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Lincoln Foundation Repair

Serving Lincoln and nearby areas

Foundation Repair in Lincoln, NE

Cracked walls, a wet basement or a wall bowing in, looked at for free by a local Lincoln crew. You get a written price before any work starts.

Call now: (402) 923-8559 or book your free inspection online

Book a free foundation inspection

Tell us what you are seeing. A local specialist calls you back the same business day.

Foundation repair services in Lincoln

Local to Lincoln

We connect property owners in Lincoln and nearby areas, including Near South, Woods Park, Country Club, North Bottoms, Havelock and University Place, with one independent local foundation repair specialist.

  • Clay that swells

    The most common soil in Lancaster County is Wymore. USDA data puts its subsoil near half clay, with a very high shrink-swell rating.

  • Wet springs, dry summers

    Lincoln gets about 29 inches of rain a year, most of it in May and June. In 2012 it got only about 19.

  • Frost about 3 feet down

    The City of Lincoln asks for frost-free deck footings at least 36 inches deep. Frozen, wet soil pushes on basement walls every winter.

  • Homes of every age

    About 1 in 8 Lincoln homes was built in 1939 or earlier, and about 28 percent were built in 2000 or later.

What it costs

Typical published ranges for Lincoln. The contractor's written estimate is the price, and the inspection is free.

WorkTypical range
Inspection and written estimate Free
Seal one wall crack $200 to $1,000
Brace a bowing basement wall $4,000 to $15,000
Basement waterproofing, whole job $3,000 to $10,000
Pier to lift a sinking corner $1,000 to $3,000per pier

See typical foundation repair prices in Lincoln

What Lincoln homeowners call about

If you are seeing any of these, a free inspection is the right next step:

Water in the basement

After a hard rain or every spring

A crack in a basement wall

That leaks or keeps getting wider

A basement wall that bows in

Or a long crack running sideways across a block wall

Stair-step cracks

In block or brick

Doors that stick

And floors that slope

A musty smell

Damp walls or a white chalky crust on the concrete

A sump pump that runs all the time

Or no sump pump at all

A soft or sagging floor

Over a crawl space

The local crew we connect you with handles all the common fixes:

Foundation repair

For a house that has settled, cracked or gone out of level

Basement waterproofing

To stop water and keep the basement dry

Foundation crack repair

For leaking and growing wall cracks

Wall anchors

And other bracing for basement walls that are pushing in

Crawl space repair

For sagging floors and damp crawl spaces

Not sure if what you see is serious? The signs of foundation problems page shows which ones need a look soon and which ones are usually cosmetic.

How it works

  1. Call (402) 923-8559 or send the short form. Tell us what you see. A photo helps, but you do not need one.
  2. Free inspection. A local crew walks every basement wall, checks the cracks, measures any wall that leans in, and checks the floor for level. Outside, they look at gutters, downspouts and how the yard slopes.
  3. Written estimate. You get the plan and the price in writing. It shows what is wrong, how they would fix it and what it costs.
  4. You decide. There is no pressure. If you go ahead, the contractor sets the date and handles any permit the job needs.

Why Lincoln is hard on foundations

Four things work against Lincoln basements at the same time.

Clay that swells and shrinks. Most of the ground around Lincoln is covered in loess. That is fine, wind-blown silt that settled here long ago. Over time, the lower layers turned into heavy clay. The most common soil in Lancaster County is called Wymore. USDA soil data shows its subsoil is about 42 to 55 percent clay, and its shrink-swell rating is in the highest class. Pawnee and Crete soils, also common here, act the same way. When clay gets wet it swells and pushes. When it dries it shrinks and pulls away. A basement wall sits right in the middle of that.

Wet springs, then dry summers. Lincoln gets about 29 inches of rain in a normal year, according to University of Nebraska climate records. May and June are the wettest months, with close to 5 inches each. Then summer can turn dry. In 2012, Lincoln got only about 19 inches all year, almost 10 inches short of normal. That swing from soaked to bone dry is what makes clay move the most.

Deep frost. The City of Lincoln asks for frost-free deck footings at least 36 inches deep. Soil that freezes next to a wall swells and pushes in. When it thaws, it settles back. Over many winters, that pushing opens cracks and moves walls, most of all near the top of the wall where the frost reaches.

Water that cannot drain. In spring, USDA data shows the main clay soils here are often soaked to within one to three feet of the surface. Water sits in the soil against the basement wall instead of draining away. That pressure finds every crack and the joint where the wall meets the floor.

Homes of every age

Lincoln has a little of everything. About 1 in 8 homes was built in 1939 or earlier. Many of those are near downtown and the University of Nebraska campus, in places like the Near South, Woods Park and the North Bottoms. Older homes like these often have block, brick or early poured walls, built before modern drains and damp proofing were common.

About 38 percent of Lincoln homes were built between 1970 and 1999, and about 28 percent were built in 2000 or later. Newer homes ring the edge of town, in places like the Highlands in northwest Lincoln, and fill fast-growing towns nearby like Hickman and Waverly. Newer homes are not immune. Soil packed back against a new basement wall can settle for years. A poured wall can crack as it cures. A downspout that dumps next to the house can soak one corner all spring.

Older or newer, the walls here face the same clay, the same frost and the same wet springs. That is why the inspection looks at water and wall movement together.

Salt Creek and the floodplain

Salt Creek runs right through Lincoln. The city lists 11 creeks and streams that can flood here, including Salt Creek, Antelope Creek, Beal Slough and Deadman's Run. In July 1908, a Salt Creek flood killed nine people, and the North Bottoms took the worst of it, according to History Nebraska.

Homes near a creek can see higher ground water and more water against the basement wall after big storms. If your home is in or near a mapped floodplain, tell the inspector. It can change what kind of drain, pump and backup power make sense.

What it costs in Lincoln

Price is the first thing most people ask about. Most foundation repairs fall between about $2,200 and $8,200, with a national average near $5,200, according to Fixr. One cost guide puts major Lincoln jobs as high as about $24,500. Most basement waterproofing jobs fall between about $3,000 and $10,000.

What moves the price most is the kind of fix. Sealing one crack is a small job. Bracing a whole wall or adding a drain around the whole basement is a bigger one. Your written estimate shows exactly what is included before any work starts. See the full Lincoln foundation repair cost guide for more detail.

What a good inspection covers

A real inspection is more than a look at one crack. Expect the crew to:

  • Walk every basement wall, not just the one you are worried about
  • Measure any wall that bows or leans, and note how far it has moved
  • Check the joint where the wall meets the floor, and look for water stains and white crust
  • Check your sump pump and floor drains, if you have them
  • Look at gutters, downspouts, window wells and how the yard slopes outside
  • Give you a written plan that shows what goes where and what it costs

If the fix is as simple as moving a downspout, a good inspector should tell you that. If a wall needs bracing or the basement needs a drain, you get the plan in writing. Take your time, ask questions and compare it with other estimates.

Frequently asked questions

Is the foundation inspection really free?

Yes. The inspection and the written estimate cost you nothing. You do not have to sign anything or hire anyone. A local crew looks at your walls, floor and drainage and tells you what they found.

Who comes out to my house?

Lincoln Foundation Repair is a referral service. We connect you with one independent local contractor who works in Lincoln. That contractor does the inspection, writes the price and does the work if you hire them.

My basement only leaks in spring. Is that worth a call?

Yes. Spring is when Lincoln soil is the wettest. USDA data shows the main clay soils here can be soaked to within one to three feet of the surface in March and April. A leak that shows up every spring tends to come back every spring until the water has somewhere else to go.

Do I need to replace my whole foundation?

Almost never. Most Lincoln homes are fixed by sealing cracks, adding a drain and sump pump, bracing a wall that is bowing in, or putting piers under a corner that sank. A full wall rebuild is for a wall that has moved too far to brace.

Why do so many Lincoln basements have problems?

Much of the soil here is clay that swells when wet and shrinks when dry. Lincoln swings between wet springs and dry summers, and frost reaches about three feet down. All of that pushes on basement walls year after year.

How fast can someone look at my house?

Most people get a call back the same day. The visit is set for a time that works for you. If water is coming in now or a crack is growing fast, say so on the call.

Can I wait and see if it gets worse?

You can, but small problems cost less to fix than big ones. A crack you can seal for a few hundred dollars today can turn into a wall that needs bracing later. The free inspection tells you how urgent it is.

Areas we serve around Lincoln

(402) 923-8559 Free inspection