Photo Album: Foundation Settlement Repaired in Mesa, AZ

The owners of this mid-1990’s single-family home reached out to Arizona Foundation Solutions after noticing a few signs of a foundation problem.  These signs included: -          -Interior wall cracks -          -Exterior wall cracks -          -Concrete stem wall cracks -          -Interior cracks in tile Arizona Foundation Solutions believes that the proper way to permanently stop the perimeter foundation settlement is to underpin the areas that are experiencing movement. Underpinning is the process of installing deep foundation elements called piles. Piles are engineered foundation supports that are driven down past the unstable soils and are then locked up into load-bearing strata, which can support the loads that are transferred to them. Once the piles have been installed, they can be used to lift the perimeter foundation up to its Highest Practical Maximum. The piles should be spaced approximately six to eight feet on the center and should start and stop near the hinge points of movement (exact spacing to be determined after load-bearing calculations). In this case, the piles would be located at the northwestern, southeastern, and eastern portions of the home. The slab can then be treated by injecting a lightweight expansive polyurethane to fill existing voids and lift the floor slab. This is done by drilling small 3/8” holes in the slab after which polyurethane grout is injected directly under the slab to raise it up to its Highest Practical Maximum. Using the expansive materials will help prevent additional slab settlement by compacting the upper layer of soil as it expands.