Foundation Repair Case Studies: Carbon Fiber Vertical Wall Restraints

Challenge

For bowed wall repair, carbon fiber vertical wall restraints are frequently used. We use this repair method at Thrasher Foundation Repair – learn about carbon fiber here.

Thrasher Foundation Repair and its sister company Supportworks (opens in a new window)designed CarbonArmor to help prevent bowing walls. This bowed wall was repaired with a combination of carbon fiber vertical wall restraints and helical wall ties. After the project was complete, the homeowner painted the repaired area of the foundation wall.

At Thrasher, we take pride in restoring our customers' peace of mind who are suffering from bowing or collapsing walls. Regardless of how your foundation was built (poured concrete, brick, block, stone), we have solutions that will permanently stabilize your walls. There are also options to repair your wall by straightening them immediately or over time. If you choose to straighten them over time, this can be done through services provided by Thrasher or by the homeowner during times of drought.

The soil around your home Is the leading cause of wall failure. Throughout the areas we serve, the soil is made up of a high level of clay. This clay soil expands and contracts as it gets wet and dries out. In the winter, the moisture content in the soil freezes, and the soil/water mixture expands (think of a soda can left in the freezer). The constant expansion and contraction of the soil place immense pressure on your foundation walls, causing them to fail.

There are many signs to look out for when looking for wall failure. The most common symptom is diagonal cracking in poured concrete walls and stair-step pattern cracks in brick or block walls. These signs are easy to see when you have an unfinished basement. In a finished basement, you will need to look at other signs and symptoms. Examples could be cracking in drywall both on the walls and in the ceiling, sticking doors or visible bowing of the walls themselves. It Is very Important to detect these signs and symptoms early because your walls can quickly move to a point where more extreme solutions are necessary. If left untreated, this can lead to complete wall failure, where the only solution in replacing the entire foundation wall. The great news is that regardless of where your wall is in relation to the previously mentioned stages, we have solutions to help.

There are three leading solutions that Thrasher offers to stabilize and straighten your walls. Carbon Fiber wall restraints is a top choice by many of our customers. Carbon Fiber wall restraints provide the homeowner with the ability to permanently stabilize their walls and also protect walls from moving in the first place. Carbon Fiber is extremely strong and durable and can be painted over to match the paint on your basement walls. If you choose to finish the walls with drywall, the Carbon Fiber Is simple and easy to frame over.

Another wall repair solution that Thrasher offers Is our patented PowerBrace wall restraint. This wall restraint Is made from a galvanized steel that will not rust, ensuring It maintains Its strength over time and will not weaken from rust or corrosion. The PowerBrace wall restraint can be Installed on joists running in any direction and spanning any width. Our System Design Specialists will provide a custom-designed solution for your home, ensuring your walls will never move and be permanently stabilized. One of our PowerBrace system benefits is that you can tighten the braces during droughts to straighten your wall over time. An optional tightening kit can be left at your home for you to tighten the system. The Team Lead that installs your system can train you on how to utilize the system on your own. While some homeowners choose to do this themselves, we find the happiest homeowners elect to have a Service Technician out to their home to tighten and Inspect the system annually. Like our Carbon Fiber solution, you can frame and drywall over the PowerBrace system once installed.

The third solution to your bowing or leaning wall Is our patented GeoLock wall anchor system. The GeoLock wall anchor system is also made from galvanized steel, ensuring that it will not rust or corrode, thus ensuring the strength of the product. This option does not need to be connected to your floor joists as we use engineered wall plates on your wall to stabilize your walls. Like the PowerBrace wall restraint system, the GeoLock system can also be tightened by you or a Service Technician to straighten your wall over time.

It is horrifying as a homeowner to have walls that are bowing—leaning or cracking. To restore your peace of mind, we have to properly stabilize and protect your walls from the punishing effects of soil, the earth's moisture, and the freeze-thaw cycle. Our patented Carbon Fiber wall restraint system offers you a permanent solution from a company with years of experience.