Topanga, California Residential Repair Specialists

Many homes in Topanga were built more than 60 years ago, and at this point, decades of dry Summers followed up by rainy seasons — as well as frequent earthquakes — have likely damaged such an old home’s foundation, causing it to weaken and crack. This is because foundations built 60 or more years ago were often constructed from ancient material that was a mix of sand and mortar, and often without any steel rebar for support. Over such a long time, such old foundations are vulnerable to moisture, soil settlement, and earthquake activity. At some point, a brittle and damaged foundation may no longer safely support a home during a natural disaster, especially if it is not bolted to its foundation!

Every owner of an older home in the City of Topanga should have the home’s foundation inspected! If you are able to catch damage early, you may just need to repair a few cracks and improve the drainage around your house to funnel rainwater away from your property.

Homeowners in Topanga sometimes get a nasty surprise when they enter their home’s crawl space, which is situated right under the home’s first floor. This area, which typically consists of a packed dirt floor and permanent vents to the outdoors, is often constructed from masonry blocks or poured concrete walls. The trouble is that these construction methods offer very little protection against moisture intrusion or critter infestations that can cause structural damage to the house, as well as pose serious health risks for vulnerable family members by allowing fungus, mildew, and harmful mold to grow into an unhealthy situation.

Moreover, research by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory has shown that not only do vented crawl spaces increase a home’s moisture level, they also make the home more expensive to heat and air-condition. This is because damp and wet areas require more energy to heat or cool, and of course more energy means higher energy bills! Sadly, some homeowners who “take matters into their own hands” and seal their crawl space’s vents are actually making things worse, by increasing the area’s humidity!

Luckily for all involved, Weinstein Construction, the leading Topanga crawl space repair company, are here to help! Whether it’s crawlspace encapsulation, French drainage installation, installing a sump-pump to keep ground water out, adding a dehumidifier to dry the air, or doing exterior waterproofing, we can do it all at an unbeatable price and value!