Cracks in basement of Kansas City home (Brix Fowler/KCTV5)
MAY 26, 2015
Heavy rains are flooding and cracking basements, according to foundation experts.
Foundation repair businesses are swamped with telephone calls from desperate homeowners seeking help.
Dry Foundation of Kansas City has crews spread across the area. Steve West headed to Connie Burk's home in Kansas City on Tuesday.
She moved into the home in 2008. Recent rain has caused cracks to form and the baseboards to separate from her walls.
"It's been very discouraging to know that this type of thing is happening to a new house," Burk said.
West said homeowners need to make sure that their gutters are clear.
"If you've cleaned them in the last two or three weeks and you think they are clean check them again because things will still fall in the spring and it may have plugged up again," West explained.
Homeowners also need to make sure that down spouts are running downhill away from your house.
You want to have any repairs made before the winter when freezing temperatures.
"If it's down to 15 or 10 degrees, guess what? The ground will freeze and it will push that foundation and can cause damage overnight," West said.
His company is seeing five times its normal volume of work due to the recent rains.