North Texas Foundations by a Fort Worth Home Inspector
The number one question I get during home inspections is “How is the Foundation”. I decided to write this post to help people understand the North Texas area conditions regarding foundations. Movement in the foundation can be caused by many factors, the most common reason is differential soil movement. In the North Texas area many homes are sitting on top of expansive clay soils. Another term for this type of soil is “Sponge Soil”, increasing in volume in moisture gain and decreasing in moisture loss. When this volume increases or decreases in a uniformed matter all around the home, problems may not develop. When the soil moves differentially under and around the rest of the foundation is when you can develop stress in the structure.
The best way to minimize foundation movement is to have consistent moisture in the underlying soils as much as possible. Other issues that could cause foundation problems is plumbing leaks. One easy way to check if you could have a plumbing leak is to make sure all the water is turned off inside the home (make sure ice-maker and appliances with water are off) and at the water meter, on the meter dial (The smallest dial), mark where the needle is. After about 10 minutes, go back and check to see if the needle has moved beyond the mark and how much. If the needle has moved, you could have a leak somewhere. An example of minor movement could be a toilet flapper not sealed, leaking hose bibs, etc. Major movement is when you could have some major issues and could cause problems with the foundation.
Drainage is another big issue with foundation movement. The rule is to have 6 inches of slope every 10 ft. to have the proper drainage away from the foundation. Gutter downspouts should extend at least 3 ft. away from the foundation and splash blocks used to reduce erosion.
Trees can be an issue with depleting the moisture levels in the soils. Mature trees can extract hundreds of gallons water on a daily basis. Tree roots are attracted to the constant moisture around and under the foundation we apply to keep the foundation stable.
Good watering practices is the key to keep a foundation stable. A good sprinkler system watering in a uniformed amount or you can use a soaker hose. There is different techniques out there when it comes to placement location of the soaker hose. Some experts say 18 inches away from the foundation, some say 10 inches, some say 6 inches. Some experts say to bury the soaker hose 3 inches below ground. I personally don’t like to bury the hose due to not knowing if there is a problem with the hose during watering. I personally put my hose around the entire perimeter of the foundation about 12 inches out from foundation and seems to work fine.
Remember applying UNIFORMED watering techniques is the key to helping the foundation stay in a stable condition.
Hope this helps!!
Tom Leahy of https://leahysinspections.com/
Fort Worth Home Inspector, Arlington Tx. Home Inspector, Burleson Tx Home Inspector, Mansfield Tx. Home Inspector and surrounding areas.
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