Foundation Repair and Baseplate Rot

6/21/2013 at 4:11:53 PM

You will need to shore the existing floor and exterior wall in sections with shoring jacks. In doing this you will need to raise the floor and wall slightly to enable you to remove all rotten material and replace it with new material.

From your photo it looks like you also need to repair the top of the foundation wall. When the whole thing it put back together you will have to reconfigure the exterior wall assembly so that water can not repeat the same infiltration and rotting process. You are fortunate that the exterior is not brick or stone as this would make the entire repair process more expensive.

For an average sized house this repair could easily total $15 to $20,000.00 if the entire exterior needs to be done. Unless you have a good understanding of structural forces, this is not a D.I.Y. project.

A site visit by a professional contractor would verify the process and costs.

6/21/2013 at 7:06:18 PM

Thank you Paul.

The only problem with jacking up the floor joists on the inside (which has already been done to complete the foundation repair around the corner of house), is that the joists do not run into this wall. Instead the top of this wall has a beam that appears to be an old 8"x8" Canadian fir piece.

This is the piece that has been rotting away. It is also what the wall studs are supported by.

I think the best way forward may be to just repair in sections no wider than 2/3' at a time, but was wondering if there was a much better way?