Can You Live in Your Home During Foundation Repair?

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Are you facing major repairs to your concrete foundation due to cracking, shifting, or sinking? Settlement of a concrete foundation can lead to serious and potentially irreversible structural issues if it doesn’t get repaired to prevent future movement. But do you need to pack your bags and move out or can you stay in your home while the repair work is being completed? And what about before the repairs are done? Is it safe to live in a home that has a shifting and settling foundation?

The answers to these questions depend on a number of factors, including the severity of the foundation damage, the extent of the repair work, and your tolerance for noise and disruption. Rarely will it be necessary for you to leave your home, but understanding more about the repair process and what it entails can help you make the best decision for your circumstances.

What are the common signs of a foundation problem?

There are several telltale signs that a concrete foundation is settling.

The most obvious sign that something is wrong are cracks in your interior walls and ceilings and in the foundation slab itself. Hairline cracks are often the result of normal foundation settlement and usually a minor issue that can easily be fixed. However, you should be concerned if large cracks appear suddenly, which could indicate a more serious problem (see Foundation Cracks: What’s Normal and How to Fix Them).

Also take a look at your doors and windows. Have they become harder to open or close? Do you notice diagonal cracks in the wall at the corners of door and window frames? When doors or windows stick, it can be a sign of foundation distress.

Other symptoms of foundation problems include slanting or uneven floors, basement walls that bulge or bow outward, gaps under baseboards, and cracks in exterior brickwork.

Learn more about the warning signs of foundation damage.

What does the repair process involve?

Typically, most settled residential foundations can be corrected and leveled back into position by installing hydraulic piers along the foundation perimeter. This process, called “underpinning,” also helps to support the weight of the home and keep it level.

The most common types of piers used to raise residential concrete foundations are push piers and helical piers. Push piers are steel pipes that get pushed into the earth under your foundation using a hydraulic pump until they hit bedrock, which creates the resistance needed to stop foundation settlement. Helical piers, on the other hand, are shaped like giant steel screws and are bored into the ground with a hydraulic motor to provide enough torque to prevent movement.

With either method, hydraulic jacks are attached to the embedded steel piers to raise the foundation back to its original elevation. Although your foundation will move while it is being lifted, the movement is slow and gradual, so there is little to disturbance to your home. Once the foundation is restored to the desired elevation, your foundation repair contractor will affix the piles to the footing of the home using brackets to lock the raised slab into its proper position.

Learn more about helical and push pier installation.

How long does foundation underpinning take?

As you might expect, stabilizing a concrete foundation using drilled piers is much more involved than fixing a simple nonstructural wall crack, which generally can be completed in a few hours. The process can take a week or longer, depending on factors such as the size of the home, how many piers will be required to raise the foundation back to level, and weather conditions.

Generally, your foundation repair contractor will complete the project in phases. Before the work of drilling the piers can begin, the repair crew will excavate around the footer of the house so they can install the brackets to which the foundation piers will be attached. Then enough piers need to be installed around the perimeter of the home to ensure the weight is properly distributed. This can be a lengthy process, depending on how many piers you need and how deep they must be driven. In general, an experienced crew can install four or more piers per day. If your project requires ten piers, for example, expect this phase to take about two or three days. The final phase of the work is to slowly level the foundation using the hydraulic jacks, a process that can take a day or two depending on the extent of the settlement.

Because there are so many variables affecting the overall time frame of a foundation underpinning project, ask your contractor to give you an estimate of how long the work will take so you know what to expect.

Is foundation repair disruptive?

Most of the work required to underpin and raise a settled foundation will take place on the exterior of the home, but that doesn’t mean it won’t cause any inconvenience or disruption to the people living there. Although you are unlikely to feel any vibrations, you will hear the noise of the equipment being used for excavation and drilling. Some landscaping may also need to be removed to gain access to the foundation perimeter.

During the actual lifting process, a member of the foundation repair crew will need to enter your home in order to monitor its progress. While lifting is underway, you may hear creaking and groaning noises as your home is slowly being raised back to level. Although the noises are a normal part of the process, they can be unsettling and distracting to some people. If you think the noises will be bothersome, you may want to consider leaving your home while the work is being done.

Is it safe to live in a house with foundation problems?

It is generally safe to continue living in a house with foundation settlement problems unless the structural integrity of your home is compromised. But to prevent the damage from getting worse, which could lead to unsafe conditions such as sagging floors and bowing walls, you should contact an experienced foundation repair specialist as soon as possible to assess the extent of the problem. If for any reason he feels it is dangerous for you to stay in your home until repairs can be done, he will advise you as to what measures to take.

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