Maintaining Your Foundation

Homeowners in Texas are often unaware of the special precautions they need to take to preserve the integrity of their home’s foundation. Expansive clay soil found in Texas soil often causes the ground to expand when wet and contract when dry. This movement can cause your foundation to shift and crack if not properly cared for.

Maintaining your home’s foundation is a relatively simple yet important precaution that every homeowner and tenant in Texas should take. For more information on homes in and around the Austin area, be sure to contact a real estate professional of the Carvajal Group at 512-419-7770.

Foundation Maintenance Tips

The following are some helpful tips for maintaining your foundation:

• Use gutters and grading to divert any rainfall away from the home.
• Regularly water the area around the foundation to reduce extreme drying of the soil. An inexpensive soaker hose is a great way to ensure proper watering of the soil around the home.
• Be sure to water evenly around the entire structure.
• Flower beds and gardens should be graded to send excess water away from the home.
• Never allow standing water to gather or pool around the structure.
• Make sure all shrubs and small plants are planted at least 18 to 24 inches from the foundation.
• Trees should be planted no closer than 15 feet from the structure.
• Regularly inspect the soil for extreme cracking or movement away from the foundation.

Contact an Austin Real Estate Professional

For more information on Austin homes, contact the Austin real estate professionals of the Carvajal Group at 512-419-7770 today.