"Ken" wrote in message
...
Phisherman wrote:
I have a 3x4' concrete stoop just under the side garage door. Since
1992 it has been sinking. About 1997 I dug under it, used a car jack,
and put rocks underneath. It has been sinking and now is 6" below
were it was. I'd have to remove some landscaping to repeat what I did
in 1997. Is there an easier way? I can't be sure if the land is
sinking or the builder buried refuge that is now decaying.

For what it is worth, I helped a neighbor who had a front 20 foot porch of
concrete start sinking. We place several hydraulic car jacks under the
porch with concrete bricks under the jacks. When the bricks stopped
sinking and the porch reached the point when it was level, we removed one
of the jacks and wedged more concrete bricks under the porch to fill the
space. Of course we repeated this procedure with the other jacks. This
was twenty years ago, and the porch is still level. The key I believe is
getting the bricks to sink until the reach a stable place. Once they do,
they will serve as a footing.

Just my humble opinion here, but I do NOT think this is a procedure that
should be tried by the casual DIY. Getting Big Heavy Things up in the air is
listed in the chapter entitled Stuff That Can Kill You If You Don't Know
What You Are Doing. Even if you have the theoretical knowledge from a book,
experience and trustworthy equipment (ie, no cheap chinese bottle jacks,
please) plays a big part. One slipped piece of cribbing or one failed jack,
at just the wrong moment, and any part of your body that is under the Big
Heavy Thing is liable to have a very bad day. This is like working under a
car on wobbly jack stands, only more so.

Faced with a similar situation, I be inclined to go with a mud jacking
company, or at least a bobcat or small loader with fork attachments. Only
way I'd think about doing it the hard way with small tools, is that if I had
free or cheap access to all the tools and cribbing, and several willing and
strong buddies to help out.

aem sends...