Questions people ask us

Almost never. Foundations fail slowly, over years, and give plenty of warning. Even a bowing wall is fixed as planned work, not an emergency. If you ever see a wall moving from week to week, call us the same day.

Yes. Poured walls shrink as they cure and nearly all crack a little in the first few years. A new-home warranty may cover leaks, so check yours before you pay anyone.

Settling is a small, one-time movement that stops. A foundation problem keeps moving: cracks that grow, a wall that keeps leaning, floors that keep dropping. Readings taken over time tell the two apart.

Wood swells with humidity. Seasonal sticking is usually humidity, not the foundation. Doors that stick all year, along with sloping floors and cracks over the frame, are worth a look.

Snowmelt and spring rain soak the soil while the ground below is still frozen, so water has nowhere to go but sideways into the wall. Grading and downspouts help most here.

It fixes damp air, not water coming in. Many basements need both: the leak fixed, then the air kept dry.

A backwater valve stops sewer water backing up through floor drains. It is a plumbing job, separate from waterproofing. We can refer a licensed plumber, and some cities help pay for it.

If water is near outlets or the furnace, stay out and shut off power to the basement at the panel if you can do it safely. Move what you can, and call your city if it is a sewer backup. Then call us; we book next-day visits for active leaks. We do not run a 24-hour crew.

In a sealed crawl space, closed. Open vents bring in humid summer air that condenses on cool surfaces underneath. Closing them only works as part of a sealed system.

Some mould on wood is common in damp crawl spaces. We are not mould specialists: if there is more than a little, a remediation company cleans it first, then we seal the space so it does not come back.

Most crawl spaces take 1 to 3 days, depending on size, clearance and whether old material has to come out first.

Yes, for homes in our service area. There is no catch and no obligation, and the written report is yours to keep.

Someone 18 or older. We need to reach the basement walls, the sump and any crawl space access. Moving boxes away from the walls helps us measure more.

Yes. Many buyers book us during their condition period. It covers the foundation, water and crawl space only, not the whole house.

We will tell you what we would do and what it costs. If the answer is nothing, the report says nothing. There are no sign-today discounts, and quotes hold for 60 days.

Every house is different. Ranges show what most jobs cost. Your written quote after the inspection is a fixed price, unless we find something hidden, and then we stop and talk with you first.

10 percent, up to $1,000, to order materials. The rest is due when the work is finished.

Yes, for structural, drainage, crack and crawl space work. It moves to the next owner once, free. We will put it in writing for your listing.

Yes. Monthly plans from 12 to 120 months on approved credit. The financing page shows a worked example.