Foundation block wall installation in Richmond CA - walls built in the right order
Replacing a crumbling foundation or adding onto your house? We build block foundation walls in the right order, so they carry the house above them.
- Fully licensed and insured.
- Free quotes on site.
- We reply within 1 business day.
What goes into building a block foundation wall in Richmond?
Foundation block wall installation in Richmond, CA means building the concrete block walls your house sits on, whether that's a full basement, a crawlspace wall, a stem wall or a row of piers, on a footing dug into firm ground. Block works well below ground because it's strong, it lasts and it stands up to fire and insects.
Most people who call about this are replacing an old foundation that's given out, putting a new one under an addition or rebuilding a low crawlspace. If yours only has a few cracks, foundation repair may be all it needs, and I'll tell you so. The price moves with how long and tall the wall runs, how much digging and fill the ground needs, whether the wall needs steel and how easy it is to get equipment to it. The schedule turns mostly on the permit, the city's inspections and what we find once we dig. When the job needs a permit, we pull it as the licensed contractor, and the written estimate I send after seeing your house turns all of that into a figure for your wall.
How do you know your house needs a new foundation wall?
Crumbling or flaking foundation
If you can rub sand off the old foundation with your thumb, or chunks are missing along the bottom, it has usually lost the strength to carry the house well. Patching helps on a small spot, but a wall that's crumbling end to end keeps shedding until the framing above starts to drop.
Sticking doors, sloping floors
When doors start to rub and a marble rolls to one corner of the room, the foundation under that side has often settled. I spent years as a carpenter shimming doors like that, and it never fixed a thing, because the cracks keep spreading into the framing and drywall the longer you wait.
A wall leaning inward
A crawlspace or basement wall that bows in or has a long sideways crack is losing its fight with the soil behind it. That one shouldn't wait, because a wall that's moving tends to keep moving and can take the floor with it.
How we handle foundation block wall installation
I start by walking the lot with you and marking where the wall will run. We dig out, set and pour the footing, then lay the block course by course, with steel and grout in the hollow cores where the design calls for them. We keep the work in the right order, so the wall is braced or tied in at the top before any soil goes back against it, because a wall that's meant to be held at the top can crack if it gets pushed on too early. If your wall will hold back a lot of earth, we settle the question of steel early on, before the footing is poured, since it changes how the whole wall is laid out.
Once the work under the house is done, the yard usually comes next, and our same crew can handle it. We do walkway construction for a solid path through the new grade, and outdoor kitchen masonry for a cooking area out back that sits on a proper footing of its own.
Crawlspace walls
These suit most houses that sit a few feet off the ground and need a new perimeter wall under them. They're shorter, so they hold back less soil and usually make for a simpler job.
Full basement walls
These suit owners who want usable space below the house or are digging under an addition. They're tall and hold back the most earth, which is why the steel question gets answered first.
Stem walls and piers
A short stem wall or a set of block piers suits an addition, a porch or a house that only needs support at certain points. They take less digging, but the footing under each one still has to sit on firm ground.
Get a written estimate for your foundation wall
Send the form and we'll get back to you within one business day to set up a visit. I'll look the job over with you and send a written estimate, free and with no obligation.
(510) 369-4799- Based in
- Richmond, CA 94804
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 8 AM–10 PM, Sat–Sun: 7 AM–9 PM
What happens after you call about a foundation wall?
Here's how a foundation wall job runs from your first call to a cleaned-up site, and who you'll deal with at each step along the way.
Call us or send the form
Tell us where the house is and what kind of wall you're thinking about. We'll get back to you and set a time for me to come out.
Walk the site with me
I look at the ground, the house and how it's carrying now, then send a written estimate covering the wall type, the footing, the steel and the cost. If soft ground could add digging, I'll say so on paper, so the number doesn't surprise you later.
We handle permit and build
If you go ahead, we take care of any permit the job needs and set up the city inspections. Our own crew does the work, and I'm on site running it.
Clean up and walk through
When the wall is done and the soil is back, we clean up the site. I walk the finished work with you before we leave.
Why Richmond homeowners call us for foundation walls
The owner walks every job
I come out myself to look at the job and walk it with you, and I'm on site with our own crew while the wall goes up. You talk to the same person from the first visit to the cleanup.
Masons since 2013, carpenters before
We've been in business since 2013, and I framed houses before I ever laid block. That's why I care about the top of the wall, where the floor sits, as much as the footing.
Licensed, insured and easy to check
We're fully licensed and insured. Richmond asks contractors who register for a state license card, a workers' compensation certificate and a city business license, so those are fair things to ask any contractor about before they dig.
The right repair, not the biggest
If your foundation only needs a repair, I'll tell you before I'd ever quote you a new wall. Old masonry lasts a long time when it's treated well, and I'd rather earn your next call.
If you're weighing a new foundation wall, send us a few details or call (510) 369-4799, and I'll come take a look.
Foundation walls and the yard work around them in Richmond
The City of Richmond issues building permits and requires one before anyone builds, alters or repairs a building or structure, and a new foundation wall under your house is part of the building. We pull the permit as the licensed contractor and set up the city inspections, and if we're not sure what the city wants on a job, we ask before we start instead of guessing. Richmond's Building Division also runs an inspection line at 510-447-1156, where you can check inspection results yourself.
Around here we meet a lot of older houses on sloping lots, with tight side yards that make digging slow and hauling soil out a real part of the job. We plan for that access at the first visit, and we see the same kinds of houses on jobs in El Cerrito and San Pablo.
Questions about foundation block walls in Richmond
How much does a block foundation wall cost in the Bay Area?
A mortared block foundation reinforced with rebar in the San Francisco Bay Area usually costs about $28,000 to $45,000 per job. That's the going range in the area, not our price, and where your job lands depends on the size of the wall, the ground and the steel. The written estimate I send after the visit gives you the figure for your house.
Does a block foundation wall need steel reinforcement?
Not always, because block foundation walls can be built without reinforcing steel. Masonry industry guidance says reinforcement may be required when a wall holds back a large load of soil, so a tall basement wall is more likely to need it than a short crawlspace wall. It's one of the first things I go over with you, since it shapes the design.
What is the best ground for a block foundation footing?
Masonry guidance says footings should sit on undisturbed native soil, the ground that's never been dug or filled. Soil that's soft or weak should come out and be replaced with compacted soil, gravel or concrete, which can add digging and fill to the job. I look for that at the estimate, though sometimes you only know for sure once the trench is open.
Who can pull the permit for a foundation wall in Richmond, CA?
The City of Richmond issues permits only to property owners or their authorized agents and to licensed contractors. California's contractor board has a masonry license class that covers building load-bearing walls like these. On our jobs, that's us, as the licensed contractor.
Does an earthquake hazard zone affect a foundation wall in Richmond?
It can, because properties in a state-mapped seismic hazard zone, such as an area where liquefaction may occur in a strong earthquake, may be required to investigate and reduce that hazard during local permitting. The California Geological Survey has also released preliminary earthquake fault zones for public review that affect Richmond and Contra Costa County. If your lot could be in one, we ask the city early so it doesn't slow the job later.
How do I keep rainwater away from a new foundation wall?
Masonry guidance says the top layer of soil against the wall should be a kind that lets little rain soak in, and the finished ground should slope away from the house. That keeps water from collecting along the wall. We can talk through the ground around your wall at the estimate.
Masonry work that often follows a new foundation
Walkway construction
A paved path along the side of the house gives you a clean, level way around the new work and keeps foot traffic off the soil we graded.
Outdoor kitchen masonry
A block-and-stone counter for a grill and sink needs a footing and a straight wall under it, the same groundwork a foundation wall starts with.
Cities where we build foundation walls
Stonework Richmond Concrete and Masonry is based in Richmond, CA, and builds foundation walls across the cities around it, including Berkeley and Pinole. The 12 cities below each have their own page, and if yours isn't listed, just ask.
Richmond, CA
Book a look at your foundation wall
Have your address, the kind of wall you need and a few photos of the site ready, so I show up already knowing what to look at.