Repairing & Straightening Tilting Walls

Correcting Tilting Foundation Wall Problems Quickly To Allow For Basement Finishing

At Ayers Basement Systems, we specialize in repairing your tilting or bowing foundation walls. We offer warrantied solutions for making all kinds of foundation repairs, including straightening foundation walls.

We provide free, no-obligation foundation wall straightening quotes in Michigan & Indiana throughout our Michigan & Indiana service area, including Kalamazoo, Lansing, Grand Rapids, the surrounding areas of Elkhart, Battle Creek, South Bend, Muskegon, Mount Pleasant, Traverse City, Jackson, and nearby. Call or e-mail us today to schedule your appointment!

Causes of Tilting Basement and Foundation Walls

Basement walls showing signs of bowing, buckling and tilting should be addressed immediately and especially before finishing the basement.

Your foundation repair expert can talk with you about options to quickly and effectively restore your foundation wall to its original, straight alignment.

A great deal of pressure is placed on your basement walls by the soil surrounding the foundation. This is what causes them to tilt.

The pressure placed on your foundation varies based on the types of soil that are present, how much moisture is in the soil, and how far underground your foundation extends.

Foundation problems can also stem from hydrostatic pressure, expansive clay soils, frost, improper gutter systems, and

While there's constant pressure pushing in on the foundation, there's no equalizing pressure pushing out! If the outside pressure is greater than the strength of your walls, they will begin to fail.

Cracks are usually the first sign of wall failure. Next, sections of the wall can actually start to bow, buckle, and tilt inwards. This damage will get worse and can even result in walls that totally collapse if they go unchecked.

The good news is that the foundation damage mentioned above can be repaired using proven, long-lasting techniques that are much more affordable than replacing the foundation.

To stabilize bowing buckling walls we use a wall anchor system. When a series of wall anchors has been installed, the system can be gradually tightened to return damaged walls to their original straight, plumb orientation a little bit at a time.

Some homeowners may want bowing and/or tilting walls to be straightened immediately as opposed to gradually, so that all or part of the basement can be finished -- or perhaps they may want to completely correct foundation wall problems so that the house can be put on the market.

Regardless of the reason, basement walls can be excavated and straightened immediately rather than waiting to tighten the walls periodically.

Repairing & Straightening Tilting Foundation Walls

At Ayers Basement Systems, we recommend correcting damage done to failing foundation walls with the GeoLock® Wall Anchor System.

Designed by Supportworks, Inc., this foundation wall system is currently being used by foundation experts throughout the United States and Canada as a warrantied solution that permanently repairs failing foundation walls.

Excavating the Foundation Perimeter

This is an example of a severe foundation soil problem along the foundation wall. As you can see, there is severe inward bowing of the wall that is caused by soil pressure.

We at Ayers Basement Systems, begin the wall straightening process by excavating the soils out from around the foundation to relieve pressure placed on your foundation walls from outside moisture and soils.

Exterior excavation is not necessary unless the walls are dangerously damaged, or your basement is scheduled to be finished. In normal scenarios, this step is not a necessary part of all Geo-Lock™ wall anchor system installations.

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Position The Earth Anchor

At each earth anchor location a section of the sod is carefully and temporarily removed. Workers dig a hole where each anchor will go outside of the foundation.

Our earth anchors are made with high-quality galvanized steel to resist corrosion, and includes a 25-year warranty against manufacturing defects, as well as our own in-house quality and performance warranty.

The earth anchors that are installed outside the foundation have a center hole which will be attached to the anchor rod that will be installed in the next step.

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Prepare The Foundation Wall

For this step we drill a small hole in your foundation wall for the steel anchor rod. We drive this rod through the soil to extend from the foundation wall to the earth anchor.

Our wall anchor system is superior to other methods because the hole we create in the foundation wall is very small, just 1" in diameter. This is different than other foundation contractor's methds which require a large hole or even a section of concrete block to be removed during installation.

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Mounting Wall Plates

A steel wall plate will be mounted to the anchor rod on the inside of the foundation after the earth anchor has been attached to the anchor rod.

After each earth anchor has been installed the inward movement of your foundation walls will be permanently halted. These wall anchors can now be tightened to continue to straighten and support the foundation wall.

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Straightening Basement Walls

During this step, your foundation repair contractors will attempt to straighten the foundation walls back to their original position. The wall anchors will be tightened and adjusted accordingly to provide long-term support for the walls.

If the damage was severe in Step 1 then the excavation is filled using the soil at this point.

However, to avoid excessive soil pressure in the future, gravel and drainage tile may be installed to help avoid soil pressure due to excessive moisture. After backfilling, landscape details will be carefully restored.

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Cleaning Up & Preparing For Basement Finishing

In this final step the holes created for the soil anchor installation will be carefully filled in with excavated soil and mechanically compressed. The sod that was removed will becarefully be replaced and raked for a seamless blend with surrounding landscaping.

Inside your home, all wall plates can be covered with our attractive Hide-A-Way® Wall Anchor Covers to help them blend in with your basement finishing installation.

Contact Us For Foundation Wall Repair In Michigan & Indiana!

At Ayers Basement Systems, we take pride in providing a clean, warrantied solution for homeowners in need of foundation wall repair. To help you decide if we're the contractors for you, we offer free written basement wall repair quotes for property owners throughout our MI & IN service area.

We serve the Grand Rapids, Lansing, Kalamazoo, area, as well as Muskegon, Elkhart, Battle Creek, Jackson, Mount Pleasant, Traverse City, South Bend, and many outlying areas. To schedule an appointment, call or e-mail us today!

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