Before & After Photos

These homeowners called as they were doing some new construction on their home and noticed a fairly significant horizontal crack in their basement wall. Upon inspection, we were able to observe some bowing in the wall. A level against the blocks showed a significant difference between the the crack and the top and bottom of the wall. We had definitely seen worse, but bowing walls are not something to wait on. Often the repairs become significantly more expensive over time and the walls become more dangerous. Now was the time to address it. We installed a series of wall anchors to support the wall. Steel wall plates on the interior of the home are connected to GeoLock Earth Anchors buried in the ground away from the home with long steel rods. Over time, the wall anchors can be tightened with the potential of improving the condition of the wall. This is a permanent fix that will prevent further bowing and will give these homeowners peace of mind.

It’s clear to see in the first image that something’s just not right with these walls...they’re bowing! Bowed walls are often the result of hydrostatic pressure. As water saturates the backfill soil surrounding the foundation, the water exerts pressure on the foundation walls. Installing the PowerBrace system in this home was the best solution for combating the hydrostatic pressure and straightening these walls over time. 12 corrosion-resistant, zinc beams were carefully reinforced to the floor joists to distribute the load evenly preventing damage to the floor system above it. These beams can be tightened over time to continue to stabilize the walls, putting them back in their place.

We quickly inspected Marilyn's failing support beams in her crawl space, which desperately required a permanent solution. The wooden beams split due to rotting, so our Ayers team suggested SmartJacks. These jacks consist of galvanized steel for corrosion resistance. We attached them to a supplemental support beam above and rested the jacks on a sturdy base within the floor. SmartJacks can support loads of more than 60,000 pounds. Marilyn now feels assured of the safety of her crawl space support system!

James had a basement wall that was bowing and had about 3 inches of movement. He wanted to correct the wall to keep the home safe. We used PowerBraces to prevent the wall from moving any further and could potentially straighten the wall. The PowerBraces include steel I-beams that are secured to the joists above the wall with steel brackets.

Billy has owned his Lake, MI home for 22 years since it was built in 2000. He’s had been having water intrusion issues for a few years, but keep cleaning it up himself. Billy is unable to use the space anymore and he’s lost personal property due to the water. Recently, he recently noticed a bowing wall and finally decided to call Ayers. Our crew came out for an inspection and determined that with Billy’s needs, PowerBraces would be the perfect solution to curb the water intrusion and reinforce the foundation. 

PowerBraces are steel supports that secure to the joists above the foundation. They even distribute the weight of the home, strengthening the foundation overtime.  Now that his foundation is stabilized properly, there’ll be less water intrusion as well as a more safe and secure foundation. Billy was thrilled with the work done by Ayers as he wants to be able to pass the home down to his daughter. He will definitely be calling us int he future if any other problems arise!