Do Uneven Floors Mean Foundation Trouble?
Are the floors of your home uneven or sagging? If so, don’t rush to replace the flooring. In some cases, uneven areas may indicate structural issues that require attention.
This page explains the causes of uneven floors, how to identify signs of damage, the most effective foundation repair methods, and how to prevent future problems.
What Are Uneven Floors?
Uneven floors refer to floors that are not level or flat across their surface. This presents as sloping, sagging, bouncing, or uneven floor sections, which are often a symptom of underlying structural issues, such as foundation settlement, deteriorating crawl space supports, or damaged floor joists.
What Causes Uneven Floors?
Uneven floors are commonly caused by differential settlement, which is the uneven settlement of a home’s foundation due to shifting or unstable soil beneath different parts of the structure. The exact cause often depends on your home’s foundation type:
- Crawl Space Foundations: Uneven floors may result from deteriorated or corroded screw jacks, rotting support posts, or damaged floor joists. While these issues don’t always involve the foundation itself, they still compromise your home’s structural support and need to be addressed quickly.
- Slab or Basement Foundations: Uneven floors are likely caused by differential settlement, which occurs when uneven soil settlement or sinking under the foundation causes part of the house to sink.
Note: Uneven floors should not be confused with cosmetic damage, such as warped hardwood or surface water damage. Structural unevenness is about what’s happening below the floor, not the floor material itself.
What Contributes to Differential Settlement?
Several factors contribute to the differential settlement that causes uneven floors, including:
- Expansive Clay Soil: Clay soil expands when saturated with rainwater and contracts when it dries out. This soil movement stresses foundations, leading to cracks, settlement, and uneven floors.
- Poor Soil Compaction: Proper soil compaction during a home’s initial construction is crucial. Without it, the structure’s weight can cause soil settlement, causing foundation issues and uneven floors over time.
- Heavy Rainfall: Heavy rainfall and flooding lead to ground saturation and water accumulation near the foundation, which causes damage.
- Invasive Tree Roots: Mature tree roots growing near the foundation can cause many problems, including cracks and foundation movement.
- Earthquakes: Naturally occurring events that cause seismic activity, like earthquakes, cause ground shifts, leading to foundation settlement and uneven floors in house spaces.
- Inadequate Drainage: Poor or faulty drainage systems allow water to accumulate near the foundation, leading to moisture-related problems and settlement.
- Improper Yard Grading: Proper yard grading ensures water flows away from the foundation.
What Are The Risks of Uneven Floors?
Differential settlement poses several risks to a home’s structural integrity. As the foundation sinks unevenly, it creates stress across the structure, leading to cracks in walls, floors, and ceilings. Over time, this movement can cause doors and windows to stick, moldings to separate, and floors to slope or sag.
In severe cases, differential settlement can compromise load-bearing elements, increasing the risk of structural failure. If left unaddressed, repairs become more complex and costly, potentially affecting the home’s safety, livability, and resale value.
How Can You Tell if a House Has Foundation Issues?
Common symptoms of foundation problems include:
These symptoms suggest that floor movement is likely being caused by shifting soil and foundation instability rather than just cosmetic or surface-level damage. If you notice these signs, contact a foundation repair expert. Professionals provide thorough inspections and offer tailored repair solutions that restore safety.
Can Uneven Floors Be Fixed?
Uneven floors can be permanently repaired once the underlying cause is properly addressed. Pier systems correct uneven floors and also help prevent future settlement. Repair methods vary depending on your home’s foundation type.
How to Fix Basement or Slab Foundation Issues
Foundation underpinning, a process that lifts and stabilizes the home by anchoring it into load-bearing soil, utilizes foundation piers. The most common pier types include:
Slab Piers
Slab piers, specifically designed for concrete slab foundations, help lift shifting or settling foundations and level uneven floors. We can install these piers deep into stable soil, which provides support for your entire home.
Push Piers
Push piers are installed deep into the ground to reach stable soil layers under a foundation. By anchoring the foundation, push piers may help level uneven floors.
Helical Piers
Helical piers screw into the ground, securely anchoring foundations and preventing further movement. As a result, helical piers stabilize uneven floors in houses.
How to Fix a Crawl Space Foundation
Crawl space foundations require specialized repairs to address uneven floors, including:
- Replacing deteriorated screw jacks or wooden support posts
- Installing adjustable galvanized steel jacks to prevent corrosion and allow leveling
- Repairing or reinforcing floor joists
What Are the Benefits of Repairing Uneven Floors?
Addressing uneven floors with proper repairs offers the following benefits:
- Improves Safety: Uneven floors create tripping hazards for your family and guests. Repairing them helps ensure a safer home environment.
- Increases Energy Efficiency: Sagging, uneven floors can cause gaps between the walls and floors. This forces HVAC systems to work harder, leading to higher energy bills.
- Maintains Property Value: Uneven floors may be an issue if you want to sell your home in the future. Investing in repairs can maintain your home’s appeal and make your property more attractive to buyers.
How to Prevent Uneven Floors in Your House
The best way to avoid uneven floors is to control moisture and soil movement around your foundation. Implement these preventative measures:
- Ensure proper drainage away from the foundation
- Use clog-free gutters and downspouts to direct water away from the home
- Consider landscaping and grading improvements to prevent water pooling
- Remove or relocate large trees planted too close to the foundation
- Install crawl space encapsulation or basement waterproofing systems if needed
Who To Call For Uneven Floors?
If you’re dealing with uneven floors in your home, don’t wait for the problem to get worse. Proven solutions are available to address uneven floors and restore your home’s stability.
Want to know how to fix uneven floors in your home? Groundworks’ foundation repair methods address uneven floors at the source. We offer free inspections to identify the underlying cause and create tailored repair plans that keep your home strong and stable.
Contact us today to learn more.
Foundation Repair FAQs
Foundation piers can be used on virtually any slope, while foam jacking has limitations on steeper grades. A professional assessment is needed to determine the best solution.
Understanding if your home has a foundation problem is the first step to repair. Here are some of the most common problem signs to look out for:
- Cracks in the walls, floors, or ceilings: These may appear diagonal, horizontal, or vertical.
- Doors or windows that stick or don’t close properly: This may indicate that the foundation has shifted.
- Uneven or sloping floors: This can be a sign that the foundation has settled.
- Gaps around doors or windows: This can be a sign that the foundation has shifted.
- Cracks in the foundation itself: If you can see cracks in the foundation, it’s a clear sign of a problem.
Some homeowner’s insurance policies provide coverage for hurricane and storm damage, including foundation repairs, but others may not. While Groundworks can provide documentation needed for your insurance provider, we encourage you to check your policy’s specifics with your insurance agent.
