Photo Album: Apartment Complex Foundation Repair in San Diego

Another section of the same complex in San Diego required similar stabilization. In this area, workers removed soil from around the footings and installed a series of steel push‑piers. A row of brackets can be seen bolted below and against the footing, with the pier sections driven deep into the ground. These push‑piers allow contractors to access stable strata without major demolition; they are installed from either the exterior or interior of a structure and can lift a sagging building back toward its original position. Close‑up photos in the gallery show the pier brackets and hydraulic jacks during installation, and the final image captures a pier after the lift, with the bracket snug against the foundation. By transferring the building’s load onto these deep piers, the crew corrected the settlement so that doors and windows closed properly and cracks in walls or floors could be addressed. Once the lifting was complete, the excavated areas were backfilled to permanently conceal the system.

Piers in place

The soil has been removed from the area where the piers have been driven into the ground. The heavy duty steel brackets where installed below and against the foundation's footing. The steel pier sections were hydraulically driven through the bracket to bedrock or a stable soil layer. The weight of the structure was transferred through the piers to competent soil below, and the lift was attempted to bring the structure back toward its original position. The soil will be backfilled and the structure will be permanently stabilized in its new position.

Push Piers

Push Piers are made of steel and are driven deep into the soil to bedrock or another stable soil layer. push piers can be installed to the exterior of the structure as well as to the interior, and provide an opportunity to lift the structure back toward its original position, often closing cracks and improving the operation of doors and windows in the process.