Thanks for the kind words and the affirmation. We have a good amount of experience doing DIY projects around our house, including some large renovations, but this is our first (and hopefully only) foundation work.

Saved himself tens of thousands

How is it holding up? Any additional settling?

Mostly agreed. I should have explained better in the video why exactly we were doing this. We had an exceptionally dry summer and we weren't watering our foundation properly. That caused the soil to contract and obviously our foundation went with it. Once we upped the watering frequency, the settling stopped but our foundation was not restored back to level. That's where this pier comes in. Our hopes are that the pier supports the foundation long enough for the soil to make its way back under. So this was really only ever intended to be temporary in that we're not expecting the pier to take the full weight forever. Considering our house is just shy of 40 years old and has never had foundation issues to our knowledge, we're hopeful this is sufficient. So far so good but we're prepared to do more if we see further signs of shifting/settling.

Glad it was helpful. Thanks for watching!

Well that stinks 😩

That's the right way to do it (adding piers before pouring the foundation), but it obviously adds to the cost and so many houses at least here in the States are built on the cheap.

Thanks and good luck!

We did more, it's just that it was the same thing over and over so no need to show it all. You need to keep going until the jack lifts and holds your foundation at level. At that point, you know the pilings have hit solid soil/bedrock.

Trust me, I would love to have one but I couldn't justify the additional cost over a manual one for something I use so infrequently 😆

Agreed. They look small at first glance but once you pick one up and realize just how much they weigh, it's not quite as surprising they can lift what they can. Oh and not to mention just how little the ram moves with each pump of the handle. For those who have never used a bottle jack, it takes probably 100 pumps of the handle to fully extend the jack.

Yeah, I was aware of that but I already had a bottle jack and thought "how bad could it be?" 😂 I will absolutely purchase one if I need to do a similar project in the future!

Mostly based on the locations of the cracks, both inside the house and out. They were concentrated in the corner of our house. A spirit level then confirmed our foundation had a slight slope down towards that corner.

We got them at Home Depot, though you should be able to find them at any big box home improvement store. Just be sure they're made of solid, high strength concrete.

That was a landscaping stone that's not much stronger than sandstone. I knew in the back of my mind that it wouldn't be strong enough but I was being lazy 🦥

That's surprising. You can find them at pretty much any big box store in our area. Maybe slab on grade foundations aren't as popular in your area so this type of repair isn't common enough that it's worth them carrying? If that's the case, you might want to look at a concrete supply house. Just a heads up, though. Sometimes supply houses like that won't sell to homeowners. Other than that, I'm not sure what else to do. There are other systems for foundation repair but most of the others require very expensive specialized tooling. Best of luck! 🤞

Just had another thought. Did you check to see if Home Depot or Lowe's can order them for you? Here's what you'd be looking for: www.homedepot.com/p/6-in-x-6-in-x-12-in-Solid-Cylinder-Concrete-Block-6032/203828028 And www.homedepot.com/p/Headwaters-9-in-x-9-in-x-14-in-Solid-Pile-Cap-Concrete-Block-60810/203828030

@@realidiyrenos Thank you for the reply! You're right, SOG foundations aren't super common in my area. Mostly old crawl spaces on cinder blocks. Have a great one.

@@realidiyrenos Yea both of those products reflect "Out of stock and unavailable online." I reached out to Home Depot and they say the items are discontinued and there's no way to order them or get them transferred to my store just for me lol. Again, thank you for your help. I may have to make my own cylinders or find steel piers or find old cylinders on marketplace.

Are you talking about pressure injected cement? I've only ever heard of it and never actually seen it done myself. I do know it's not exactly DIY friendly, though 😜

In large part you can tell based on the effort required to extend the jack. While the piers are going through soft soil, it takes very little effort to sink them. But once they hit bedrock/solid soil, it becomes noticeably harder since the jack is now attempting to lift the foundation up beyond level.

We're in North Texas. More specifically, a suburb of Dallas. Things have been stable since, though.

😂

Was wondering about that, thought the dog had jumped up there and left a load, gross!

Appreciate the concern but it's been more than a month and the cracks remain closed and there's been no further shifting of our foundation.

Lowes

I got them at Home Depot. Make sure they're high strength, solid concrete and not something like cinder block. www.homedepot.com/p/6-in-x-6-in-x-12-in-Solid-Cylinder-Concrete-Block-6032/203828028 www.homedepot.com/p/Headwaters-9-in-x-9-in-x-14-in-Solid-Pile-Cap-Concrete-Block-60810/203828030

This is standard foundation pier installation for this area. Sure the steel will eventually rust but being a couple feet below the surface and underneath the foundation, it's going to take decades for that to happen.

The cracks were there long before we did the jacking. In fact, the cracks closed up almost entirely after the jacking and pier installation. And the jack absolutely can lift the entire house. We used a line marked on the foundation and compared it with the concrete slab patio which is not attached to the foundation and it was clearly being lifted. We ended up raising the foundation by about an inch when all was said and done.

@@realidiyrenos there is no way that one bottle jack can lift the entire house

@@SeanDoe86 Believe what you will but I uploaded a short showing our foundation dropping while letting the bottle jack down in order to place another concrete pillar. Our foundation is in the back with the black line on it and our concrete slab patio is in the foreground with one of the steel plates sitting on it so you can clearly see the foundation movement. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/p5N7qsupmtTFhqM.html

@@SeanDoe86 I don't think it need to lift a whole house but rather just a corner of the house that was sinking. A 20 ton jack can lift 40,000 pounds which is quite a lot. That could definitely lift a corner of a smaller house

You're 100% correct. Looking back at it, what I originally said was confusing. I didn't mean the jack could literally lift our entire house. I meant it is capable of lifting an entire corner of our house. Our house is ~2400 sq ft so neither small nor particularly large.

😆

I meant after you put in the new footer then your blocks on that you can fill the gap with cement i saw it on tv

I mean, how much more do you want to see? 😋 Honestly, though, what would you like to see that the video didn't include?

I appreciate the insight but we have, in fact, had our foundation inspected by a structural engineer. Prior to purchasing the house 6 years ago, the inspector pointed out the minor cracks in the drywall and brick that suggested the foundation was shifting. While he said he wasn't concerned, he made clear he was not a foundation or structural expert and he was obligated to recommended we get it evaluated by a structural engineer. Out of an abundance of caution (and protection of the largest purchase of our life we were about to make), we did so and he found the shifting was minor, resulting in cosmetic damage only, and was unlikely to progress to the point of structural compromise. So I admit and agree my solution was not engineered and I don't know for certain it will be a permanent "fix" but there was never a concern the structure was or will be compromised, regardless of whether it lasts or not. In my opinion, the only thing I'm guilty of is perhaps not making it clear the average homeowner should not attempt this, particularly if there's a chance the structure could be compromised.

@@realidiyrenos, I appreciate the explanation. however, I am too stodgy and well trained in my craft to allow that spin to stand. In my world, you touch it, now you own it from a legal standpoint. A pre-sale evaluation from the engineer stating the issue was minor is fine. However, that is not a guarantee of the structure as a whole. When we perform our work, we issue a life of structure transferrable warranty for stabilization. Further, all projects have engineering oversight, log review, and engineering summary provided to the client. everything is well documented. It is actually the law in our state to do so. You may want to check with your state quietly to see what requirements you have. Whether or not you have a hairline crack and/or a 3" crack the fact remains a DYI project has no engineering design. No product specifications. No 3rd party oversight. Nor post construction certification. And now you will have to disclose what you did if you ever sell the home. And the buyers would demand to have written certification and warranty for what you put into the ground. You would have been better off pointing up the hairline cracks and living with the cosmetic symptoms. Or, hiring a qualified contactor to perform a "real" foundation underpinning application approved by a licensed engineer. This is a great exchange. And those commenting here thinking this is a wise thing to do need to think twice before taking on so much liability. Think it through thoroughly before making a huge mistake that will be costly down the road. Unfortunately, we come across DYI repairs all the time. And we have to charge the customer to rip the old system out even before installing the new work. Its just that simple. But thank you for the response.

@@michaelmasserang8922And people wonder why there are so many homeless, a house that may not last 200 years but is affordable is safer than living under a bridge. Licenses, engineers, lawyers, industry standards, money hungry property tax collectors are not everyone's friends.

@@vicktdock, is that supposed to mean something? What relevance does your comment have to do with anything? You can be a communist and live inside a tee pee if you wish. It does not mean it is safe from wolves and/or the weather. Is Bernie Sanders your idol? Or did AOC visit your play pen for a quick visit?

@@vicktdock And what relevance does this comment have to do with means and methods? More of a political speech really. Are you running for dog catcher in a blue district?