How We Work
WHAT TO EXPECT
Your Step-by-Step Journey From First Call to Finished Repair
Book Your No-Cost Foundation Assessment
Receive a Repair Plan Built Around Your Home
Confirm Your Start Date and Get on the Schedule
Watch Your Repair Come Together
Start With a Free Assessment
Something doesn’t look right—a crack running along your ceiling, a door that drags across the floor, or a wall that seems to be pulling away from the corner. These aren’t just cosmetic annoyances. They’re often the first visible signs of a foundation that needs attention.
Church takes the guesswork out of the equation. Our no-cost foundation assessment connects you with specialists who will give you straight answers about what’s happening beneath your home and what it will take to fix it. No pressure, no runaround—just honest information you can act on.
A Thorough Inspection, A Clear Plan
We believe the inspection experience should set the tone for everything that follows.
Once on-site, you’ll point us toward the areas that concern you most. We’ll take it from there—measuring and mapping the perimeter of your home and documenting any visible signs of foundation stress. Inside, we use the ZIPLEVEL® PRO-2000 to capture precise elevation readings across your floors, accurate to within 1/10th of an inch. This level of detail allows us to build a repair plan that reflects what your home actually needs, not a one-size-fits-all solution.
Following your appointment, we’ll send your customized repair plan and project quote straight to your inbox so you can review everything at your own pace. Financing options are available if needed. There’s no pressure to decide right away — your quote is valid for 6 months, and we require no deposit to get started.
Locking In Your Repair
Ready to move forward?
Once your signed agreement is received, your project plan goes to a licensed Professional Engineer for independent review, and we handle all required permitting on your behalf. From there, you’ll be given a confirmed start date along with a realistic timeline. Most foundation repairs are completed within 3 to 4 weeks, though the exact duration depends on the scope of work—how many pilings are needed, and whether the installation involves interior locations, exterior ones, or a combination of both.
The Repair Process, Phase by Phase
A week before work begins, we contact 8-1-1 to have all underground utilities—gas, electric, phone, and internet—marked and flagged for safety.
Here’s how the work unfolds:
Phase I – Site Preparation and Excavation
Before a single shovel breaks ground, we photograph your landscaping and lay plywood across the yard to protect the surface. Any concrete or paving in the way is broken out cleanly, and doormat-sized holes are dug down to the grade beam at each pier location.
Phase II – Piling Installation
With the access holes open, our crew begins pressing pilings into the ground using hydraulic equipment. What makes this method effective is that the structure itself provides the downward force—the weight of your home drives each piling deeper as new sections are added on top. This continues until the pilings reach a point where the surrounding soil offers no further resistance, a benchmark known as refusal depth. A piling cap is then seated between the top of the driven piling and the grade beam, creating a stable transfer point. Church works with both concrete pressed pilings and steel pressed pilings—the right material depends on your specific conditions, but the installation method stays consistent either way.
Phase III – Lifting and Leveling
Once the pilings and caps are in place, the lift begins. We raise the foundation gradually, prioritizing the lowest sections first and working methodically around the repair zone before returning to fine-tune the elevation. The goal is to bring the slab back within acceptable tolerance—not necessarily perfectly level, but stable, supported, and no longer moving. When the lift is complete, the tops of the pilings are shimmed securely under the grade beam.
The job site is cleaned up each evening before the crew leaves.
Closing Out Your Project
Once payment has been collected, our office will prepare and email your final paperwork, including your service agreement paperwork.
We offer service agreements on all pilings installed by our teams. These agreements are transferable from owner to owner within 30 days of a sale for a transfer fee—so the protection stays with the property, no matter who owns it.
One important note: please wait 8 to 12 weeks after your repair before making any cosmetic fixes to walls, floors, or ceilings. Your home’s framing may continue to settle now that the foundation has been corrected, and soil in the excavated areas may shift slightly as well.