Identifying the cause of the movement of a house’s foundation is an integral part of the repair process. To repair a foundation problem properly, you need to address the issue early and check the other factors that contribute to its damage.
Can the repair of the foundation affect plumbing? The answer is simple. Any time a slab foundation settles the pipes of your plumbing, they can be damaged. This is because they are underneath the ground and are connected to the foundation itself. Moreover, they also can be damaged if the house is lifted back to its source location. So, do a plumbing test prior to and after a repair job is completed. This is to make sure that the structure of your plumbing system is still intact.
Plumbing Leaks
The problem with plumbing leaks beneath a foundation is that they’re very easy to detect, but are quite difficult to prove. Plumbing leaks can affect the foundation of your home in a couple of ways:
Heave
If the soil underneath your home is consistently dry, it will eventually swell and cause the home to heave. This phenomenon occurs when the soil is allowed to saturate and the resulting pressure of the swelling lifts up your property, causing damage to your foundation. Compression is a sign that this event has occurred. For instance, the drywall will look like they’re smashing against one another. There’s also the presence of bubbling, horizontal and straight cracks, and stair-stepping fractures located on both sides of the exterior portion of your wall. You’ll also notice visible bubbles on the roof near the plumbing vents.
Middle Drop
Soils have a characteristic in them called the liquid limit. This is the point where there’s so much water saturation that the soil loses its capability to hold weight. If the foundation repair affects the plumbing, the resultant leaks will hold water in the soil with no means of evaporating.
Make sure that the foundation repair specialist tests the quality of the plumbing after they’ve finished their work. This is especially true in older homes that feature cast iron and galvanized pipes.