Foundation repair fiasco - frustrating! (Houston, San Antonio: for sale, houses, landscaping)

[SnappyBob]

Are these cracks that you mention in the concrete of your foundation or in the sheet rock in your walls? I guess I am asking what the symptoms were that prompted you to call in engineers to check your foundation?

[LadyinSA]

Cracks are in foundation (tile floor), now on walls, both horizontal and vertical and ceilings. It is a nightmare! When I first called, only had a few cracked tiles and a hint of a crack along drywall line (vertical). That was two weeks ago. I called a plumber in first to run tests for leaks and passed, so thought it must be foundation problems, so called a Structural Engineer.

[Lordfalco]

LadyinSA, I feel your pain. After only owning a new home for a year, there are cracks beginning to appear in my garage foundation. The homebuilder's answer was, 'unless it's the width of a quarter, we won't investigate and repair.' Texas soil (and I use the term loosely) is notorious for expanding and contracting causing all manner of issues. I hope for the best for your renovation.

[LadyinSA]

Engineer number two submitted his written report and actually recommend in writing some of the repair methods his website states "don't work." When I wrote to him and asked why he appears to be contradicting himself, he said that these methods are not a permanent solution, thus, they are not actually a "repair." So his whole game boils down to semantics.

Had a very knowledgeable young man come by for a bid using steel piers last night. He mentioned that he had completed work on other homes in my neighborhood. I asked if any of them had a soil test performed prior to starting work and he said they had. Turns out, the first 16 feet of soil on their property was not soil native to Texas. However, he went on to say, that if I wanted to have soil testing done that was up to me, but when using steel piers, driven down to bedrock, it does not matter what the soil content is.

I have had two steel pier companies and two concrete pier companies bid on this job. Homer Parker will be completing his investigation and report soon. Then I will make my decision and move on through this process.

[IrishTR]

I feel your pain our now 3yr old home is literally falling apart since just before year 2. Cracks and gaps in walls, ceilings, baseboards, some as wide as 1/2" or more. Door jams screwed... Anyways builder swears it is natural settlement, Im like there is not a wall/ceiling or floor that isnt coming apart. I understand hairline cracks in sheet rock "might" appear from normal new construction but this is ridiculous.

We had hired 2 structural engineers and 2 home inspectors prior to seeking legal council. Now we are awaiting our court date with the builder who coincidentally is closing shop in San Antonio to focus on its 2 other markets (which hilariously were their failing 2 markets while TX carried the weight for them in sales!) Anyways... I feel your pain, our house is ruined and I am almost afraid the darn thing is gonna fall apart goin up/down the stairs on us sometimes.

Sad part is we really loved the layout and design thought everything was great, till this... And now of course the builder tried pulling a fast one and saying it was our fault we didnt water the foundation, and the latest was they tried to blame a 6" round hole my dog had dug near the backyard patio (yet the dogs werent even born/bought till after the first year of these problems ensued... Crooks I tell you! I hope we prevail and I hope your situation gets remedied too!

[TrapperL]

Turns out, the first 16 feet of soil on their property was not soil native to Texas.

This has to be one of the most absurd statements I've ever read. What did this clown think, they trucked dirt from another state a thousand miles just to dump it in San Antonio? You need to mark this company off of the list of prospective contractors.

And now of course the builder tried pulling a fast one and saying it was our fault we didnt water the foundation,

At closing you should have received a booklet/paper stating what the warranty is and what is/is not covered by that warranty. Assuming your home was built by a national home builder, in that information you should find a section on foundation care/maintenance. If it addresses the home owner watering the foundation, you've already lost your lawsuit. Might want to look thru the stuff so your attorney isn't milking you for money. Having worked for a national home builder and handling nothing but houses in litigation I can tell you there are attorneys that are equally as clueless about a home as most home owners. Hopefully this gets resolved for you.

People, if you live in most areas of San Antonio, your house is probably on the Houston Black Clay strata which is like a sponge. Plasticity Indexes that exceed 60 will cause issues if the owner doesn't water his foundation. Look in the phone book here. Get online and look at most any other town for foundation repair companies. We are loaded with them and for good reason. Most home owners are clueless about foundation care. If you have high PI soil, you can have 16" of vertical displacement meaning that the house from the driest part of the year to the wettest can literally be going up and down 16". To expect it to go up or down and stay in the same orientation is not going to happen. You can control how dry it gets by watering, hence, the recommendation that the owner water their foundation. That keeps the house from moving as severe as not watering at all. You can have near total foundation failure from this. No builder I'm aware of can fix stupid, don't be among them. FWIW, my house covers about 2500 sq ft of slab. I spend about 4 hours per week watering my foundation.

[dbbd]

Originally Posted by TrapperL

This has to be one of the most absurd statements I've ever read. What did this clown think, they trucked dirt from another state a thousand miles just to dump it in San Antonio? You need to mark this company off of the list of prospective contractors.



At closing you should have received a booklet/paper stating what the warranty is and what is/is not covered by that warranty. Assuming your home was built by a national home builder, in that information you should find a section on foundation care/maintenance. If it addresses the home owner watering the foundation, you've already lost your lawsuit. Might want to look thru the stuff so your attorney isn't milking you for money. Having worked for a national home builder and handling nothing but houses in litigation I can tell you there are attorneys that are equally as clueless about a home as most home owners. Hopefully this gets resolved for you.

People, if you live in most areas of San Antonio, your house is probably on the Houston Black Clay strata which is like a sponge. Plasticity Indexes that exceed 60 will cause issues if the owner doesn't water his foundation. Look in the phone book here. Get online and look at most any other town for foundation repair companies. We are loaded with them and for good reason. Most home owners are clueless about foundation care. If you have high PI soil, you can have 16" of vertical displacement meaning that the house from the driest part of the year to the wettest can literally be going up and down 16". To expect it to go up or down and stay in the same orientation is not going to happen. You can control how dry it gets by watering, hence, the recommendation that the owner water their foundation. That keeps the house from moving as severe as not watering at all. You can have near total foundation failure from this. No builder I'm aware of can fix stupid, don't be among them. FWIW, my house covers about 2500 sq ft of slab. I spend about 4 hours per week watering my foundation.

Sooo, how do you comply with watering restrictions and water the foundation at the same time?? I realize there's a window in which you can water for 4 hours....but, if/when we get to stage 3 and every other week watering?

[TrapperL]

^^^^Might want to research the water restrictions. You can water anytime as much as you want, any time of the day as long as it's by hand. That's how I water mine.

[dbbd]

Originally Posted by TrapperL

^^^^Might want to research the water restrictions. You can water anytime as much as you want, any time of the day as long as it's by hand. That's how I water mine.

I'm pretty envious of anyone who has 4 hours a week to stand outside and water their house.

[LadyinSA]

Hello IrishTR,

So very sorry to hear about your foundation issues - sounds major. Another person I know who bought a new home 10 months ago is having to move out of their home as their foundation has cracked so much, there are 18" openings in their home. I see these comments about watering 4 hours a week, but there needs to be some acknowledgement that home builders aren't considering the Plasticity Indexes, or allowing the foundations to "cure," etc., prior to building these homes. There seem to be no repercussions for faulty work. People are investing in their dream home, then shortly realize their biggest investment has become their biggest liability. And the TX Legislature protects the builders. More sleazy politics, where an individual fortunate to have a job, is getting raked over the coals.

I sincerely hope things work out favorably for you and your family.