Pier and Beam Foundation Repair
Reshimming, rotted sill and beam replacement, new piers and crawl space moisture control for pre-1960 homes.
South & Southwest San Antonio · 78214
Foundation Repair
Harlandale
Slab and pier and beam foundation repair for Harlandale homes and businesses: inspections, piers, leveling, under-slab leak repair, crack repair and drainage correction, with the plan and the price in writing before work starts.
- Typical travel around 30 minutes
- Slab and pier and beam, every era
- Written proposal after the evaluation
Evaluation in Harlandale
Tell us what the house is doing. You get an honest read on urgency and a written proposal after the evaluation.
~30 min
Typical travel to Harlandale
78214
Harlandale ZIP code
~65 yrs
Typical home age
8–12
Piers most homes need
Foundations in Harlandale
What moves in Harlandale, and why
Harlandale is the south side between South Flores and the Mission Reach: 1940s to 1960s homes in Harlandale ISD on Blackland clay, split between the last pier and beam and the first thin slabs, near Mission San José. Old drains, mature trees and deferred maintenance.
Working the area
Regular work around Mission San José, Mission Reach of the San Antonio River, Harlandale ISD and South Flores Street, and the streets between.
- Typical home age
- ~65 yrs
- Residents
- ~30,000
Notes from the Harlandale crew
Harlandale is where pier and beam ended and slabs began, on the same clay. The neighborhoods between South Flores Street and the Mission Reach of the river were built from the 1940s through the 1960s, and a single block can hold a 1946 pier and beam cottage next to a 1962 slab ranch. The pier and beam houses have the usual rotted sills, sunk concrete piers and floors that slope toward the corner that stayed wettest, with crawl spaces that are often tight and full of a previous owner's shims. The slabs are thin conventional pours on Blackland clay with cast iron drains underneath, and they crack at the corners under the trees and heave in the middle when a drain leaks, so the hydrostatic test comes first.
The lots near the river sit on a high water table, and a lot of yards drain toward the house. Harlandale is largely family-owned and multi-generational, with rentals mixed in, and the foundation problem has often been growing for twenty years before someone calls, usually when a door will no longer close or a buyer's inspector writes it up. Enclosed porches and garage conversions on their own footings pull away from the house. Pressed concrete pilings reach refusal at useful depths in this clay, and the typical job is perimeter pilings, interior piers over a repaired drain, or reshimming and new piers under the pier and beam houses, all inside San Antonio's permit office.
What we see most
Common foundation problems in Harlandale
Not generic pain points. These are the patterns behind most Harlandale evaluations, roughly in the order they land on the schedule.
1940s to 1960s thin conventional slabs on Blackland clay cracking at corners and heaving over leaking cast iron drains
1940s pier and beam homes with rotted sills, sunk piers and floors sloping toward the low corner
Lots that drain toward the house and a high water table near the Mission Reach of the river
Mature trees and decades of deferred maintenance on rental and multi-generational family homes
Additions, enclosed porches and garage conversions on separate footings
Something else in Harlandale?
Sloping floors, a heaving slab, a crawl space that smells damp, a patio that dropped: if it is the foundation, we can evaluate it. Tell us what the house is doing and when it started.
Request an evaluation
Services in Harlandale
Every service, same written proposal
Slab Foundation Repair
Pressed concrete pilings, steel piers or drilled piers under a settled slab, with a hydrostatic test before and after the lift.
Foundation Inspection
Elevation survey, crack mapping and an honest read on whether the house needs piers, drainage or just watching.
Foundation Leveling
Lifting a settled house back toward level in stages, doors closing again, and a written elevation record.
Foundation Crack Repair
Which cracks are cosmetic, which are structural, and epoxy or polyurethane injection once the cause is fixed.
Foundation Leak Repair
Hydrostatic testing, tunneling under the slab and drain repair when wet clay is heaving one side of the house.
Before we arrive
Four things that make a Harlandale evaluation better
Foundation movement on clay is a story told over seasons. The more of it you can show us, the more honest the answer.
Photograph and date
Every crack inside and out with a coin for scale, plus the month. Seasonal movement on clay shows up as cracks that open in August and close in November.
Check the water
Where do the downspouts dump, where does water pool after a storm, which side has the big live oak, and is there a wet spot that never dries.
Find the paperwork
Previous repair warranties, engineer's letters, the seller's disclosure and any plumbing test. They change the plan and sometimes cover the work.
Send the form
Neighborhood, foundation type if you know it, what the house is doing and your timing. You get an evaluation window and what to watch for meanwhile.
Nearby neighborhoods
Also covering the rest of South & Southwest San Antonio
Mid-century slabs on clay, older pier and beam, and the Medina River towns. Same crew, same evaluation and the same written proposal across every South & Southwest San Antonio ZIP code.
All service areasInsurance, permits and paperwork
What the adjuster, the city and the next buyer will ask for after a Harlandale job.
Texas decides foundation claims on cause, and Texas real estate runs on disclosure. We photograph, measure and write the report from the first visit.
- Soil movement or a leak? Texas policies generally exclude damage from soil movement. Damage from a plumbing leak under the slab may be covered, in part, depending on the policy and endorsement.
- Permits in Harlandale Structural foundation repair needs a residential repair permit from the City or the suburb's own permit office. The contractor pulls it; a handyman cannot.
- Engineer's letter Photos, elevations before and after, and a Texas licensed engineer's letter are what the adjuster, the lender and the next buyer ask for first.
Harlandale questions
What Harlandale owners ask first
Straight answers on scheduling, local failure patterns, cost per pier and insurance.
All questionsHow quickly can you evaluate a house in Harlandale?
Evaluations in Harlandale are usually scheduled within a few days, and typical travel is around 30 minutes from wherever the crew is working. Active movement after a plumbing leak or a sudden drop goes to the front of the queue. You get a real window on the phone rather than a promise. While you wait, photograph the cracks with a coin for scale and note where water pools around the slab after rain.
What foundation problems are most common in Harlandale?
The pattern we see most in Harlandale is 1940s to 1960s thin conventional slabs on Blackland clay cracking at corners and heaving over leaking cast iron drains, followed by 1940s pier and beam homes with rotted sills, sunk piers and floors sloping toward the low corner. Harlandale is the south side between South Flores and the Mission Reach: 1940s to 1960s homes in Harlandale ISD on Blackland clay, split between the last pier and beam and the first thin slabs, near Mission San José. Old drains, mature trees and deferred maintenance. Drought summers and wet springs move the soil everywhere in the metro, so seasonal cracks and sticking doors show up in every neighborhood.
What does foundation repair cost in Harlandale?
Typical San Antonio ranges apply in Harlandale: pressed concrete pilings run $350 to $600 per pier, steel piers $1,000 to $1,800, and most homes need 8 to 12 piers, so a typical slab repair lands between $4,500 and $14,000. Pier and beam leveling runs $1,500 to $5,000 before any rotted wood is replaced. Drainage correction often costs less than piers and is sometimes the whole fix. Every number is in a written proposal after the evaluation.
Will insurance cover foundation repair in Harlandale?
Usually not for soil movement. Texas homeowners policies generally exclude damage from settling, shrinking and expansion of the soil. If a plumbing leak under the slab caused the movement, part of the repair may be covered depending on the policy and any foundation or seepage endorsement, often with a cap. A hydrostatic plumbing test, dated photos and an engineer's report are what the adjuster asks for.
Foundation repair in Harlandale
Tell us what the house is doing. We will tell you if it needs piers.
Evaluation window for Harlandale, an honest read on urgency, and a written proposal only if the house needs work.