Foundation raising in Dickinson ND - a house lifted and set on solid support

Most houses, whether frame, brick veneer or solid masonry, are separated from their foundation and lifted on hydraulic jacks. Temporary supports hold the house up while a new or extended foundation is built underneath. Expect some digging too, because one pier maker's installation guide has a trench dug along the whole length of a wall to prep the site, down to the footing, the wide concrete base the wall sits on.

Often it can, since most raising methods let you keep as much of the existing foundation as possible, and that's generally the most economical way to raise a house. A design professional then has to judge whether the old foundation can carry the raised house, so plan for that review before anything gets lifted.

The best way is to hire a contractor who has lifted plenty of slab houses, because lifting a house together with its slab is harder than lifting one on a basement or crawlspace. The usual guidance is that only a highly skilled contractor with a lot of slab experience should take one on, so ask about that experience first, and that goes for us too. I'll tell you straight what our crew handles on a slab job and where another specialist fits in.

The price depends on your particular house, so I only give a figure after I've looked at it in person. How much of the old foundation can stay, how easily the equipment can get in, any walks or driveway we have to cut out and pour back, and the design professional's review all move the number. I'll walk you through each of those when I'm out there.

The City of Dickinson issues building permits for all of Stark County, so that's who to ask about your house lift. If your house sits in a Special Flood Hazard Area, the work also needs a permit from the local Floodplain Administrator. The city's code enforcement works to make sure building work in Dickinson meets the city's building code. We check with the city on permits before we start, take care of the ones that fall to us as the contractor and help you with any that fall to you.

Pick a licensed, insured contractor with real lifting experience, because a full house lift takes equipment, training, engineering and insurance well beyond a do-it-yourself project. North Dakota requires the person doing the work to be licensed as a contractor once a job's cost, value or price goes over $4,000. A crew that isn't originally from the area also needs a Transient Merchant License from the Attorney General, which you can ask to see. We're licensed and insured, and we've been based right here in Dickinson since 2017.