How Floor Cracks Can Lead to Basement Water Damage
Water can enter a basement in several different ways, and one of the most common entrance points is through floor cracks. Whether it’s a tiny hairline crack or a very large crack, water can seep through any size and make its way into your basement.
If you notice any sort of crack or water damage in your basement, our floor crack repair experts in Erie can help! Contact our team at Total Foundation Solutions and one of our contractors will evaluate your home.
What Causes Floor Cracks?
Floor cracks are typically a sign of a much bigger problem with your home. They often indicate that your foundation is settling.
Soils underneath your foundation can shift from extreme weather conditions, causing them to expand during rainstorms or contract during dry weather. This constant expansion and contraction causes the soils that support your foundation to lose their compaction.
The soils then become much less supportive of the weight of your foundation and cause it to settle into the ground. As it settles, it puts pressure on your basement floors and can cause them to crack.
How Does Water Enter Your Basement?
Now that your basement floors are cracked from foundation settlement, they can easily allow water to enter your basement.
No matter what size of floor crack you have, water can push through and enter your basement. If you are noticing any signs of water damage, our basement floor crack repair specialists in Erie can help repair the situation and protect your home from future flooding.
Hydrostatic Pressure
Hydrostatic pressure is one of the main causes of water entering your basement through floor cracks. During heavy rains, the ground becomes so saturated with water that it puts pressure on your home’s foundation.
If there are any cracks in your basement floor, the pressure can push the water through those cracks and cause your basement to flood. To avoid water damage from hydrostatic pressure, your basement floor cracks must be fixed.
Water Seeping Through Floor Crack
Water seeping through floor cracks can result in these symptoms and cause extensive damage to your basement.
Symptoms of Basement Water Damage
Symptoms of water damage can show in many different ways. It’s not always as obvious as a pool of water on the floor.
If water enters your basement through floor cracks and is left untreated, the water can cause damaging effects to your basement or even the rest of your home.
Symptoms of water damage include:
In order for mold to grow, moisture must be present. If water sits in your basement, mold can grow in as little as 24-48 hours if the conditions are right. A completely waterproof basement is not at risk for mold growth.
Untreated water damage can give off a foul smell and cause musty odors to infiltrate your basement, as well as the main living areas of your home.
Water can weaken any wooden floor joists or beams in your basement and compromise the structural integrity of your home. Weak floor joists can cause your interior floors to sag.
Bugs and pests love to live in damp places. If you notice an unusual increase in unwanted visitors, it could indicate water damage in your basement.
Unfortunately, the damage can also impact the inside of your home. The stack effect is a phenomenon that allows the air inside your basement to enter your home’s main living areas. If the air in your basement is musty or contains mold spores, it can seep through your floorboards and enter your home.
How to Repair Floor Cracks
Floor cracks are often an indication of foundation settlement issues. In order to completely fix the problem, you may need foundation repair to ultimately fix the cracks and prevent them from becoming worse.
Our floor crack repair experts in Erie offer the following foundation repair solutions:
- Push piers: Push piers reach greater depths than any other type of solution, which can sometimes come in handy for restoring concrete slabs and getting rid of cracks in the process.
- Helical piers: Helical piers are suitable for both light and heavy loads, which can make them appropriate for concrete slab settlement and floor crack repair.
- Slab piers: Occasionally it might be practical to use concrete slab piers and brackets to transfer the weight of the slab to load-bearing soil and lift and level the concrete.
Floor Crack Repair from Total Foundation Solutions
As a leading water damage and basement floor crack repair company in Erie, PA, we have the tools and expertise required to deliver high-quality repairs that last for a lifetime. All of our services are available throughout Northwestern PA and Western NY.
Contact us today for your floor crack repair estimate!