House Foundation Problems You Need to Watch Out For
Your home’s entire existence relies on the condition of its foundation. There are multiple warning signs to look out for so you can catch any house foundation problems before they turn to disaster.
It’s extremely important for your home’s structural integrity, your safety and your wallet to identify any foundation problems as soon as possible. If gone unnoticed, you could end up paying tens of thousands of dollars in repairs.
Whether it’s checking for visible cracks or maintaining your windows and doors, we’ll go over what you must look out for so you can identify house foundation problems before they get out of control.
Check For Visible Cracks
One of the easiest ways to spot any foundation problems is to keep an eye out for any cracks on your home’s exterior and interior. If you have a brick home, cracks in the walls are not difficult to spot and need to be taken care of right away.
Be sure to check your interior walls as well. Any cracks in plaster or drywall are pretty clear indicators of house foundation problems.
Also, if you find any cracks in your wood paneling, concrete slab or basement floor, that could be a sign of foundation problems as well. It’s important to repair any cracking as soon as possible before it leads to major problems.
Are Your Floors Uneven?
Uneven floors are another sign of a failing foundation. Using a tape measure, level or laser line, you can see if your floors are level or not.
It’s important to measure along the interior walls to the middle of the floors as well as along the exterior. If you floors aren’t level, you could have a foundation problem.
However, floors that are not level could also be caused by sagging support beams or joists. All things aside, there’s an underlying problem that’ll need to be fixed sooner rather than later.
Inspect Your Windows and Doors
Routinely checking your windows and doors is a good habit to get into as a homeowner. You’ll be able to spot any abnormalities such as window seal failure or damaged door hinges.
Some warning signs of foundation problems can be found through checking your windows and doors.
For example, if windows or doors suddenly become sticky and hard to operate, it could be because your foundation is becoming uneven and forcing to jam them.
With old wood windows or doors, foundation problems can completely ruin them beyond repair. In such case, along with fixing your foundation, you should replace any damaged windows and doors.
Damaged windows and doors are bad for any homeowner. They’ll start eating at your energy bills and cause you to lose money. Replacing your old windows with new energy efficient vinyl windows will ensure that your home is protected against the elements.
Fiberglass and steel exterior doors are the way to go in the Midwest. They’re made to never rot, warp or expand unlike wood doors. You can get a free quote now for windows and doors from Feldco, America’s #1 window and door company.
Maintain Your Gutters
You may be thinking, “my gutters are all the way on top of my home how can they cause foundation problems?” Let us explain.
Your gutters actually play a very important role in keeping your home in good condition. Damaged and improperly working gutters can cause a slew of problems, including house foundation problems.
If water isn’t being drained effectively away from your home, it can puddle up at the foundation. This can cause the ground to become weaker and water will seep into the foundation which can lead to cracking.
Along with foundation troubles, poor gutter systems can cause mold and mildew to build up on your home and contribute to basement flooding.
By simply routinely cleaning your gutters or replacing them, you can get rid of these hassles from the start.
Inspect Your Siding
If you have siding, finding cracks in your home’s exterior isn’t as easy. However, it’s still not difficult to spot flaws on your home’s siding.
Old, worn out siding can definitely cause house foundation problems. Check for any standing water at your home’s exterior as it could be because your siding is damaged and letting in water.
If your siding gets cracked or rotten, water has an easy path into your home and water is the root of most house foundation problems.
Much like faulty gutters, damaged siding can lead to mold and mildew build-up.
If you find that you need to replace your siding, vinyl is the best choice. Vinyl siding is made to never crack, rot, warp or expand and will withstand all the weather conditions in the Midwest.
Steer Clear of House Foundation Problems
Catching any house foundation problems early on is vital for you as a homeowner. If you do find any symptoms or flaws such as cracked exterior or sticky windows and doors, you need to seek help immediately before the problem spirals out of control.
During your inspection for foundation problems, you may find that your windows, siding, doors or gutters are old and worn out. In such a case, you can count on Feldco to replace them with the best products in the Midwest.
We’ve proudly served over 400,000 homeowners and would love to help you on your next replacement project. Get a free quote now!
