Whitney writes: I recently bought a home and found out that the entire lot is backfilled with cinder block, brick, tiles, asphalt, and metal, which is causing damage to the foundation. Also, a large section of land keeps washing away due to all the buried debris buried. What can I do? Steve Bliss, editor of BuildingAdvisor.com, responds: Sorry to hear about your problem. … [Read more...] about Foundation Damage from Buried Debris
Soil Problems
Soil Washed Away Under Foundation
Steve writes: A friend recently moved into a property where a downspout leaked for years causing soil under the footings to be washed away on one corner of property. Their builder said they need to fill the void with concrete to provide support in that area. Is this a good approach and what would you call this remedy? Steve Bliss of BuildingAdivsor.com responds: This sounds … [Read more...] about Soil Washed Away Under Foundation
Building on Filled Land
Mike writes: I purchased a lot that was owned by the city I live in. Years ago the city used the lot as a dump for tree stumps, chunks of concrete, brick, and cut logs. The builder discovered the fill when excavating for the foundation. Since he could not build on top of this, he had to dig much deeper and use much more material, which ended up costing me more than $10,000 out … [Read more...] about Building on Filled Land