It is highly possible that your home is built on expansive soil and if this is the case then it may be subject to regular movement. In this situation, it is important to use a screw jack instead of solid wood posts betwixt the concrete piers in the crawlspace and the girders that support the floor joists. A screw jack is regarded as a metal support post that can be altered or moved slightly when it comes to level the floor. It is composed or made up of two heavy steel pipes, one inside the other. The inside pipe is attached or secured and adjusted up and down by turning a large wing nut. The screw jack is fastened or secured using the nails to the bottom of the girder and to the woodblock over & above a concrete pier.
Step By Step Process To Install Screw Jack To Level A Floor
If in case your home is sagging or uneven because of sinking foundations then it is the best option to use a jack in order to raise the house back up to level. All you need to do is to track down or spot the location of the sagging beams and bring them back to level with a house jack, the majority of which are built for hundreds of tons. As soon as you have the house level, position the concrete pillars underneath the beams in order to hold the raise in place. Screw jacks can mostly be found at local hardware stores and home centers. Go through the below-mentioned steps carefully in order to install a screw jack when it comes to leveling the floor:
- First of all, it is important to use a hydraulic jack as well as a short post when it comes to holding up or reinforcing the floor during this process.
- The next step is to get rid of the existing underpinning wood post as well as nails with the help of a hammer, a nail puller, and a sledgehammer.
- Now, center the screw jack underneath the girder in addition to the woodblock on the concrete pier.
- After that, alter or move the screw jack slightly in order to achieve the desired fit so that the top, as well as bottom plates, are flush to the wood surfaces above and below.
- Move or push the 16-penny nails along the holes in the plates and into the wood framing.
- Take the hydraulic jack down in order to transfer the floor load to the new screw jack. Alter or move the screw jack up or down slightly to achieve a level surface.
In some cases, when entirely altering or transforming a floor, don’t be astonished if windows crack and doors stick. Contrastingly, don’t be astonished if a few of those once-sticking doors, as well as windows now, operate just fine. It is surprising what a little trek underneath the house can do!