Most people don’t know that there is a connection between your home’s foundation and the retaining wall found in your yard. Many homeowners think of retaining walls as only decorative design that helps the appearance of sloping landscapes, add terracing, or for designing beautiful flower beds. Much to your surprise, a retaining wall can also provide more than just those benefits. The retaining wall can help prevent foundation repairs.

What Is a Retaining Wall?

If done correctly, a retaining wall is an extraordinarily crafted system for the prevention of soil movement and for controlling water flow.  Soil that might drain off or blow away over a period of time, can gain better protection with the simple addition of a retaining wall. Don’t think of a retaining wall as an eyesore, but more of a well-designed landscape that can offer much more to your home. Think of it as a protection from having to do foundation repairs.

How Can a Retaining Wall Benefit My Foundation?

Your home’s foundation is constantly affected by the soil underneath it, so protecting the soil is a key role in your foundation maintenance. Your foundation is at risk when the soil under your home shifts, shrinks, swells, or erodes. The great part of the retaining wall will help flowing water move appropriately, which in return, will reduce the risk of soil erosion around your foundation. This simple addition will create more protection for your home’s foundation and is significantly less expensive than potential foundation repairs that might occur at a later date.

How Do I Know If I Need a Retaining Wall?

The first step you need to take before you put in a retaining wall is to seek professional input. Because they have such major role in controlling water flow and prevention of soil erosion, retaining walls can also affect other areas of your home, including your neighbors. The professionals will be able to survey the impact of water flow changes and help you avoid any unanticipated problems. In addition, poorly constructed retaining walls will not offer the same benefits, so a professionals opinion will help you select the proper materials and design for your particular situation.

Remember, retaining walls might not work in every area, but they may be a perfect option in some locations. You might consider a retaining wall if you live in more sloping, uneven terrain or are prone to soil erosions in your area.

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Preparing your home can be as simple as bringing potted plants indoors or securing patio furniture and grills; however, roofs are the most sensitive to high winds. Metal hurricane connectors should be tied to exterior walls in order to protect against the “uplift” effect. These connectors can be found in home improvement stores.

Installing storm shutters over windows is an easy and effective way to protect your family from shattered glass. Don’t forget to cover skylights and sliding glass doors too.

Another safety hazard to consider is the garage door. Garage doors can wobble and get thrown from their tracks. In some severe cases, the entire door can collapse. Retrofit kits can help to secure the door and may be found in home improvement stores as well.

Hurricane season won’t be over until November 30^th, so make sure your home is secure and reinforced with the necessary add-ons to keep you and yours safe. And as always, a secure home always starts with a steady foundation. Be sure to have yours inspected and keep an eye out for any signs of problems.

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According to the latest “projected path cone,” we should expect Tropical Storm forces here in Houston. Although the good news is that we won’t have a hurricane on our hands, even Tropical Storm forces are nothing to take lightly. Tropical Storms can bring heavy flooding and harsh winds (anywhere from 39-73 MPH) into the area; and as we’ve seen from the South Florida flooding (which was outside of Isaac’s stream-lined path), we should prepare for a great deal of rain and later standing water.

Make sure you’ve bought your extra batteries, filled some gas cans for your generator and have plenty of non-perishable food and water stocked up – just in case. Once the rain has fallen, please remember to stay clear of any standing water. Aside from the fact that mosquitoes love to breed in standing water and can carry West Nile, standing water after storms may contain down power lines and other creepy, crawly and dangerous creatures that you may not see coming. We ask our fellow Houstonites to keep yourselves, and your family, away from any standing water in your area.

Remember these tips to ensure that you and your family remain safe during Isaac’s visit. Here at Allied Foundation we are wishing you all a safe and damage-free week!

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It’s always possible that your home’s foundation can settle or heave, leaving you with a large problem to tackle. The cause can be attributed to the loss or gain of soil moisture underneath your home, which is heavily affected by weather. These critical foundation issues can ruin the experience of new home-ownership, so in an effort to avoid a large-scale problem, home-owners should know what to look for when dealing with these issues.  Some of the exterior warning signs include: wall rotation, cracked bricks, cracked moldings and displaced moldings. Internal warning signs of foundation distress can show themselves in various ways including: misaligned doors, windows that will not close, cracked sheetrock and cracks in the floor. These examples are all hazardous signs that your home’s foundation is under distress and needs quick repair.

If you are experiencing these signs, whether external or internal, seek help now and contact us for a free estimate. Our homes are an investment for our future, and we want to make sure that we protect that investment for many years to come.

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