Articles by Cochren

A recent project in Cambridge, Ontario showed how quickly underground service work can become complicated when excavation takes place beside an older home. In this case, the property’s stone rubble foundation was vulnerable to movement, and the nearby trenching created a structural issue that required immediate attention before work could continue.

Sewer Installation Delayed Due to Foundation Failure

During sewer installation, a utility contractor trenched a gas line adjacent to a property supported by a stone rubble foundation. The nearby excavation and vibration caused sections of the existing wall to collapse, forcing all underground service work to stop. This situation showed how older foundations can require immediate structural support before sewer and utility work can continue safely.

The Challenge of Sewer Installation Beside an Older Foundation

The original approach was to use timber lagging to protect the wall while allowing for a 14’-0” sewer excavation within 8’-0” of the foundation. However, the property’s narrow access created another major obstacle. With the laneway measuring only 110 inches wide, standard drilling rigs could not access the site.

This combination of restricted access, active excavation, and foundation failure created a high-risk condition. The home required urgent structural support, but the confined work area limited the equipment and repair methods available. In tight-access projects like this, specialized underpinning and foundation repair solutions are often the only practical path forward.

The Engineered Foundation Repair Solution

Cochren Foundation and Repair designed a solution to stabilize the structure and allow the underground work to move ahead safely. The repair plan addressed both the immediate structural failure and the limited site access.

The work included shoring the front of the house, removing damaged sections of the foundation, installing five 14’-0” deep helix piers with a 14 kip capacity, and constructing a new reinforced concrete foundation wall. This type of engineered repair is often essential when sewer installation or utility trenching affects the stability of an existing foundation.

Engineered drawings were provided within 48 hours, and the stabilization work was completed in just 3 business days. Fast response times are critical on emergency structural repair projects, especially when municipal or utility work has been delayed.

The Result

By combining rapid engineering, tight-access construction methods, and proven foundation underpinning expertise, the property was stabilized and prepared for the continuation of underground services. This Cambridge project demonstrates how professional foundation repair contractors can help prevent further damage, restore structural support, and keep essential sewer and utility installations on track.

For property owners, contractors, and municipalities dealing with excavation near older homes, this case highlights the importance of acting quickly when foundation movement or wall failure occurs. A properly engineered repair can protect the structure and reduce costly delays.

Contact us today for a foundation estimate: 519-647-0256.
You can also submit your estimate request online.

Cochren Foundation & Repairs have long worked with homes experiencing water infiltration and structural problems, including bowed basement walls and house settlement. In recent years, however, they have also faced a different kind of movement – homes and attached structures lifting upward due to frost. In just 5 days, 13 homes were found to have sustained frost-related damage ranging from minor movement to severe structural issues.

Most people have seen the effects of frost in southern Ontario, including crooked fence posts, leaning pillars, rough highways, crooked signs, and uneven sidewalks. What many homeowners do not realize is that frost can also cause parts of a home to lift upward due to a phenomenon known as frost adhesion.

What Is Frost Adhesion?

Ice lenses form in porous soil and grow by attracting groundwater. This movement of water is what drives lens growth and can lead to volume increases well beyond the normal 9% expansion that occurs when water freezes into ice.

Frost adhesion is a form of frost heave and typically occurs under the following conditions:

1. Prolonged subzero temperatures
2. Frost-susceptible soils
3. An abundant source of water

How Frost Adhesion Damages Foundations

In our area, footings are typically buried 4’-0” below grade to prevent frost from moving beneath the foundation and lifting the home. With frost adhesion, however, the ice attaches to the side of the foundation wall and can form a bond strong enough to lift the structure upward.

Frost adhesion tends to affect lightweight, unheated structures such as cold cellars or garages with shallow foundations. Buildings with previously cracked foundation walls caused by settlement are particularly vulnerable.

The sudden appearance of a crack is often accompanied by a loud bang if someone happens to be nearby at the moment it occurs. Plain, unreinforced concrete is very brittle, and when its ultimate strength is exceeded, it can crack suddenly without warning – much like the sound of ice cracking on a frozen lake.

Distortion is caused by uneven lifting around the garage or cold cellar, which can make doors and windows difficult or impossible to operate. A 2” difference across the top of a doorway is not uncommon. Large step cracks may appear in the brick veneer, and concrete floors often heave and crack as the structure shifts.

What Happens in the Spring?

Good News

In some cases, the foundation may settle back down with the spring thaw. However, if soil falls into the cracks formed in the foundation wall during frost adhesion, the building may not be able to return to its original position, creating a much larger repair issue.

Repair and Prevention

Solution

If a home has moved due to frost adhesion this year or in a previous winter, it is likely to move again during future periods of prolonged cold unless the contributing conditions are addressed. For that reason, it should be dealt with as soon as possible.

The remedy for foundations affected by frost adhesion is to remove or reduce one of the three contributing conditions by:

• Removing excess water from the soil
• Removing frost-susceptible soil
• Insulating to prevent frost penetration

No two homes are the same. Finding a reliable and cost-effective solution creates a unique challenge in every case. The investigation should also consider whether the foundation had been previously damaged by house settlement. For this reason, each case should initially be assessed as both settlement-related and frost-related movement.

Concerned about frost heave or foundation movement? Call us today for an estimate: 519-647-0256.
Or submit your estimate request online.

Freeze-thaw cycles can play havoc with foundation walls that were built with older building materials. Poor mix design & quality control results in a limited life span of these foundations.

Foundations undergoing excessive spalling presents a unique challenge for any contractor to provide a cost effective solution. Accessibility, interior finishes, depth of spalling, the residual capacity of the wall and most important the experience of the crew.

Over the years Cochren Foundation and Repair have successfully restored many spalling foundations.

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The foundation walls of the underground parking structure was constructed with unreinforced masonry block. The clay soil adjacent to the wall became saturated as result of poor grading, clogged weeping tile and close proximity to the underground sprinkler system. Over time the expansive clay soils and frost pushed the perimeter wall inwards.

To provide safe working conditions 8’-0” high timber lagging was installed 3’-0” out from the existing foundation wall. This provided enough room for the demolition, concrete formwork, waterproofing, and weeping tile installation.

Between the close proximity to the property line as well as maintaining onsite parking for the 100 tenants created a challenge for the restoration. Cochren Foundation and Repair provided the engineering details for the foundation wall replacement. While working closely with the superintendent and staging the work while tenants were at work allowed Cochren Foundation and Repair to complete this job in 4 weeks.

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Cochren Foundation and Repair Co. provided a design build proposal to restore 24,000 square feet of underground parking structure. This included precast slab replacement, realigning and reinforcing foundation walls, vertical and horizontal reinforcement, installation of masonry walls and privacy fences.

The design build proposal provided by Cochren Foundation and Repair Co. saved this owner 33% over previous tendered bids.

The 9’-0” high masonry foundation walls were not attached to the precast roof structure. Lateral pressure from backfill caused displacement of the wall.

The roof deck was lifted while the masonry walls were pushed back into vertical alignment. The walls were secured to the precast roof deck.

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