If you want to know how carbon fiber repair can help correct and stabilize foundation movement, this is the article for you. Thanks to technological advancements, more and more foundation repair experts have switched to using carbon fiber straps and staples. Carbon fiber can be four times stronger than steel, outperforming all other forms of foundation repair tools. Below you’ll find the most common tools made from carbon fiber.
How Can Carbon Fiber Repair Foundations?
Before being used on foundations, carbon fiber equipment was mainly used on bridges, highways, parking garages, and other large structures. This means that they are perfectly able to handle smaller structures, such as basement foundations. Straps and staples can be painted over and blended into the color of your wall, making carbon fiber equipment easily concealable.
Carbon Fiber Straps
If your basement walls are bowing, tipping, or shearing (the top of the wall is moving inward while the bottom stays put), experts will usually choose carbon fiber straps. Foundation Professionals Of Florida use Fortress Stabilization Systems’ Invisibeam Straps as their preferred choice. Their three-part strap system creates one of the strongest bonds in the industry.
- The strap – Invisibeam carbon fiber straps are four times stronger than steel, making them lighter, cheaper, and more efficient than other wall repair methods. Its patented epoxy rivet technology guarantees that the strap will adhere to the wall and stay attached throughout the years.
- The top anchor – The top of the carbon fiber strap is connected to your rim joist, where your foundation wall meets your first floor. This anchor is post-tensioned, ensuring maximum strength.
- The bottom anchor – The bottom of the carbon fiber strap is anchored into your foundation floor, preventing the wall from sliding inward.
Carbon fiber straps can be applied to compromised basement walls and corners. If you have a corner crack, one or both walls can move inward or shift out of place. That’s why experts place carbon fiber straps horizontally around the corner, four feet in each direction, in order to keep the wall secure.
Carbon Fiber Staples
Foundation Professionals Of Florida uses Fortress Stabilization Systems’ Crack Stitch to repair any cracks in your concrete foundation. By combining carbon fiber stitching with a structural epoxy adhesive, Fortress has created a stronger and more reliable crack repair system. As a bonus, the installation takes half the time as other products and requires fewer tools. Here’s how the process works.
- Slots are cut across your foundation crack.
- The staples are placed inside the slots and cemented into the concrete using structural epoxy.
- The staples prevent foundation cracks from growing larger, reinforcing your concrete wall in the process.
Carbon Fiber Anchors (Dowels/Pins)
These carbon fiber dowels/pins are used inside basement corners to “pin” the wall together. Experts also use these along the flat face of a wall to help keep the stucture together as extra support. These are used less often than other carbon fiber foundation tools.
Why Would You Need Carbon Fiber Repair?
Surrounded by dirt, basement foundations are exposed to underground, unseen elements. One of the largest elements that play into foundation damage is water. Homes built in areas with a low water table are prone to suffering from hydrostatic pressure and expansive soils.
As water saturates the soil, it increases the weight around your basement walls. With nowhere to go, this pressure pushes against your foundation, attempting to find an escape. Another common effect of excess water is called expansive soil. This soil, mostly filled with clay, swells up when it absorbs too much water. This pressure pushes against your basement walls and can cause them to tip, bow, lean, or shear. That’s why it’s crucial to keep water from soaking into the dirt near your foundation.
How To Prevent Foundation Damage
While it’s impossible to stop rain, there are many methods that help prevent excess water buildup. Simple things like grading your property away from your home, cleaning your gutters, and extending your downspouts can go a long way. Or, if you want more effective solutions, call basement waterproofing experts and ask them to install a drain tile system, sump pump, and vapor barrier. By changing the dynamics of your yard and installing waterproofing solutions, you can turn your basement into a dry, secure, and structurally sound foundation.
Read more: Learn How To Drain Water Away From Your Foundation.
Who Offers Carbon Fiber Repair Near You?
If you need carbon fiber foundation repair or basement waterproofing, call Foundation Professionals Of Florida Based in Lake City, Florida, we’ve been servicing the Southeast and U.S. Virgin Islands since 2012. We offer a wide range of foundation equipment, including carbon fiber straps, staples, push piers, helical piers, wall anchors, and more. Don’t let your foundation damage go unnoticed. Call today for a free inspection and estimate.
