West Virginia’s Array of Soil Leads to Foundation Settling

The array of soil types in West Virginia can lead to foundation settling or sinking. If you have house settling, you need to contact the experts at Basement Authority of West Virginia.

In 1997, state legislators named Monongahela soil as the official West Virginia state soil. 

Named for the Monongahela River, Monongahela soils are very deep and moderately well-drained. They occur on more than 100,000 acres in 45 counties in West Virginia.

Varied Soils Cause Homes to Unevenly Settle

However, despite having an official state soil, great differences in soil properties can occur within short distances within West Virginia.

Depending upon where you are in the state, you can find shale, siltstone, sandstone, limestone, or coal or some combination of two or more types.

With different soils comes foundation and home settling problems. Structures can be affected by differential settling, which occurs when there’s uneven settling of a building’s foundation.

All buildings settle over time, but problems happen when one part settles faster than others.

Some soil types are weak and highly compressible, while others are slow draining and hold on to moisture.

If there’s too much moisture, a heavily saturated soil can lose its load-bearing capacity, causing foundation settlement.

Clay soils are particularly susceptible to saturation. Clay particles are so fine they have more surface area than most soil types, which means they hang on to more water.

Walls Crack, Doors Don’t Close, Stairs Start Sinking

When your home or foundation starts to settle unevenly, you may notice problem areas. Common signs of foundation settling include:

• Difficulty opening or closing doors or windows
• Doors that constantly swing open or won’t stay closed
• Wall cracks
• Ceiling cracks
• Tilting or sinking exterior stairs
• Leaning or tilting chimneys
• Floors that slant or sink in one direction
• Stair step cracks in brick or concrete blogs

Basement Authority of West Virginia Are Experts at Repairing Settled Foundations

If you have any of these signs of a settling foundation, contact Basement Authority of West Virginia. We will inspect your home and give you a free estimate detailing the repairs that are needed.

We have experience and expertise when it comes to handling settling house repair. We use underpinning or piering methods such as plate anchors, helical piers, foundation piers, and helical tiebacks.

Get your home back on level ground. Contact us today.