Sagging & Sinking Crawl Space Repairs
Structural sagging solutions for crawl spaces
A floor joist shows signs of compression due to the weight of the home — and too few support posts.
Inadequate crawl space support leads to sinking floors, uneven floors, and damage to your structure.
Crawl space jack posts provide a fast, permanent, warrantied solution to this problem. They’re a great option for homeowners investing in home repairs.
The Problem:
Your crawl space is experiencing structural problems that are causing it to sink or sag in the middle.
What’s Happening:
Crawl spaces experience structural sagging for these three primary reasons:
- Support Columns Spaced Too Far Apart
- Rot-Weakened Joists, Girders, Posts
- Columns Settling Due To Weak Soil/Poor Footings
Telltale Signs:
- Tilting or sinking crawl space supports
- Too few supports in the crawl space
- Moist, rotting wood
- Sagging, sloping, or uneven floors upstairs
- Cracks in interior drywall
- Door & window frames skewed and/or unlevel
How to Fix It:
Additional crawl space supports should be installed to ensure that your structure is properly stabilized. Mold and rot should also be addressed by installing a crawl space liner and removing excess moisture from the crawl space.
We can fix your sagging crawl space! Call us for a free crawl space repair quote today! We serve Mansfield, Springfield, Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton and throughout southern Ohio.
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Before
AfterIntelliJacks Stabilize Sagging Floors in Thornville, OH
During the last several years, homeowners in Thornville, OH, have noticed a structural problem only getting worse with time. Some areas of the floor felt soft and uneven, indicating the floor joists in the crawl space were sagging and failing to properly support the above floors.
The owners recently renovated the home’s interior, and they did not want to have to worry about additional problems caused by sagging floors. They were motivated to address these issues once and for all, so they started to research how to remedy these problems. They came across information online about Ohio Basement Authority, and they were motivated to contact us for further guidance.
They met with Inspector John Becker Sr. who ventured into the tight crawl space to assess the condition of the floor joists. John found that one area of floor joists were being supported by small round concrete columns that had been shimmed with wooden pieces. This is not an ideal or proper support system, so John recommended one type of our many reliable foundation repair solutions.
One of our crews installed several IntelliJacks underneath the main support beam in the crawl space. Made of galvanized steel, the heavy-duty IntelliJacks permanently stabilize the floor and floor joists. They prevent further sagging and offer the best opportunity to lift the floors back to level. IntelliJacks also will not rust or corrode, and they are designed to stop settling. If any settlement occurs, however, the IntelliJacks can easily be adjusted.
The homeowners are pleased to now have a safe and stable living environment because of this trustworthy repair solution.
A moldy, unsupported girder sinks under the weight of a home — due to an improperly installed crawl space support. If not addressed, could mean significant damage to the home.
Advantages To Our System:
At Ohio Basement Authority, we recommend installing the IntelliJack® System, which uses adjustable heavy-duty steel crawl space jack posts. These posts install quickly in a home and provide the best solution for restoring stability to your structure.
The IntelliJack® system can be installed in tight conditions, usually in less than a day. Our crawl space support system has an allowable load capacity of more than 24,000 pounds per support jack, and is tested and certified to the highest industry standards.
The adjustable design of our crawl space jack system means that sagging floors can not only be stabilized; they can also be restored their original position in many cases.
To address the issue of poor supporting soils, each crawl space jack distributes the weight of the home through a precast concrete footing and a base of engineered fill material.
The IntelliJack® is the only solution that addresses problem soils during crawl space restabilization!
Some homeowners and contractors will attempt to use concrete blocks to repair a sagging crawl space, with wooden “shims” wedged in at the top to fill in any empty space.
This kind of installation is a short-term solution that requires constant maintenance and reshimming. And because your concrete columns will continue to sink into the earth below, this solution will ultimately fail.
What NOT To Do
Here are three “fixes” that we at Ohio Basement Authority do NOT recommend:
Concrete Columns
Crawl space girders or beams are sometimes supported by columns made from concrete blocks. The blocks are typically stacked on a concrete footing and held together with mortar.
Once the column has been built and the mortar has cured, the extra space between the uppermost block and the floor girder above is filled with wooden spacers or “shims“.
Because of the wait for the concrete footing and mortar to cure, this is a very slow, time-consuming process.
Since the completed column isn’t adjustable, additional shimming will be needed as the concrete column settles or the wood girder shrinks.
Additional Shimming
This is a “cheap fix” solution for repairing a girder and floor that have sagged because of settled concrete columns. Temporary jacks are used to lift the girder, and wooden shims are pushed between the existing column and the floor girder. The jacks are then removed.
This is a short-term fix only – the concrete columns will continue to settle, requiring additional shimming and maintenance in the future.
Light-Duty Jack Posts
Skinny, light-duty jack posts are available at many hardware stores and home centers. This type of adjustable steel post is often installed on top of a concrete block that rests on the ground in the crawl space.
Unfortunately, these posts hold very little weight, have poor stability, and are difficult to adjust. Also, they won’t compensate for poor supporting soils in the crawl space. This is not the solution you need!
We’re YOUR Crawl Space Structural Support Contractors!
If you’d like a permanent solution for your crawl space issues or any other foundation problem, we’re ready to help you. We offer free crawl space structural repair quotes to homeowners in the Ohio area. To schedule your free, on-site visit and written estimate, call or e-mail us today!
Our service area includes Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, Springfield and throughout southern Ohio.
Looking for a price? Get a no cost, no obligation free estimate.
our service area
We Serve the Dayton, Columbus, Cincinnati metros and Southern Ohio
