Basement Water Damage Caused from Wall Cracks
How Wall Cracks are Formed
Basement wall cracks are often a sign of bigger issues with your home. They’re typically caused by a larger force outside your home that is causing the walls to crack.
They can either indicate foundation settlement issues, or pressure from the soil is causing your walls to bow inward and crack. Wall cracks can either appear as tiny hairline cracks or much larger cracks depending on the amount of pressure. If you notice any symptoms of a weak or unstable wall, contact our foundation wall crack repair team in Erie immediately, and we’ll send out one of our experts to inspect your home.
Soils in the ground underneath your foundation can shift and become unsupportive. During heavy rains, the soils become saturated and cause the soils to expand and increase in size. Dry weather conditions then cause those soils to contract and shrink in size.
The expansion and contraction causes the soils to become weak and no longer support the weight of your foundation. Your foundation then settles into the ground and puts pressure on your home’s structure.
All the pressure from your foundation settling can cause your basement walls to crack.
When it rains, the ground becomes saturated with water and causes the soils to expand. As the expanding soils have no place else to go, they can put an immense amount of pressure against your foundation walls.
This is known as hydrostatic pressure. The hydrostatic pressure pushes the expanding soils against your home’s basement walls and can cause them to crack from all the force.
Water Intrusion Through Wall Cracks
Once your walls are cracked, that’s not the only problem you’ll be faced with. Other than the unsightly cracks, now your basement is at risk for water damage.
As the soils press against your foundation walls from the hydrostatic pressure, any water that is in those soils can seep through the cracks in your basement walls.
Water Damage in Your Basement
As water seeps through the wall cracks in your basement, it can cause damage in many different ways if left untreated. It’s important to know how to identify the different signs of water damage in order to protect your home.
Our basement waterproofing team in Erie has come across many signs that point to a weak water barrier. If you notice any of the following signs in your basement, contact us right away so we can help prevent the problem from becoming worse:
- Mold growth
- Musty odors
- Structural damage
- Bug & pest infestation
These symptoms don’t just impact your basement, but they can also impact the rest of your home. The stack effect can push the air in your basement up through the floorboards and into your home, causing musty odors or mold spores to enter your main living areas.
How to Repair Wall Cracks
Fortunately, wall cracks can be repaired to protect your home from any water intrusion.
Total Foundation Solutions offers Erie the following foundation wall crack repair solutions:
- Foundation pier systems: Foundation piers can be installed to lift your foundation back into place and close any wall cracks that may have formed during settlement.
- Wall repair systems: We use the Geo-Lock™ Wall Anchor System or the PowerBrace™ Wall Repair System to straighten the walls back into place and close any cracks.
Let Total Foundation Solutions Repair Your Wall Cracks
We have helped many customers in Erie with wall crack repair, basement waterproofing, foundation settlement repair, and much more. If you notice even the tiniest of cracks, it never hurts to get an expert opinion before the problem becomes worse. We will gladly come to your home and inspect the issue and provide a recommendation on how to fix it.
Contact us today for your wall crack repair estimate!