Foundation, Basement, and Crawl Space Services in Joliet, Illinois
When your home floods when there are extended rains or as the snow melts in the spring time or you have long cracks in your foundation, you know there may be a serious problem. We are ready to help when there is any kind of basement water, foundation settlement, or bowing basement wall problem. Our team uses products that we’ve tested and methods that we’ve perfected over the years that our team stands behind. We have a team of experts in the Joliet area that are trained to correctly investigate your home and evaluate your problem to create a specialized solution for your problem that will ensure your home is properly repaired. When our team installs a basement or crawl space waterproofing system or a repair solution, it is backed by years of industry experience and trusted products.
It is crucial that once you’ve found a problem with the crawl space, foundation, or basement that you reach out to an experienced repair company. We recommend this due to there are a number of potentially dangerous issues that will happen along with these issues such as mildew, weakened structure, and even permanent foundation damage. It doesn’t matter if you are needing our basement waterproofing services to stop water damaging your home, foundation repair products to prevent your home from sinking, or crawl space services to prevent mildew growth in the crawl space, our professionals are here to help you.
Basement Waterproofing
The basement is an important part of the home whether you’re using it as a storage area or if you have a finished space down there. Because of this, it is important that the area is free of standing water and excess humidity and flooding are controlled. Because water is able to get into a basement through a number of different places, there needs to be a number of repair possibilities that we can utilize to prevent damage to the area. The main places that we find water leaking is through cracks in the walls, which are usually in concrete or at mortar joints between blocks, at the cove joint, which is where the walls and floor connect, and finally at windows that may be at or even below the soil.
No matter where you’re having the problem we have solutions that can collect, divert, and eject the water from the basement. If you have leaky basement cracks, the first step is implementing a wall crack repair to control the crack growth and leaking. If the water is coming in at the cove joint or even basement windows, installing a custom drainage system will help remove the water from the basement. In some problematic cases, typically with stone, brick, or block foundations on older homes, we can install one of our entire wall solution that is comprised of a floor to ceiling heavy duty liner that will collect and divert water. If you’ve already got a waterproofing system installed but it is unable to keep up with demand, we can install a new, more powerful sump pump to help the system keep up with the demand. We aren’t just installing systems, we can also upgrade the drainage in the yard to help keep water from sitting next to the home and seeping in.
Structural Foundation Repair
The foundation of your home is quite possibly one of the most important areas of the home. It not only supports the building itself but it also is the basement walls. If you have any foundation problems, usually, they will show themselves in the form of stair stepping cracks in your outside brickwork, horizontal cracks that run the length of the foundation or across the basement walls. Sometimes, you will see that your doors will stick when you open or close them or there may be cracks at the corners of them. You may also see a problem where your basement walls are buckling into the basement. While these issues may not seem serious at first, each of them are indicators of a sinking or settling foundation and it is important to have an expert evaluate the foundation for specific problems to determine what type of a repair needs to be in place.
Thankfully, the most common foundation problems are caused by similar things and our experts are very good at spotting these issues. We can offer a repair solution intended for your particular problem to permanently repair and stabilize the foundation. If the problem is a sloping foundation, we can install a series of foundation piers to level the foundation. We will install either push piers or helical piers, depending on where and how bad the sinking is. Both types of piers are very strong and can help stabilize your foundation. If you’ve got bowing basement walls, depending on how much the wall is buckling, there are a few possible options. We can install a number of wall anchors, these are 2 large steel plates and these are connected by a long, steel rod, or tall braces that are installed vertically against the cracks to push them back in line and prevent further bowing, we also can apply carbon fiber staples to strengthen weak areas and prevent the wall from bowing. These products can repair the bowing wall and stop it from coming out of alignment again.
Crawl Space Solutions
In Joliet, there are many homes that are built with crawl space areas and not basements. For many years, these were created with open vents which was intended to increase fresh air flow through the area and keep it dry. Unfortunately, this is rarely what happens. Having open vents allows water to get in when it rains or snows and the vents hinder airflow which causes the humidity levels to stay high which can facilitate the growth of mildew. Studies have shown that up to half of the air in your home enters through the crawl space so ensuring this area is protected from the elements and controlling excess humidity can increase the overall air quality in your home.
We have been encapsulating crawl spaces since we opened our doors and we know the best way to seal them off and control the humidity. This is done using a method called encapsulation which is the installation of a series of vapor barriers, sometimes accompanied by insulation products, which are sturdy plastic and vinyl sheeting as well as vent covers and a sturdy door that can seal the area completely and stop any excess moisture from entering. Closing the area will also stop rodents and animals from settling in the crawl space which will help keep any equipment there safe and allow you to use it for storage. After your crawl space is closed off, we can install an air filter and dehumidifier to improve the indoor air quality. It will reduce the excess humidity to a proper level as well as remove pollutants from the air.
Additional Services
We also provide a number of services to help improve your basement area. We carry basement windows to increase the air flow or increase the amount of light in the area. When waterproofing the basement, we can help with pre-finishing the area by installing a wall system that is both waterproof and resistant to the growth of mildew. When you are building a new home, we can install a system of new construction waterproofing systems to stop any potential future water problems. If you’ve already got a waterproofing system in place, we can perform our preventive maintenance testing to ensure it continues to work at peak efficiency.
Contact Us
If you are interested in any of the solutions above, feel free to fill out the form on our contact us page, visit our frequently asked questions page or give us a call at 630-206-1177 and organize a meeting with a member of our team.