs to be examined by our professionals:

• Significant cracks in the concrete foundation
• Relatively large gaps in the basement cement floors
• Cracking in the exterior walls
• Cracking in the interior walls
• A basement that is wet and soggy because rainwater is getting in
• Doors or windows that cannot close
• Entries or windows that are sticking
• Cracks in the brick walls or the brick mortar
• Substantial gaps between the wall and the floor or the wall and the ceiling
• Crawlspaces that are wet and soggy because of the excess moisture
• Basements that are musty, moldy, or damp
• A separation between the outer walls
• A sloped interior floor
• An uneven interior floor
• Large gaps around doors, including external, internal, and garage doors
• Substantial cracks in the drywall, especially from door frames to the ceiling

Our structural engineers are professionals hired to perform renovations on a home, a construction project, or to help add an addition. Our engineers are specifically employed to ensure these projects are created to last and also brought in to evaluate the homes and buildings for any problems they may have, including uneven floors, foundation cracks, water damage, termite issues, ceiling cracks, and wall damage.

Since the foundation is the most critical structural element of a home, repair to it can be a nerve-wracking and expensive process. Consequently, our structural engineers are incredibly important to foundation projects as they can help homeowners and building owners fix foundation problems while also helping them understand the whole repair process, making sure to walk them through it from start to finish.

Many residents in Wichita hire our structural engineers because of the large selection of services they provide, especially in Wichita, where soil and weather conditions can have a significant impact on the home’s foundation. These services often include:

• Tieback installation
• Underpinning the foundation
• Waterproofing the basement
• Helical piering
• Resistance piering
• Specialty construction
• Structural inspection during and after the construction project is finished to ensure that everything was completed and constructed properly

In addition, when you work with our structural engineers, they can give you peace of mind that the job is done right and that you did not overlook any essential aspects of the project. However, if you decide to skip working with one of our structural experts during construction, just understand that you may have to deal with significant foundation problems down the road, costly rebuilds, complex foundation issues, and homes that are not built to code.

Foundation repair costs in Wichita will cost homeowners an average of $5,000. However, these average costs can also be lower or higher depending on the complexity of the problem, usually ranging between $300 and $21,000. For these reasons, before you jump into any foundation repair work, you need to consider the following cost factors that can impact the overall price of your foundation project.

Cost Factor: The Foundation You Have

A significant factor that will influence the cost of your foundation repair has to do with the type of foundation you have. For example, beam foundations and pier foundations are often incredibly expensive to fix because it can take our contractors many hours to make the required repairs. Additionally, these types of structures often have rotten wood members that will need to be replaced, which means the costs will add up quickly because of all the replacement parts, joists, and hours of work that our specialists need to put into the project.

The Severity of the Foundation Damage

Usually, if a foundation problem only requires some patching work due to a small crack in the foundation, the job can cost a homeowner around a few hundred dollars. On the other hand, if the foundation is more extensive, the repairs can include the costly installation of hydraulic piers underneath the house, which can mean the project will cost homeowners upwards of $15,000. These piers are often done to provide the home with added support, eliminate cracks, restore uneven floors, and stabilize the foundation.

Typically, good soil is a well-balanced mixture of organic matter, inorganic matter, air, and water. The solid inorganic mineral matter is often determined by the parent rock of the local geology. In Wichita, the area is filled with limestone and shale because the area was once a shallow inland sea that had been uplifted and then eroded by wind and water. Consequently, the local soils have a high pH balance, and once away from the river bottom, the soil is more clay.

When soil contains a high content of clay minerals, the soil can act like a sponge and absorb large quantities of water, which means that these clay minerals can increase in volume substantially when it rains. Subsequently, when these clay minerals expand, it can cause the walls and foundations in a home to crack and heave and the sidewalks and the roads to warp. However, as this clay mineral dries out, it will shrink and form a popcorn texture in the surface exposures, as well as deep and large cracks around the house where the water from a major storm can penetrate the soil and repeat this whole cycle time and time again. That is why soil that is rich in clay often has a tremendous potential to damage a home’s foundation.

For these reasons, in Wichita, where this expansion and shrinkage frequently happens because of the area’s rich clay soil, high heat, and summer wet season, homes can suffer expensive foundation damages as a result.