Guides
Foundation Guides for Calgary Homeowners
I want to understand this properly before I call anyone.
Nine guides covering the questions the service pages touch but do not own: how to judge whether a crack is serious, what each crack direction means mechanically, why basements leak, how to choose between interior and exterior repair, and what to check before buying a home with foundation findings.
We are a referral service, not a contractor. Your request goes to an independent Calgary foundation company.
Every guide
Each answers one question the others do not, and each says plainly when the honest answer is that nothing needs doing.
Are foundation cracks serious?
How do I know whether my foundation crack is a real problem?
Horizontal vs vertical cracks
What is the difference between a horizontal and a vertical foundation crack?
What causes foundation cracks
Why did my foundation crack in the first place?
Interior vs exterior repair
Should I fix this from inside or excavate and do it from outside?
Signs of foundation problems
What should I be looking for if I suspect a foundation problem?
How foundation repair works
What actually happens when I get foundation work done?
Why basements leak
Why is water getting into my basement at all?
Calgary foundation problems
Is there something about Calgary specifically that causes foundation problems?
Buying a home with foundation issues
The inspection found foundation cracks. Should I walk away?
Where to start
If you only read one, make it the first.
Are foundation cracks serious?
Four tests you can run yourself in about ten minutes. It settles most cases either way.
Horizontal vs vertical cracks
Why direction is the most informative thing you can observe, and what each direction means mechanically.
Why Calgary is hard on foundations
Chinook freeze-thaw cycling, clay that changes volume, a deep frost line and concentrated snowmelt. With sources.
Read enough? Get someone to look at it
General guidance only goes so far. Describe what you are seeing and give a postal code, and it goes to an independent Calgary foundation contractor.
We are a referral service, not a contractor. Your request goes to an independent Calgary foundation company.