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Default foundation repair advice?

A part of my foundation has been in need of repair for quite some time. I
now have the opportunity to do this, but after looking at it today, I'm not
sure I can handle the task. I really want to try it, but not sure how to
proceed.

The damage I'm seeing isn't like the web info I keep coming across, so
that's the reason for my uncertainty as to a repair course. I've decided to
take some pictures and will explain each below.

The first damage I describe as a "foundation gap" of around 2-3" deep by
nearly 36" long.
http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/3...ndationgap.jpg
To make matters worse, parts of the gap are quite deep and I can fit at
least half of the yard stick in spots:
http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/138...ongapdepth.jpg
I can easily chisel and break parts of I guess what would be the cinderblock
within the deep depth. Very easy to break and crumble. There is also some
foam filler someone attempted to inject, but I have removed most of that.
Lots of dirt and debris around this area. The big question is how do I
repair this gap? Can I just fill in with cement and what type and how would
I go about cleaning the entire area?

Lastly, there is a crack just beyond the gap:
http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/171...ationcrack.jpg
I assume this could be filled in with hydraulic cement patching that I keep
reading about.

There you have it. I can't find anything on repairing this type of
foundation separation/ decay damage and all I keep running across are cracks
or small to moderate sized holes, so any advice would be greatly
appreciated. Just to note, the separation only occurs at one end of my
house and is about 36" long as I said. The rest of the foundation in other
areas seems intact and not separated, plus there are no cracks. Any idea of
the cause of this would be appreciated also so, if I can repair it, it
doesn't happen again.

Thanks in advance,
Bill Skype


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Default foundation repair advice?

Just to add, this is a single floor home with no basement or crawl space.
Bill

"Bill Skype" wrote in message
...
A part of my foundation has been in need of repair for quite some time. I
now have the opportunity to do this, but after looking at it today, I'm not
sure I can handle the task. I really want to try it, but not sure how to
proceed.

The damage I'm seeing isn't like the web info I keep coming across, so
that's the reason for my uncertainty as to a repair course. I've decided
to take some pictures and will explain each below.

The first damage I describe as a "foundation gap" of around 2-3" deep by
nearly 36" long.
http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/3...ndationgap.jpg
To make matters worse, parts of the gap are quite deep and I can fit at
least half of the yard stick in spots:
http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/138...ongapdepth.jpg
I can easily chisel and break parts of I guess what would be the
cinderblock within the deep depth. Very easy to break and crumble. There
is also some foam filler someone attempted to inject, but I have removed
most of that. Lots of dirt and debris around this area. The big question
is how do I repair this gap? Can I just fill in with cement and what type
and how would I go about cleaning the entire area?

Lastly, there is a crack just beyond the gap:
http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/171...ationcrack.jpg
I assume this could be filled in with hydraulic cement patching that I
keep reading about.

There you have it. I can't find anything on repairing this type of
foundation separation/ decay damage and all I keep running across are
cracks or small to moderate sized holes, so any advice would be greatly
appreciated. Just to note, the separation only occurs at one end of my
house and is about 36" long as I said. The rest of the foundation in
other areas seems intact and not separated, plus there are no cracks. Any
idea of the cause of this would be appreciated also so, if I can repair
it, it doesn't happen again.

Thanks in advance,
Bill Skype



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Default foundation repair advice?

Bill Skype wrote:
A part of my foundation has been in need of repair for quite some time. I
now have the opportunity to do this, but after looking at it today, I'm not
sure I can handle the task. I really want to try it, but not sure how to
proceed.

The damage I'm seeing isn't like the web info I keep coming across, so
that's the reason for my uncertainty as to a repair course. I've decided to
take some pictures and will explain each below.

The first damage I describe as a "foundation gap" of around 2-3" deep by
nearly 36" long.
http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/3...ndationgap.jpg
To make matters worse, parts of the gap are quite deep and I can fit at
least half of the yard stick in spots:
http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/138...ongapdepth.jpg
I can easily chisel and break parts of I guess what would be the cinderblock
within the deep depth. Very easy to break and crumble. There is also some
foam filler someone attempted to inject, but I have removed most of that.
Lots of dirt and debris around this area. The big question is how do I
repair this gap? Can I just fill in with cement and what type and how would
I go about cleaning the entire area?

Lastly, there is a crack just beyond the gap:
http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/171...ationcrack.jpg
I assume this could be filled in with hydraulic cement patching that I keep
reading about.

There you have it. I can't find anything on repairing this type of
foundation separation/ decay damage and all I keep running across are cracks
or small to moderate sized holes, so any advice would be greatly
appreciated. Just to note, the separation only occurs at one end of my
house and is about 36" long as I said. The rest of the foundation in other
areas seems intact and not separated, plus there are no cracks. Any idea of
the cause of this would be appreciated also so, if I can repair it, it
doesn't happen again.

Thanks in advance,
Bill Skype



Good closeups, but we need some wider shots to understand what sort of
foundation you have. Is it just concrete/stone sleepers on packed dirt?
Are there piers that actually hold the house up, and the visible blocks
are just skirting? What is holding up the visible blocks? What year was
house built? Unless there is a slab floor inside, you have some sort of
crawlspace, even if it is less than a foot tall. (Yeah, I've seen houses
like that.) As to what causes the damage- some combination of settling
of fill material, water flow, frost heave, and maybe animals digging.

I'd recommend calling a foundation repair/house leveling company for a
site survey and an estimate. A cosmetic repair is pointless, and a real
repair is likely to require equipment and skill sets well beyond DIY.

--
aem sends...

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Default foundation repair advice?


Just to add, this is a single floor home with no basement or crawl space.



It looks like what you've pictured there is a straight concrete "slab" with
no support or footings.
Some homes are built on a slab only . [See "Post tensioned slab] but yours
doesn't look like that.
The pictures look like a 'plain ol' slab w/o any perimeter support.
Like someone said: more details and pictures that show a lot more (ZOOM
back) needed.


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Default foundation repair advice?

Rudy,

Thanks, at request, I took a couple more images:

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/9...apinterior.jpg

The above is a lit up version of inside the gap.

And:

http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/7...utfoundati.jpg

This is a zoomed out view of a normal part of the foundation. It is about
8" high.

Bill

"Rudy" wrote in message
...

Just to add, this is a single floor home with no basement or crawl space.



It looks like what you've pictured there is a straight concrete "slab"
with no support or footings.
Some homes are built on a slab only . [See "Post tensioned slab] but
yours doesn't look like that.
The pictures look like a 'plain ol' slab w/o any perimeter support.
Like someone said: more details and pictures that show a lot more (ZOOM
back) needed.





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--

-----------------------------------------------------------------
"Don't forget to draw the curtains!"
"aemeijers" wrote in message
...
Bill Skype wrote:
A part of my foundation has been in need of repair for quite some time.
I now have the opportunity to do this, but after looking at it today, I'm
not sure I can handle the task. I really want to try it, but not sure
how to proceed.

The damage I'm seeing isn't like the web info I keep coming across, so
that's the reason for my uncertainty as to a repair course. I've decided
to take some pictures and will explain each below.

The first damage I describe as a "foundation gap" of around 2-3" deep by
nearly 36" long.
http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/3...ndationgap.jpg
To make matters worse, parts of the gap are quite deep and I can fit at
least half of the yard stick in spots:
http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/138...ongapdepth.jpg
I can easily chisel and break parts of I guess what would be the
cinderblock within the deep depth. Very easy to break and crumble.
There is also some foam filler someone attempted to inject, but I have
removed most of that. Lots of dirt and debris around this area. The big
question is how do I repair this gap? Can I just fill in with cement and
what type and how would I go about cleaning the entire area?

Lastly, there is a crack just beyond the gap:
http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/171...ationcrack.jpg
I assume this could be filled in with hydraulic cement patching that I
keep reading about.

There you have it. I can't find anything on repairing this type of
foundation separation/ decay damage and all I keep running across are
cracks or small to moderate sized holes, so any advice would be greatly
appreciated. Just to note, the separation only occurs at one end of my
house and is about 36" long as I said. The rest of the foundation in
other areas seems intact and not separated, plus there are no cracks.
Any idea of the cause of this would be appreciated also so, if I can
repair it, it doesn't happen again.

Thanks in advance,
Bill Skype


Good closeups, but we need some wider shots to understand what sort of
foundation you have. Is it just concrete/stone sleepers on packed dirt?


Here are some additonal shots. First, the interior of the "gap":

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/9...apinterior.jpg

And then, a zoomed out view of a normal part of the foundation. It is about
8" high:

http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/7...utfoundati.jpg

Are there piers that actually hold the house up, and the visible blocks
are just skirting? What is holding up the visible blocks? What year was
house built? Unless there is a slab floor inside, you have some sort of
crawlspace, even if it is less than a foot tall. (Yeah, I've seen houses
like that.) As to what causes the damage- some combination of settling of
fill material, water flow, frost heave, and maybe animals digging.

I'd recommend calling a foundation repair/house leveling company for a
site survey and an estimate. A cosmetic repair is pointless, and a real
repair is likely to require equipment and skill sets well beyond DIY.

--
aem sends...



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"Bill Skype" wrote in message
...


--

-----------------------------------------------------------------
"Don't forget to draw the curtains!"
"aemeijers" wrote in message
...
Bill Skype wrote:
A part of my foundation has been in need of repair for quite some time.
I now have the opportunity to do this, but after looking at it today,
I'm not sure I can handle the task. I really want to try it, but not
sure how to proceed.

The damage I'm seeing isn't like the web info I keep coming across, so
that's the reason for my uncertainty as to a repair course. I've
decided to take some pictures and will explain each below.

The first damage I describe as a "foundation gap" of around 2-3" deep
by nearly 36" long.
http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/3...ndationgap.jpg
To make matters worse, parts of the gap are quite deep and I can fit at
least half of the yard stick in spots:
http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/138...ongapdepth.jpg
I can easily chisel and break parts of I guess what would be the
cinderblock within the deep depth. Very easy to break and crumble.
There is also some foam filler someone attempted to inject, but I have
removed most of that. Lots of dirt and debris around this area. The
big question is how do I repair this gap? Can I just fill in with
cement and what type and how would I go about cleaning the entire area?

Lastly, there is a crack just beyond the gap:
http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/171...ationcrack.jpg
I assume this could be filled in with hydraulic cement patching that I
keep reading about.

There you have it. I can't find anything on repairing this type of
foundation separation/ decay damage and all I keep running across are
cracks or small to moderate sized holes, so any advice would be greatly
appreciated. Just to note, the separation only occurs at one end of my
house and is about 36" long as I said. The rest of the foundation in
other areas seems intact and not separated, plus there are no cracks.
Any idea of the cause of this would be appreciated also so, if I can
repair it, it doesn't happen again.

Thanks in advance,
Bill Skype


Good closeups, but we need some wider shots to understand what sort of
foundation you have. Is it just concrete/stone sleepers on packed dirt?


Here are some additonal shots. First, the interior of the "gap":

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/9...apinterior.jpg


Is that a pair of eyes, looking out?





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On Jun 16, 5:27*pm, "Bill Skype" wrote:
Rudy,

Thanks, at request, I took a couple more images:

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/9...apinterior.jpg

The above is a lit up version of inside the gap.

And:

http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/7...utfoundati.jpg

This is a zoomed out view of a normal part of the foundation. *It is about
8" high.

Bill

"Rudy" wrote in message

...



Just to add, this is a single floor home with no basement or crawl space.


It looks like what you've pictured there is a straight concrete *"slab"
with no support or footings.
Some homes are built on a slab only . [See *"Post tensioned slab] but
yours doesn't look like that.
The pictures look like a 'plain ol' slab w/o any perimeter support.
Like someone said: *more details and pictures that show a lot more (ZOOM
back) needed.


Bill-


What Rudy & aem both said.......

WAY zoomed out photos are needed, to provide context. Imagine the
guys in this newsgroup have never seen your house....closeups are good
but not with context. The photos you take & post have to substitute
for being "on-site".

While most of your photos give good close-up information.....there
appears to not be "zoomed out" and various stages of "zoomed in" of
the same foundation location


Compose and post the photos necessary to understand this "elephant"
that we've never seen in person.......we need your photos to tell the
whole story.

Get rake / broom & remove the extraneous / unimportant debris from the
ground in the photos.



cheers
Bob
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On Jun 17, 2:49*am, fftt wrote:

WAY zoomed out photos are needed, to provide context. * Imagine the
guys in this newsgroup have never seen your house....closeups are good
but not with context. *The photos you take & post have to substitute
for being "on-site".

While most of your photos give good close-up information.....there
appears to not be "zoomed out" and various stages of "zoomed in" of
the same foundation location

Compose and post the photos necessary to understand this "elephant"
that we've never seen in person.......we need your photos to tell the
whole story.

Get rake / broom & remove the extraneous / unimportant debris from the
ground in the photos.


I don't know that any amount and quality of pictures will help with
this diagnosis. Eyeballs on the situation - paid knowledgeable
eyeballs - is the only way to figure out for sure what is going on.

That being said, let's talk theoretical situations for a bit. The
soil has subsided substantially. A fair bit of soil had to go
somewhere, so there are probably two major scenarios that would cause
such a situation.

The first would be improper subgrade preparations. Either there was
organic matter that rotted and compressed, or the soil was disturbed
during excavation and not properly compacted before the slab was
poured. If the gap is no longer increasing in size, mud jacking would
probably take care of the problem.

The other scenario would be flowing water washing away the soil. That
could come from improper drainage around the house, an underground
stream, or a leak in a water/sewer pipe under the slab. If there is a
bathroom near the gap that would increase the odds that it were a pipe
leaking. To fix this sort of problem you have to determine where the
water is coming from and where the soil is going. Mud jacking may of
may not take care of the problem.

It is not a good situation and the OP's comment that the foundation
has been in need of repair for quite some time scares me. Hire a pro
and fix it.

R
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"fftt" wrote in message
...
On Jun 16, 5:27 pm, "Bill Skype" wrote:
Rudy,

Thanks, at request, I took a couple more images:

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/9...apinterior.jpg

The above is a lit up version of inside the gap.

And:

http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/7...utfoundati.jpg

This is a zoomed out view of a normal part of the foundation. It is about
8" high.

Bill

"Rudy" wrote in message

...



Just to add, this is a single floor home with no basement or crawl
space.


It looks like what you've pictured there is a straight concrete "slab"
with no support or footings.
Some homes are built on a slab only . [See "Post tensioned slab] but
yours doesn't look like that.
The pictures look like a 'plain ol' slab w/o any perimeter support.
Like someone said: more details and pictures that show a lot more (ZOOM
back) needed.


Bill-


What Rudy & aem both said.......

WAY zoomed out photos are needed, to provide context. Imagine the
guys in this newsgroup have never seen your house....closeups are good
but not with context. The photos you take & post have to substitute
for being "on-site".

While most of your photos give good close-up information.....there
appears to not be "zoomed out" and various stages of "zoomed in" of
the same foundation location


Compose and post the photos necessary to understand this "elephant"
that we've never seen in person.......we need your photos to tell the
whole story.

Get rake / broom & remove the extraneous / unimportant debris from the
ground in the photos.



cheers
Bob

Thanks, Bob, and here you go:

http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/9626/s6300325j.jpg

The concrete pads you see in front are not attached and were added later.
Note the downspout on the right. One observation I have noted is that the
pad in front of the door actually sinks towards it. Perhaps when it rains,
the water has been flowing directly towards the foundation.

Another image:

http://img191.imageshack.us/img191/9992/s6300324.jpg


I've been told that this is the result of soil erosion from under the
foundation and dirt needs to be compacted into the gap. I turned here
because I wasn't sure this was the correct course of action, plus the cinder
blocks within the gap have decayed around the exposed gap area.

Unfortunately, I am on a limited budget. I thought if I could repair this
myself, it would be worthwhile. Although the pad seems to angle towards the
foundation instead away from it, I wonder if there was any way I could still
direct the water away and force it towards where the gutter drains. I would
not be able to lift the pad myself.




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"RicodJour" wrote in message
...
On Jun 17, 2:49 am, fftt wrote:

WAY zoomed out photos are needed, to provide context. Imagine the
guys in this newsgroup have never seen your house....closeups are good
but not with context. The photos you take & post have to substitute
for being "on-site".

While most of your photos give good close-up information.....there
appears to not be "zoomed out" and various stages of "zoomed in" of
the same foundation location

Compose and post the photos necessary to understand this "elephant"
that we've never seen in person.......we need your photos to tell the
whole story.

Get rake / broom & remove the extraneous / unimportant debris from the
ground in the photos.


"I don't know that any amount and quality of pictures will help with
this diagnosis. Eyeballs on the situation - paid knowledgeable
eyeballs - is the only way to figure out for sure what is going on."

"That being said, let's talk theoretical situations for a bit. The
soil has subsided substantially. A fair bit of soil had to go
somewhere, so there are probably two major scenarios that would cause
such a situation."

The first would be improper subgrade preparations. Either there was
organic matter that rotted and compressed, or the soil was disturbed
during excavation and not properly compacted before the slab was
poured. If the gap is no longer increasing in size, mud jacking would
probably take care of the problem.

The other scenario would be flowing water washing away the soil. That
could come from improper drainage around the house, an underground
stream, or a leak in a water/sewer pipe under the slab. If there is a
bathroom near the gap that would increase the odds that it were a pipe
leaking. To fix this sort of problem you have to determine where the
water is coming from and where the soil is going. Mud jacking may of
may not take care of the problem.

It is not a good situation and the OP's comment that the foundation
has been in need of repair for quite some time scares me. Hire a pro
and fix it."

Thanks, I have been told before that the cause was soil erosion from under
the foundation combined with poor drainage. Please see my response to Bob
for some additonal photos I added.

Bill


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On Jun 16, 5:35*pm, "Bill Skype" wrote:
A part of my foundation has been in need of repair for quite some time. *I
now have the opportunity to do this, but after looking at it today, I'm not
sure I can handle the task. *I really want to try it, but not sure how to
proceed.

The damage I'm seeing isn't like the web info I keep coming across, so
that's the reason for my uncertainty as to a repair course. *I've decided to
take some pictures and will explain each below.

The first damage I describe as a "foundation gap" of around 2-3" deep by
nearly 36" long.http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/3...ndationgap.jpg
To make matters worse, parts of the gap are quite deep and I can fit at
least half of the yard stick in spots:http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/138...ongapdepth.jpg
I can easily chisel and break parts of I guess what would be the cinderblock
within the deep depth. *Very easy to break and crumble. *There is also some
foam filler someone attempted to inject, but I have removed most of that.
Lots of dirt and debris around this area. *The big question is how do I
repair this gap? *Can I just fill in with cement and what type and how would
I go about cleaning the entire area?

Lastly, there is a crack just beyond the gap:http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/171...ationcrack.jpg
I assume this could be filled in with hydraulic cement patching that I keep
reading about.

There you have it. *I can't find anything on repairing this type of
foundation separation/ decay damage and all I keep running across are cracks
or small to moderate sized holes, so any advice would be greatly
appreciated. *Just to note, the separation only occurs at one end of my
house and is about 36" long as I said. *The rest of the foundation in other
areas seems intact and not separated, plus there are no cracks. *Any idea of
the cause of this would be appreciated also so, if I can repair it, it
doesn't happen again.

Thanks in advance,
Bill Skype


Just looking at it quickly id guess its been like that a long time as
its full of mold and dirt, to get a bond it must be cleaned real-real
well. Bleach will kill mold and Muriatic acid will clean and etch it,
id powerwash it out and chip out anything loose. If house isnt
settling anymore it isnt to serious. You need to dig out the area so
you can get in there to work on it then mortar it closed, ive had
cracks like that go to the bottom. Does it leak.
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Bill Skype wrote:
A part of my foundation has been in need of repair for quite some
time. I now have the opportunity to do this, but after looking at it
today, I'm not sure I can handle the task. I really want to try it,
but not sure how to proceed.


Okay. When you say "in need of repair," to which "need" do you refer?

Are you seeing symptoms of foundation distress, such as out of level,
cracked sheetrock, doors or windows that won't close, dinner plates sliding
off the table, etc.?

Or are your "needs" merely cosmetic?


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On Jun 17, 9:50*am, "Bill Skype" wrote:
"RicodJour" wrote in message

...
On Jun 17, 2:49 am, fftt wrote:





WAY zoomed out photos are needed, to provide context. Imagine the
guys in this newsgroup have never seen your house....closeups are good
but not with context. The photos you take & post have to substitute
for being "on-site".


While most of your photos give good close-up information.....there
appears to not be "zoomed out" and various stages of "zoomed in" of
the same foundation location


Compose and post the photos necessary to understand this "elephant"
that we've never seen in person.......we need your photos to tell the
whole story.


Get rake / broom & remove the extraneous / unimportant debris from the
ground in the photos.


"I don't know that any amount and quality of pictures will help with
this diagnosis. *Eyeballs on the situation - paid knowledgeable
eyeballs - is the only way to figure out for sure what is going on."

"That being said, let's talk theoretical situations for a bit. *The
soil has subsided substantially. *A fair bit of soil had to go
somewhere, so there are probably two major scenarios that would cause
such a situation."

The first would be improper subgrade preparations. *Either there was
organic matter that rotted and compressed, or the soil was disturbed
during excavation and not properly compacted before the slab was
poured. *If the gap is no longer increasing in size, mud jacking would
probably take care of the problem.

The other scenario would be flowing water washing away the soil. *That
could come from improper drainage around the house, an underground
stream, or a leak in a water/sewer pipe under the slab. *If there is a
bathroom near the gap that would increase the odds that it were a pipe
leaking. *To fix this sort of problem you have to determine where the
water is coming from and where the soil is going. *Mud jacking may of
may not take care of the problem.

It is not a good situation and the OP's comment that the foundation
has been in need of repair for quite some time scares me. *Hire a pro
and fix it."

Thanks, I have been told before that the cause was soil erosion from under
the foundation combined with poor drainage. *Please see my response to Bob
for some additonal photos I added.

Bill


Bill, I saw them. The stuff I'm seeing you can take care of fairly
easily and mostly by yourself.

You have gutter problems as evidenced by the peeling paint on the
right side of the door. The gutter is obviously blocked with leaves
and overflowing. You need to clean that gutter and install some
screens to keep the bulk of the leaves out of it. While you are up
there check to see the condition of the fascia - it is probably that
you have some rotten wood fascia boards.

You are right that the concrete walk is sloping in the wrong
direction. It is difficult to raise the existing concrete walk and
add dirt underneath it - it's much easier to either get some help to
move it out of the way so you can fix the grade or to bust up the
concrete back to a logical break point and replace it with some
pavers. If the budget is really tight, you could use the broken
concrete pieces and set them as individual "stones" - kind of like a
mosaic.

Putting a concrete topping on top of the existing walk concrete and
filling in the gap under the house with concrete could also work. The
first thing you want to do is to fill in that gap under the house
slab. Pounding dirt and gravel into the hole with a lump hammer would
help if you have access, but the walk slab might be in your way.

You also should investigate digging a trench and installing some
drainage pipe - it looks like the grade level drops off to the right
of the house, so you'd have the far end of the drainage pipe running
to daylight. The pipe would pick up the discharge from the end of the
downspout and you could have a surface drain right next to the low
point of the concrete slab by the door. That will help give the water
an easy out instead of pooling next to the door.

While I'm spending your time and money, you should also take care of
the stuff growing by the house. The plant growing by the hose has to
go, and you should cut back the stuff along the foundation on the
right side of the house (and anywhere else you have stuff growing
right up against the house). You may have other problems over there
that the plants are hiding. The plants also keep the area from drying
out and make it attractive to carpenter ants and termites. You should
be able to see the edge of the concrete house slab all the way around
the house.

R
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Default foundation repair advice?

ransley wrote:
On Jun 16, 5:35 pm, "Bill Skype" wrote:

A part of my foundation has been in need of repair for quite some time. I
now have the opportunity to do this, but after looking at it today, I'm not
sure I can handle the task. I really want to try it, but not sure how to
proceed.

The damage I'm seeing isn't like the web info I keep coming across, so
that's the reason for my uncertainty as to a repair course. I've decided to
take some pictures and will explain each below.

The first damage I describe as a "foundation gap" of around 2-3" deep by
nearly 36" long.http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/3...ndationgap.jpg
To make matters worse, parts of the gap are quite deep and I can fit at
least half of the yard stick in spots:http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/138...ongapdepth.jpg
I can easily chisel and break parts of I guess what would be the cinderblock
within the deep depth. Very easy to break and crumble. There is also some
foam filler someone attempted to inject, but I have removed most of that.
Lots of dirt and debris around this area. The big question is how do I
repair this gap? Can I just fill in with cement and what type and how would
I go about cleaning the entire area?

Lastly, there is a crack just beyond the gap:http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/171...ationcrack.jpg
I assume this could be filled in with hydraulic cement patching that I keep
reading about.

There you have it. I can't find anything on repairing this type of
foundation separation/ decay damage and all I keep running across are cracks
or small to moderate sized holes, so any advice would be greatly
appreciated. Just to note, the separation only occurs at one end of my
house and is about 36" long as I said. The rest of the foundation in other
areas seems intact and not separated, plus there are no cracks. Any idea of
the cause of this would be appreciated also so, if I can repair it, it
doesn't happen again.

Thanks in advance,
Bill Skype

see www.epoxyproducts.com/cellar4u.html for some basic info and perhaps
an idea or two... At least a starting place....


paul oman
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