Foundation Inspection Checklist for Homeowners
Walk the outside looking for cracks, gaps, and sloping soil. Walk the inside checking doors, floors, and basement walls. Check below if you have a crawl space. Photograph anything you find with dates. This checklist will not replace a professional inspection, but it will tell you whether you need one.
Short answer
Walk the outside looking for cracks, gaps, and sloping soil. Walk the inside checking doors, floors, and basement walls. Check below if you have a crawl space. Photograph anything you find with dates. This checklist will not replace a professional inspection, but it will tell you whether you need one.
Outside the House
Look for cracks in exposed foundation walls, brick that is stepping or separating, a chimney leaning away from the house, gaps around window and door frames, soil sloping toward the house, downspouts discharging beside the foundation, and standing water near the walls after rain.
Inside the House
Open and close every door and window and note any that stick or will not latch. Look for diagonal cracks above door and window frames, gaps between walls and ceilings or floors, and floors that slope or feel bouncy. A marble on the floor is a simple slope test.
In the Basement or Crawl Space
Check walls for cracks, bowing, damp spots, white efflorescence, and rust stains. Look at the floor and wall joint for seepage lines. In a crawl space, look for standing water, sagging or rotted supports, and musty odor. Note whether your sump pump runs during rain.
Keeping Records
Photograph every finding with something for scale and keep the dates. Foundation problems are judged by change over time, and a set of dated photos is the most useful thing you can bring to an inspection.
When to get help
If your walkthrough turns up horizontal or stair-step cracks, a bowing wall, active leaking, or anything that is visibly getting worse, it is time for a professional inspection.
Related service: Foundation Inspection in Kansas City, KS
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