Before & After Photos

Everyone dreams of having a beautiful cottage on the lake to escape to every summer. These homeowners loved their vacation home in the quiet town of Otter Lake, Michigan. But on a recent visit, they noticed a musty smell coming from the basement - and they found water pooled on the floor. 

They decided to call around get estimates for the repair, but ultimately chose HomeSpec to waterproof the basement. Our experts proposed a WaterGuard Below Floor Drain connected to a TripleSafe sump pump - a powerful system that can pump out over 2,000 gallons of water from the basement every hour. 

Since the homeowners don't live in the cottage year-round, we also suggested installing a sump pump alarm. A battery-operated alarm alerts you when water is rising in the sump basin, but the pumps haven't turned on. This allows you to figure out what the problem is, potentially preventing the flooding that would have occurred had you not known the pump was not working properly.

The drainage system was installed around the perimeter of the basement and connected to the sump pump with the alarm. Since the homeowners spend months away from the cottage at a time, they are so relieved that they don't have to worry about their basement while they're away. 

These new homeowners had a big obstacle to overcome as soon as they bought their beautiful new home - the damaged foundation. The block basement walls were bowing inward and severely cracked, which was letting water in as well. The floors above were sagging due to the lack of support in the basement. It was a big project, but HomeSpec was ready to take it on!

Our professionals designed a custom solution for this basement. Our crew installed our PowerBrace and CarbonArmor Wall Stabilization Systems to repair the walls and potentially even straighten them over time. The cracks were then sealed to waterproof the block walls. Support posts were installed to raise the floors and prevent them from sagging again in the future. 

This Marlette, Michigan homeowner was very worried about the foundation wall in her basement. The wall was not only severely cracked and bowing inward, but also shearing at the bottom of the wall. 

When a wall is bowing (and shearing) it's because the wall is under stress and being pushed inward, usually by hydrostatic pressure or expansive soils. If left alone, the wall could collapse and have to be completely rebuilt. 

Fortunately, that didn't happen in this case. Foreman Ryan Loop and his crew were able to repair the wall with the PowerBrace™ Wall Repair System. This consists of steel I-beams that prevent further inward movement and can potentially straighten the wall since the braces can be tightened. 

The horizontal and stair-step cracks in the mortar were filled, and the shearing was also repaired. The homeowner can now rest easy knowing her foundation is no longer at risk, and she's very happy with the results! 

Buying a home is a stressful enough process in itself, but when you buy a home with structural issues - that's a whole different level of stress. These homeowners bought an old home in Clifford, Michigan, but there was a big problem - a foundation problem. 

The floors above the basement were sagging, which was caused by insufficient support below. There were wooden support posts and beams that were deteriorating and failing to support the weight of the home. They needed to be replaced, and more needed to be added to ensure they won't sag again over time. The experts at HomeSpec assured these homeowners that we could fix their problem permanently.

Our crew installed over a dozen new steel beams and support posts. The floors were raised back to their original position and the posts will prevent the floors from sagging in the future. This support is crucial to the structural integrity of the home - and now these homeowners don't have to worry, but instead can enjoy their new home! 

This old Sandusky home was built way back in 1890 with a fieldstone foundation - and it's new homeowners were very concerned over something they discovered in the basement!

A rotting tree stump was found to be acting as a support post, barely holding up a beam above. This is dangerous because the support in the basement is what holds the entire home up. The structural integrity of the home depends on these posts and beams. The homeowners called HomeSpec to take care of the problem. 

Our crew was able to install two new support posts with a new beam and repair some of the joists to solve the issue. Now the homeowners can enjoy their new home without worrying about the structural integrity!