Foundation repair

[citizen72]

Well in trying to get my foundation problem solved I had Olshan back out Friday for just one more try. This was based on my agreement with their trouble shooter.

Now, my garage floor is now cracked, new cracks in the masonry wall. Also to repair the damage done to the wood above the masonry we will have to have our carpenter back out.

Enough is enough.

[Steve]

quote:Originally posted by citizen72

Now, my garage floor is now cracked, new cracks in the masonry wall. Also to repair the damage done to the wood above the masonry we will have to have our carpenter back out.
Enough is enough.

Sounds like you may have more going on here than just normal settling over the years.

How old is your house?  Are your neighbors and others that have homes built by the same builder experiencing similar problems?  Perhaps faulty construction on the builder's part is to blame.
Another remote possibility is that your home sits atop an area that is laced with old, abandoned coal mines.  Lots of midtown and east Tulsa is built on top of abandoned coal mines, particularly the area of the Tulsa Fairgrounds and points north, east and southeast of the fairgrounds.  There may be other areas as well and somewhere in the county land offices should be records/maps of where these old mines are.  The original art deco grandstand at the fairgrounds had to be demolished years ago because of extensive damage from coal mine cave-ins.

If your problems are due to poor home construction or old mine collapses, I don't think any amount of foundation piering will help that.

[sauerkraut]

Hey gang, If I was to buy a house in Tulsa would you say a "slab" or a "crawl-space" foundation home is best? Or does it not matter and both have problemos. I have a full basement in my home in Ohio, so I never had a slab or crawl space home.

[Nick Danger]

The foundation type is not as important as being built in an area that has good drainage, such as riverbottom areas. These areas have a high percentage of sand and drain well, so foundations are usually stable.

A clay soil will cause you the most problems, since it doesn't drain well, and tends to expand and contract with the moisture in the ground.

If you purchase a newer home, you will most likely be on a slab. A post-tension slab is the least likely to cause you a problem.

Nick

[Moonraker]

Does anyone have a good experience with a piering/drilling company? Don't want to use "Old Sham" ... When we moved here 3 years ago it was summer and the entry way floor dropped some, but came back up when the fall rains started. We can live with that but the last couple of summers the floor has not came back all the way. Love the house don't want to move...I read something about "mud" being pumped in under slabs in Texas, anyone doing that here?

[citizen72]

I had one generalpoint in posting this whole thing. It is that this particular foundation repair company is treating all foundation situations identical in how they attempt to repair them. Plus the half baked system they are using is ill conceived at best as well as a terrible infringement on the public trust. I do not understand why they have not been sued out of existence.

[Steve]

quote:Originally posted by citizen72

I do not understand why they have not been sued out of existence.

I have never read a repair contract from any of these foundation companies, but my guess is that their contracts are so chock full of legal mumbo jumbo and ambiguity, that it effectively absolves the company of any liability.  The customer thinks they are getting some kind of guarantee, but they are not.  What others have told me is the only thing guaranteed is that the piers themselves will not break or fail, but there is no guarantee that the installation of piers will effectively solve any foundation problem.  Tulsa World's Action Line did a whole series of articles on the foundation repair business many months ago, and their basic conclusion was that the industry was a rip-off.  

I bet the BBB has scads of files and unresolved complaints on all the local foundation repair outfits.  I would strongly urge any potential customer to check out the Better Business Bureau records first, before signing any foundation repair contract.  Then, at least you can't say that you weren't forewarned.

[sauerkraut]

I seen a HUD home ad in Glenpool for a home that could not be lived in untill the "Piering" was done. I guess the foundation was gone and the home was also full of mold. The price was $59,000 and they were taking bids. The home was built in the 1960's I believe. We don't have much "piering" done in Ohio.[|)]

[HBRIGNAC]

quote:Originally posted by citizen72

Has anyone had any experience with Olshan Foundation Repair? We had them do some work about four years ago and have had nothing but trouble. They have been called back several times to do rework and our house is still settling.

WE HAVE GONE THROUGH ARBITRATION WITH OLSHAN FOUNDATION REPAIR. OLSHAN FOUNDATION HAS NOT MADE GOOD ON THE BINDING ARBITRATION AGREEMENT. THEY DO NOT EVEN RESPOND TO DEMAND LETTERS FROM OUR ATTORNEY.  WE CALLED THEM OUT FOR 3 CRACKS ON OUR HOUSE AND NOW WE HAVE OVER 43 CRACKS AND OVER 75 SQUARE FEET OF VOID UNDER OUR HOUSE WHERE WATER IS STANDING IN A 15 INCH DEEP TUNNEL UNDER THE SLAB.

[Townsend]

quote:Originally posted by HBRIGNAC

quote:Originally posted by citizen72

Has anyone had any experience with Olshan Foundation Repair? We had them do some work about four years ago and have had nothing but trouble. They have been called back several times to do rework and our house is still settling.

WE HAVE GONE THROUGH ARBITRATION WITH OLSHAN FOUNDATION REPAIR. OLSHAN FOUNDATION HAS NOT MADE GOOD ON THE BINDING ARBITRATION AGREEMENT. THEY DO NOT EVEN RESPOND TO DEMAND LETTERS FROM OUR ATTORNEY.  WE CALLED THEM OUT FOR 3 CRACKS ON OUR HOUSE AND NOW WE HAVE OVER 43 CRACKS AND OVER 75 SQUARE FEET OF VOID UNDER OUR HOUSE WHERE WATER IS STANDING IN A 15 INCH DEEP TUNNEL UNDER THE SLAB.

Inside voice please

[1shot]

Olshan did work on my house and except for the fact that out of 10 member crew and only 2 of them spoke english (1 of them barely) they did more damage than good. They knew they did such a bad job they didn't even ask for payment. It's a good thing, too, since I wouldn't have paid them until I was satisfied, which I am not.

Salesman from the other companies said their system was the only one that worked, but the Olshan salesman had photos of several houses where they failed also.

I'll never waste money on piering again.

[citizen72]

Thanks for the testimonials guys. Its refreshing to find I was not alone in having a bad experience with Olshan.

That does not lessen the fact I am sorry y'all had the experience. The sad thing is when we called Olshan in the first place we had a problem that was affecting the most valuable item we own, our residences. Then to have them show up and make the problem worse is beyond acceptability. They need to be put out of business, but the problem is how does one do that.