If you are concerned about the foundation of your building, then working with a company offering underpinning services could be the right solution. Choosing to employ underpinning services to support your building and strengthen your foundation is an important decision and one that you must get right to save your home. Here are four mistakes that you must avoid when you are using underpinning services.
Failing to conduct a proper survey
Don't make any assumptions about what needs to be done. You may think that you need underpinning services, but without a survey, you don't know whether or not that is true. You might need to fix your drains or to remove a tree root that is causing damage. Hire a surveyor or structural engineer to take a look and see exactly what is happening below the ground. Without a survey, you could be planning the wrong type of foundation work or even carrying out work that isn't needed.
Failing to choose the right kind of underpinning services
Not all underpinning methods are the same, so you must find the right type of underpinning for your circumstances. Once the survey is completed, you will know how far down you should excavate and which approach to underpinning you will need to take. Your decision must take into account the type of soil you are working with as well as the weight of the building you are seeking to support and the height of the water table.
Failing to apply for the appropriate permissions
Depending on the nature of the underpinning services you need, you may need to obtain permission before work can be started. It is your responsibility to work out what permits you need and to obtain them in good time to allow the work to proceed on schedule. There are plenty of professionals who will be happy to explain what permits could be needed, but you will need to ensure that the permits are obtained.
Failing to hire the right underpinning contractor
Underpinning isn't a job which you can leave to amateurs. Only fully qualified and experienced contractors should be entrusted with caring for your home foundations. Don't simply look for the cheapest possible underpinning services, but value the quality of the work they will be doing. Make sure that you ask the right questions, and choose an underpinning firm with suitable experience and the needed equipment to complete the job in a timely fashion.
