Foundation Repair Photo Album: Supporting Foundation Walls Using Wall Anchors and PowerBrace™

This home in Lake Saint Louis, MO. was experiencing inward leaning foundation walls. This leaning would cause damage to the framing of the home as well as to anything near the walls and, if not properly repaired, could lead to collapsed foundation walls.    To fix this problem, the homeowners turned to Woods Basement Systems to install wall support systems. Wherever possible, foreman Jeremy R. and his crew installed wall anchors to support and straigthen the walls. Wall anchors are the preferred solution to fix cracked, bowing and leaning walls because it directly counters the cause of the problem; expanding soil. The soil around the home naturally expands due to weather conditions and this expansion presses against the foundation walls and causes the leaning and bowing. Wall anchors address this problem by burying an anchor plate outside in the compacted soil away from the home and attaching it to an interior plate. This connection is then tightened, creating a pulling force that directly counteracts the pushing force from the expanding soil. These wall anchors will permanently support the wall and can even be used to straigten a leaning wall back to its original position.   In some areas of the home, access to the exterior is too limited to use wall anchors. In those places an interior support system called PowerBrace™ is installed along the wall. The PowerBrace™ system uses a strong steel beam that stands straight against the wall. It offers strength and support to the leaning wall. Near the top of the brace, a bracket connects the brace with the floor joists above. This bracket is designed to allow the system to be tightened over time while also preventing any extra stress or pressure on the floor joists and the home above.    These two systems can work together to strengthen and straighten permanently. With wall anchors and PowerBrace™ installed, the homeowners won't have to worry about bowing and leaning walls anymore.