At 104 years into the game, this foundation has pretty much given up to Mother Nature.

The photo shows the ravages of time in the form of extensive mortar deterioration of this river rock foundation. While crawling through the access hatch, the foundation crumbled under just the weight of it being crawled over, and yet this is what is holding up most of the rest of the house!

Prior to concrete footings, foundations were traditionally made of brick; prior to brick, the material of choice was river rock; prior to that, which would be dating back into the late 1800's, we find houses with NO foundation whatsoever, having been simply built directly onto the grade of the land! My, how times have changed!

The point is, whether your house has a concrete foundation, a brick foundation, a rock foundation, or NO foundation, water is possibly its worst enemy! The mortar of this river rock foundation is failing due to water having leached out its minerals over time. That said, the more you can do to keep excess water away from whatever type of foundation you have, the longer you can help your house stave off the ill effects of time!

At your service,

Tom Pelletier, Owner

The Foundation Works