When you invest time and money into your home, you want to make sure that it retains its value over time. That’s why even the most well-kept home needs to be prepped for a foundation leak. Foundation leaks appear over time and are caused by variations in the weather, soil, and landscaping around your home.
How can you identify a foundation leak, though, and what can you do to keep your home safe?
What Causes a Foundation Leak?
Foundation leaks don’t appear out of nowhere. While it can sometimes feel as though these leaks appear all at once without warning, they’re more often caused when your foundation is exposed to some kind of long-term, weather-related stress.
Some of the most common causes of foundation leaks include:
- Heavy rain
- Shifting soil
- Your foundation’s response to the weather
- Your foundation materials
- Large trees with invasive root systems near your home
Symptoms of a Foundation Leak
How can you tell, though, that you’re dealing with a foundation leak instead of, for example, a basement leak? Unfortunately, these two leaks have a lot of crossover. It’ll be difficult for anyone but an experienced professional to tell the difference.
Most foundation repair contractors, however, will be able to tell you that foundation leak symptoms include:
- Bowing walls
- Shifting floors
- Gaps at the joints of your foundation
- Sticking doors
- Foggy windows
- Water-damaged belongings or furniture
- Mold
These symptoms will appear inside your home over time, with each one worsening or growing more complex the longer you let it sit. If you leave a foundation leak for too long, either because you haven’t noticed the symptoms or you’re worried about the cost of repairs, you’ll start seeing signs of a leak outside of your home.
The exterior signs of a foundation leak can include but are not limited to:
- Vertical cracks in your walls
- A cracked chimney
- Cracks running horizontally across your foundation
- Sinking
Your Action Plan
As mentioned, it’s difficult to tell the difference between the signs that indicate a foundation leak and the signs that indicate a basement leak. You’re going to need to reach out to a professional foundation repair contractor to determine what waterproofing or drainage solutions will best serve your home.
The good news is that professional foundation repair contractors can treat your individual leak a number of different ways. Some of the most common solutions include:
- Piering
- Underpinning
- Leveling and slabjacking
- Sealing
- Subfloor drainage
These solutions tend to run between $500 and $6,000. Your specific cost will depend on the severity of the crack, its location, its impact on the home, and the size of your home in general.
If you’re looking to sell your home or just to retain its market value over time, you’re going to want to bite the bullet and invest in foundation repair as soon as the first symptoms appear. If you don’t, you risk losing up to 30 percent of your home’s value when you go to list it.
Reaching Out for Help
If you’re worried about the cost of foundation repair, you may be tempted to try and DIY a solution. Don’t do this. Not only can DIY-ing your foundation be just as expensive as reaching out to a contractor, but the practice can cause more damage to your home. It’s much safer to reach out to a local professional for a free inspection and guidance.
Don’t let the myths surrounding foundation repair cause your home to lose value. Get in touch with a foundation repair contractor and take back your home from Mother Nature.