House Wrighting Without Headaches

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This will tell you if the sill is straight. Next, you'll want to determine if it's level. Lay your framer's level carefully against the string or hang a mason's line level from it. Chances are the section of wall you're working on isn't perfect, but the rest of the foundation may not be either. To be sure, go on to check the other perimeter plates, and record your findings.

Finally, concentrate on the middle of the structure. Homes with basements may use posts or load-bearing partitions to support a main joist-carrying beam in the center of the floor. Those with crawlspaces usually have a number of support piers to hold the girder, or have internal block foundation walls. Check this beam with the line and level, and, if you're concerned about any sagging joists, survey their midpoints as well.

You've scouted the territory, and now you'll have to make some decisions. Be realistic: As a homeowner hoping to make some repairs without calling in a professional, the worst thing you can do is commit yourself to a major project you don't have the time or equipment to complete. Instead, try to live with correcting the specific problem that got your attention in the first place.

Think, too, of what's above the beam you plan to raise. Should there be a wall or a support column, will a major boost crack glass or separate molding joints? Is there any plumbing in the wall that might split? If you don't consider these possibilities, you may take on a whole new set of headaches. 

Hobson's Choice

Realistically, the amateur is presented with only a handful of solutions to house-settling woes: repairing the foundation, replacing damaged wood structure and adding new support where needed. But the methods of achieving those goals are many.

The best I can do is go over a few standard techniques used in the situations you're most likely to be faced with. Besides the tools and jacks mentioned in the accompanying side-bar, you'll need to stock a 4 X 6 jacking post long enough to reach from the floor joists to the top of your jack, a 3' -long 4 X 6 or something equivalent and an assortment of short 1 X 4s, 2 X 4s and 2 X 6s to use as shims. You'll also need some material to make jack pads; I used a pair of 14" -long 2 X 12s, glued and spiked together, under each jack to give it a wide base of support.

Let's assume that you have a situation similar to mine: A main floor beam has settled in the middle because the support beneath it is inadequate or damaged. You've read the sidebar on foundation failure, you've identified the cause of the problem, and you're prepared to correct it and avoid repeating the same mistakes.

FOUNDATIONS:
GROUNDS FOR SUPPORT

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