Foundation Repair Case Studies: Helical Piers & SmartJacks - Residential, Bartlesville, OK

Challenge

This 1,940 square foot home, built in 1913, was in exceptionally good shape for its age. Most of the foundation was not in need of attention, but there was a small problem area at the north end of the front porch. A small side wall had separated almost entirely from the concrete porch slab, exposing the crawl space beneath, and any further motion of the wall could have been seriously harmful to the larger exterior wall of the house. Stabilizing the side wall, however, would prove challenging, thanks to a brick footing that had broken up underground over time. The porch slab itself was also sinking into the crawl space, and would need to be stabilized in order to keep the porch useable.

Solution

Bedlam Concrete Lifting excavated two holes on the north wall of the porch and one on a column on the northwest corner, then drove three FSI HP288 helical piers and fit them to the walls using mechanical lift brackets. In order to fit the brackets securely to the rolled, broken brick footing without further damaging it, 2-foot lengths of angle iron were attached to distribute the force across a larger area. With the walls lifted and stabilized, three FSI SmartJack systems were installed in the crawl space beneath the porch, also using short lengths of angle iron to distribute force and avoid further damaging the structure.

Project Summary

Certified Installer: Bedlam Concrete Lifting, Inc.

Products Installed: (3) Foundation Supportworks Model 288 Helical Pier 5' Spiral Tip Lead w/ 8"-10", (3) Foundation Supportworks Model 288 Mechanical Lift Bracket, (3) Foundation Supportworks Model 288 3' SmartJack Assembly w/ Bottom Plate