How to Fix Leaning Chimney

One of the red signals to think about foundation repair is leaning chimneys and cracking bricks. You require professional repair help. If you don’t, then it’s a dangerous situation. Chimney will fall on your home, or bricks start shifting or fall. Either way, it’s the worst-case scenario. There is a need to understand what causes chimney problems and how to fix them.

Soil movement: When the soil beneath your home is unstable, then you experience foundation issues. The soil around your home keeps moving. This constant movement is uncontrollable unless you do something about it. Weather changes also affect your foundation to a great extent.

In summer, dry weather causes soil to shrink so that it would disturb home stability and support. During the rainy season, the soil becomes oversaturated—hydrostatic pressure on walls causing cracks. Therefore, you often notice cracks on your chimney walls or brick shifting.

Footing Issues: Footing is designed to offer stability to your chimney. When it is too small to provide support, then it becomes a reason for leaning the chimney. Experts suggest you have a footing of at least one foot in thickness and support all chimney sides by six inches.

Freezing and thawing is another issue where footing starts falling apart and leading to major concrete problems. In case footings are shallow, then constant expansion and freezing cause footing heaving. It always leads to chimney displacement. Only an expert in foundation repair Sioux falls can identify the primary cause of chimney problems.

What is the Solution to the Chimney Problem?

Whether your chimney is leaning, tilting, shifting, or crumbling, the ultimate solution is to install helical piers. Experts recommend this option as it is a permanent fix and save your chimney from falling apart.

Installation of Helical Piers

They are big screws that technicians placed underneath your foundation. The good thing about this solution is that it won’t disrupt your home’s curb appeal at all. Experts dig around your home foundation and set these giant piers deep inside. The purpose of it is to straighten the structure and stabilize the foundation of your chimney area.

The problem behind leaning the chimney is that it doesn’t offer support to the chimney weight. Once helical piers are installed, they will provide weight support. So no more cracks in the walls, and there won’t be any lean. 

As soon as you notice that the chimney is tilting or shifting from its original place, then you should start checking cracks in your chimney walls or ceiling, or foundation. Maybe there are some water leaks. Explore your porch and stair. They may also be pulling away from the foundation.

Another sign of foundation failure is basement wall bowing. If you notice any of such issues alongside chimney shifting, please contact foundation repair services at your earliest.

Whether weather causes major chimney problems or foundation issues, the ultimate fix is to stabilize the structure with helical piers. And only an expert can handle it all.