Helical Piers: Stabilizing Settling Foundations From the Soil Up
Steel piers shaped like large screws, turned down below the active surface soil to support and, where possible, lift a settling foundation across North and South Carolina.
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What to Know About Helical Piers
The shallow soil a footing was poured on can lose its ability to support the structure, from seasonal clay movement in the Piedmont, support washed out on an Asheville hillside, or poorly compacted fill. A helical pier reaches past that layer into deeper soil that moves much less, so the weight of the home rests there.
Torque screws the helix plates downward much like a screw biting into wood. Because torque tracks with soil density, the crew can tell when a pier reaches soil firm enough to bear the load. A steel bracket then connects the pier beneath the footing and the load moves onto it. This differs from piers driven by the building's weight, which need a heavier structure above to push against.
With the load transferred, the foundation is stabilized against further settlement. Where conditions allow, the piers can raise it toward its original height, which can help close cracks that step along mortar joints and help doors that stopped latching line up again. Piers do not change how water reaches the foundation, so the inspection looks at that too.
The symptoms that usually lead to helical piers are on the foundation repair problem signs page, alongside the other signs that point to the same underlying cause.
How We Install Helical Piers
Free Inspection and Diagnosis
We start by looking at the foundation and, just as importantly, why it has moved. We measure the amount and direction of settlement, look for related signs such as cracks through the brick veneer or sticking doors, and assess the soil involved. In Piedmont clay or on an Asheville slope, the cause of the movement shapes the recommendation, and we will tell you plainly if helical piers are not the right fit for your foundation.
Plan the Pier Layout
Based on what the inspection shows, we determine where piers are needed, how they will be spaced, and the load each must carry. We walk you through the plan, including how many piers your foundation calls for and what the work will involve, so you understand the scope before anything begins. Helical piers are one of several deep foundation systems reaching firmer soil, and each plan is built for the specific structure and soil.
Dig and Prepare Access
Our crew carefully digs small access areas at each pier location along the affected section of foundation, exposing the footing where the bracket will attach. We work to keep disruption to your home and yard as limited as the job allows while making the room needed to install the piers properly.
Turn the Helical Piers Down to Firm Soil
Each pier is turned into the ground with hydraulic equipment, advancing the helix plates downward until they reach soil dense enough to support the structure. Because the installation torque tells us when enough capacity is reached, the piers are seated based on actual soil resistance. That is what lets them pass through the shifting surface layer, the same layer that can leave a chimney leaning away from the house.
Attach Brackets and Transfer the Load
Steel brackets connect each pier to the foundation footing. The weight of the structure is then moved from the unstable soil onto the piers and the firm soil below, stabilizing the foundation against further settlement. Where the structure and conditions allow, we use the piers to lift the foundation back toward its original position in controlled steps.
Backfill, Restore, and Review
Once the piers are in place and the load is transferred, we backfill the access areas and restore the work site. We review the finished result with you so you understand how the system supports your home going forward.
Photos From Our Work
How Does a Helical Pier Support a Settling Foundation?
A helical pier is a steel shaft with plates shaped like a screw. We turn it down beside the footing, past the shallow soil that let the foundation settle, and into firmer soil that can carry the weight of your home.
Install Sequence: Illustrations
What Happens at Each Step of a Helical Pier Installation?
Simplified cross sections of each step, from the soil at the surface down to the firmer soil the pier reaches. The layers and parts are illustrative; the inspection describes the conditions under your own home.
Can a Helical Pier Lift a Settling Home Back Into Place?
Care and Expertise From a Team Serving the Carolinas Since 2017
When the fix is helical piers, our own crews do the work. HydroHelp911 handles foundation repair and related structural and moisture work across North and South Carolina.
An inspector looks at your home, finds the source of the problem, and explains each finding in plain language. There is no obligation.
We are headquartered in Dallas, North Carolina, with eight offices across North and South Carolina.
Foundation repair, crawl space repair and encapsulation, basement waterproofing, framing repair, and concrete leveling are the whole focus of the team.
We have 1,300+ verified Google reviews (4.9 stars) from homeowners across the Carolinas and are BBB A+ Accredited.
For example, helical and push piers carry a lifetime warranty that no additional settlement will occur in the area of installed piers, once the final invoice is paid in full. Read the warranty terms.
Ask your inspector about financing when you get your written estimate. See financing options.
Common Questions About Helical Piers
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Both are steel piers that stabilize a foundation by moving its weight onto deeper, firmer soil, but they get there differently. A helical pier is screwed into the ground with hydraulic torque, much like a large screw, and the installation torque tells the crew when it has reached soil that can carry the load. A push pier is driven straight down hydraulically using the weight of the structure itself as resistance. Helical piers often suit lighter structures and situations where the soil favors a screwed pier. During your inspection we explain which system fits your foundation and why.
Which Foundation Repair Problem Signs Can Helical Piers Help With?
A sign can trace to more than one cause. These are the foundation repair signs that can point to a cause this method addresses; the inspection shows which cause is at work in your home.
Foundation Settlement
When part of your home drops because the soil beneath it has moved or compressed, the symptoms show up as cracks, sticking doors, and uneven floors.
Learn More
Stair Step Cracks
When cracks climb diagonally along the mortar joints of a brick or block wall, the masonry may be showing you that one part of the foundation has shifted.
Learn More
Sticking Doors and Windows
A door that suddenly drags or a window that won't slide is often the first thing homeowners notice when a foundation moves.
Learn More
Uneven Floors
Sloping, dipping, or bouncy floors are one of the clearest signs that the support beneath your home has moved.
Learn MoreSinking Foundation
When part of your home is dropping because the soil beneath it can no longer hold the load, the signs show up as cracks, sticking doors, and floors that pull away from level.
Learn MoreLeaning Chimneys
When a chimney starts to tilt or pull away from the house, the cause is often below the masonry, in the footing underneath it.
Learn MoreOther Foundation Repair Solutions We Install
Each solution fits a different cause. The inspection shows which one your home needs.
Carbon Fiber Reinforcement
When soil and water pressure starts pushing a foundation wall inward, carbon fiber straps bond to the wall and resist that load, a slim repair for minor to moderate bowing.
Learn More
Epoxy or Polyurethane Crack Injection
A targeted way to seal cracks in poured concrete foundation walls and stop water seepage, paired with a careful look at what caused the crack in the first place.
Learn More
Foundation Underpinning
When the soil near the surface can no longer carry your foundation, underpinning reaches deeper ground to stabilize the structure.
Learn More
I-Beam Wall Bracing
When clay or saturated soil presses a foundation wall inward, steel I-beams brace it from the inside and stop further movement.
Learn MoreDeep Foundation Systems
When the soil near the surface keeps moving, we install piers that carry your home's weight down to ground that holds, and only after a free inspection.
Learn MoreGrout Injection (Chemical Grouting)
A targeted way to fill voids and firm up weak or shifting soil under foundations and slabs, so settlement has less room to continue.
Learn MoreGuides and Answers
A Guide About Helical Piers
An article from our team that goes deeper on this topic.
Foundation Repair
Underpinning With Helical Piers
The cost of underpinning with helical piers depends on how many piers the home needs, their length, the soil and access.
Get the Free Foundation Repair Guide
A free guide for homes in North and South Carolina: what can move a foundation here, the signs worth writing down, and how foundation repairs work, in plain language.
- A room by room checklist to walk your home with
- Why foundations move in Piedmont clay, on hillsides and near the coast
- How piers, wall anchors and other repairs work
- Five questions worth asking any contractor, including us
1,300+ Verified Google Reviews (4.9 Stars)
Before you choose a contractor for helical piers, read how homeowners across North Carolina and South Carolina rate our work.
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