Sagging Floor Support Beams
Our team at Deska offers sagging floor repair using support beams for homeowners across Alexandria and the surrounding areas. Keep your home safe and improve property value by contacting our team today.
What do the beams support in a house?
The beams are typically installed after the crawl space or basement foundation has been constructed. Once in place, they support the floor above, which generally includes directly the supporting the floor joists. Generally, if there are additional floors above, their respective loads are passed through the beams at or near the support bearing locations.
Are walls and beams load-bearing in a house?
To determine if a wall or beam is load-bearing, inspect the foundation and floor structure. Walls or beams that are directly connected to a home’s foundation are typically load-bearing, especially in cases where there are additions to the house. It is common for interior walls that were previously exterior walls to serve as load-bearing walls.
What Causes Sagging Floors?
Sagging floors are often a sign of underlying structural issues that require immediate attention. Several factors can contribute to this problem, including weakened or deteriorating support beams, moisture damage, or settling of the foundation. Over time, the wooden joists and beams that hold up your floors can rot or warp due to excessive moisture, often caused by poor drainage, plumbing leaks, or high humidity levels in crawl spaces. Additionally, the natural settling of your home’s foundation can lead to uneven support, causing floors to dip or sag. In some cases, the original construction may not have included adequate support for heavy loads, leading to gradual floor sagging as the structure ages. Addressing the root causes of sagging floors is crucial for maintaining the safety and stability of your home.
How We Repair Sagging Floors
At Deska, we use advanced techniques to restore your home’s stability by addressing sagging floors. Our expert team begins with a thorough inspection to identify the issue’s root causes, whether it’s weakened support beams, moisture damage, or foundation settlement. We install heavy-duty support beams in crawl spaces and basements to correct sagging floors. These beams are strategically placed to reinforce your home’s structure, lifting and leveling the floors back to their original position.
Our approach ensures that the load is evenly distributed, preventing further sagging and restoring the integrity of your floors.
Frequently Asked Questions
A beam is the main load-bearing structural element of a floor. It supports the weight of the floor joists and other building elements. A joist is a horizontal member that generally runs across a floor and is supported by a beam. Generally, beams support many floor joists and beams have a significantly higher load capacity than floor joists.
Beams shall typically be installed under the load-bearing walls or below heavy concentrated loads to provide adequate support to the structure above. The beam should transfer the loads above to columns or adjacent foundation walls.
Beams are typically made of steel, timber, LVL (Laminated Veneer Lumber), and Glulam (Glue Laminated Timber) to support floors in a house.
The building code has established specific guidelines on where a beam can be cut, notched, or cored. These guidelines include limits on the depth and length of notches, and the size of core holes. The extent of these limits vary depending on the size of the beam and the vertical and horizontal location of the alteration along the span of the beam. It is advisable to consult with a licensed structural engineer before altering a beam.
The building codes that govern framed floors allow for some amount of sagging, which may seem concerning at first. However, the permissible limit is only 1/360 of the span, which is relatively minor. For example, if you had a 30-foot-long beam, the amount of sag permitted under this code would be just one inch.
Contact Us for Sagging Floor Repair in Alexandria and the Surrounding Area
If you’re dealing with sagging floors in your home, it’s crucial to address the problem before it leads to more significant structural issues. At Deska Services, our experienced team specializes in diagnosing and repairing sagging floors using advanced support beam systems designed to restore your home’s stability and safety.
Don’t wait for the problem to worsen—reach out to us today for a professional assessment. We offer free consultations and will work with you to develop a customized repair plan that suits your home’s specific needs.