Bryn Mawr-Skyway is a King County community next to Seattle, and Seattle Top Foundation Repair works there on settling corners, rotted posts, unbolted sills, wall cracks and water at the footing.
Roughly 17,600 people live in Bryn Mawr-Skyway, where Census data points to an older housing stock: 61 percent built before 1980, 40 percent before 1960 and 24 percent before 1950. Two-thirds, 66 percent, are one-unit homes (attached or detached). Median build year: 1968. Median owner-occupied value: $655,200.
Steel plates tying a small house to its foundation
Example project
Home
About 1,200 sq ft house in Bryn Mawr-Skyway with a crawlspace
Original request
Tie the house to its foundation and brace the short walls
What shows
Steel angle plates bolted through the sill into the concrete stem wall
Work
Bolts and plates around the sill, with plywood on short walls where needed
Not included
Permit costs and interior repairs
Cost
$7,200
In this example, the owners of a small house in Bryn Mawr-Skyway want it tied to its foundation. The sill sits on a concrete stem wall, and they can see where plates and bolts would go.
Before any pier is considered, a dropped corner needs a diagnosis. Push piers, helical piers and underpinning, with the limits HUD gives for each, are laid out on the foundation settlement and piering page.
Seismic retrofit and foundation bolting
No one should assume a crawlspace house is bolted down. The seismic retrofit and foundation bolting page explains anchoring and bracing, and what they cannot do.
Crawlspace post and beam repair
Springy or sagging floors lead to the supports beneath. Pads, posts and girders, and the effect of damp on timber, are explained on the crawlspace post and beam repair page.
Foundation crack repair
Not all wall cracks mean movement. The foundation crack repair page helps tell a harmless one from a moving one and says what sealing does and does not achieve.
Foundation drainage
Water leaving a downspout on a slope has to go somewhere; the foundation drainage page deals with gutters, grading and drains.
Homes and foundations here
Housing here splits as follows: about 40 percent of homes predate 1960 and about 21 percent are from 2000 or later. Under an older house, a crawlspace inspection beats guesswork based on age.
About 28 percent of homes sit in buildings with five or more units. In a condo or apartment building the owner or association decides on foundation work, so approach them first.
Slopes and mapped hazards
Settlement and soil liquefaction count as seismic hazards under Washington’s rule for geologically hazardous areas, and the rule links them to low-density soils with a shallow groundwater table. King County can say whether an address is in such an area.
Ask King County Permitting whether the lot has a mapped landslide or other critical area before planning foundation work.
King County’s permit page includes a map for checking whether an address is in unincorporated King County. Do that first, since it decides which permit office applies.
Work on a building or structure calls for a King County building permit when it involves changing occupancy, constructing, enlarging, altering, repairing, moving or demolishing. Critical areas and steep slopes are named among conditions that may require permits. Ask King County Permitting how the rules apply to your project.
Before signing, check two things: that the contractor is registered with Labor and Industries (state law requires it, with exemptions) and that any engineering is done by a registered engineer.
The service is for houses. A building with several units is run by its owner or association, which makes the decisions.
How do I learn whether my lot is in a hazard area?
Ask King County Permitting whether the property has a mapped critical area.
Is my 1960s house bolted down?
In the crawlspace, look along the foundation wall, where the sill sits, for anchor bolts and check whether plywood covers the short walls beneath the floor. If that is unclear, a visit gives the answer.
Our other service-area community is White Center; foundation repair in White Center is covered on its own page, with local housing figures and King County permit pointers.
Request a free foundation repair quote
Tell us where the Bryn Mawr-Skyway house is and whether it sits on a crawlspace or a basement, then what you see: cracks, sloping floors, damp. We'll get back to you soon with an estimate or any questions we have. Estimates are free and there's no obligation.
