Frost Heave is Your Foundation’s Biggest Enemy this Winter

While the wintry wonderland that has descended upon the Charlotte area in the past few days may be a delight to your children, it could cause you future headaches. Beneath the white blanket of snow, your foundation may be shifting due to frost heave–and this can cause serious damage during the spring thaw. When the soil freezes, it pushes certain parts of the foundation upwards and leaves others in the same position. This can crack or damage your foundation, and may lead to costly repairs. How can you spot the warning signs of frost heave? What methods of prevention are there?

Three signs of frost heave to watch out for:

1. Look for cracks on the interior or exterior of your foundation. If these cracks show up after a winter storm, they might be a sign of damage from frost heave to your home’s foundation. Although less common, cracking on exterior walls is also a sign of frost heave damage.
2. Fissures or tilted slabs of concrete floors. Frost heave will push up certain pieces of the floor and leave others alone, causing fissures and uneven or tilted concrete.
3. Sticking doors or raised deck. Deck foundation supports can raise and make your deck unsafe. Additionally, sticking doors may indicate that your foundation has raised or lowered due to temperature changes and frost heave.

If Tar Heel Foundation Solutions does find signs of frost heave damage, there are several options for repair to the foundation to assure that your home is safe and secure for years to come.

Tar Heel Foundation Solutions is a full-service specialty foundation pier contractor dedicated to quality, professionalism, flexibility, and affordability. You can find a sample of our foundation repair options here.

For residential foundation repair questions, call Brandon Fender at (803)-818-7194.

For commercial and/or engineered foundation repair questions, call Larry Wittmer at (803)-246-5480.