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March 06, 2023
When is the Best Time to Repair Your Foundation?
If you suspect your foundation is in need of some TLC, your first impulse may be to schedule repairs right away. However, there are a few different factors that influence when is actually the best time to repair your foundation. We’ll walk you through the points you’ll need to assess and provide the guidance you need to schedule smarter.
Seasonal Considerations
Soil conditions are hugely impactful on how smoothly foundation repairs can be made. Weak, unstable soil is much harder to work on, and can cause more complications as your repairs unfold.
Seasonal weather patterns are the best indicators of what soil quality you can expect for your project. Winter is usually considered the most stable period to repair your foundation, but different climate trends can make other seasons suitable as well. Here in Austin, Texas, you can expect the following conditions for each season:
- Winter Austin winters are fairly cold and relatively dry. This makes the soil hard enough to support your foundation as it’s being worked on, and weather fluctuations are less likely to disrupt progress. There’s also the benefit of it being an unpopular time of year for most homeowners to schedule. While they’re focusing on the holidays, you’ll have a much easier time scheduling a contractor who won’t try to rush on to the next job.
- Spring Spring starts to bring more dynamic weather to Austin. Rainfall becomes common and peaks in May. This logs the soil around your home with excess moisture, which can be tough to deal with during repairs. Despite this, many homeowners schedule their repairs at this time because it’s typically when they first notice foundation problems. As the weather warms up, they begin to spend time in their yard again, and they spot foundation cracks, upheavals, or other issues. The “spring cleaning” mindset also makes it a common time to start planning home improvement projects. The consequence of this trend is that there are many homeowners competing for contractors’ time during the spring. You may have difficulty getting work scheduled when you’d like.
- Summer Summers are hot and dry in Austin, meaning that all of spring’s rainfall starts to dry out of the soil. The dehydration process causes the soil to settle beneath the foundation, removing much-needed support. Cracks are prone to develop or worsen during this time. While the dryer conditions of summer make it more suitable for work, waiting until now can exacerbate existing damage. There’s also the issue of scheduling: many people try to get repairs done during the summer, and conflicting vacation plans further complicate timing.
- Autumn While not quite as rainy as spring, autumn sees a lot of moisture in Austin. The rainiest month is October, but September is also known to have heavy rainfall. This period re-saturates the soil beneath your foundation, and can eventually brew muddy conditions that don’t bode well for repairs. An influx of new moisture also creates a risk for leaks and moisture in basements and crawl spaces. Austin’s clay soil quickly expands as well, further worsening damage that may have been ignored through previous seasons. Note that you may be competing with homeowners who are rushing to wrap up their repairs before winter arrives. This coupled with the decreasing daylight and rain disruptions can leave little time for scheduling a contractor.
The State of Your Foundation
Seasonal factors are important to weigh as you plan your repair project, but the defining point will be the actual condition of your foundation. Putting off work until a fairer season can backfire if your foundation is already showing significant signs of stress, especially if periods of rainfall or dryouts are expected in the meantime. What was once a moderate crack can become a serious fissure that causes structural problems throughout your home.
Preparation is Key: Get an Expert Foundation Inspection
For these reasons, it’s critical that smart planning takes place before deciding when to schedule your foundation repair. Having a professional come to inspect your foundation in person is the best way to get a clear evaluation of your foundation’s current level of damage, and whether or not it can wait. An expert will be able to tell what foundation issues are too serious to postpone repair.
Austin’s Top Foundation Repair Experts are Ready to Help
For more than 30 years, our team of experts has been helping Austin’s homeowners fix foundation problems quickly and competently. As veterans in this type of construction and working in Austin’s particular soil conditions, we can help you pinpoint the perfect time to repair your foundation without extra complications.
Please contact us today to schedule an appointment for an inspection. We’ll get one of our specialists out to you as quickly as possible. Our repair work is protected by a full warranty, with less than a 2% callback rate. We guarantee that you will get the results you need to have complete peace of mind over your foundation.
