Foundation raising in Merrimack NH - a house set higher on a sound new foundation
Water in the basement after every storm or a foundation that's crumbling? We raise the house and build a solid new foundation underneath.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free in-person estimates.
- We reply within 1 business day.
What does raising a house in Merrimack involve?
Foundation raising in Merrimack lifts your house up off what it sits on so Quality Merrimack Concrete can build a new or taller foundation underneath, then set the house back down on solid concrete.
If you're reading this, you probably have a house that sits too low or a foundation you don't trust anymore, and someone mentioned lifting the whole thing. What moves the price is the house itself, mostly how big it is, how high it goes and how much of what's under it can stay. The schedule turns on the permit paperwork and on what we find once the ground is open, and I'll walk you through both at the estimate and give you a figure for your house.
How do you know your house might need raising?
Water after every storm
If water comes into the basement or crawlspace after heavy rain or snowmelt, the house usually sits too low for the ground around it. Each season it keeps happening, the water works on the walls and on anything you store down there.
Sills down at the dirt
When the sills, the wood that rests on top of the foundation, sit right at the dirt line, you'll often find soft, rotted wood and bugs where wood meets soil. Waiting lets the rot climb into the framing, and that turns a lift into a lift plus carpentry.
Walls cracking or crumbling
Old block or stone walls that bow in, crack in steps or lose their mortar usually mean the foundation is giving out on its own. If it needs rebuilding anyway, lifting the house first is often the cleanest way to get at it, and every winter of frost can push a weak wall further.
How we handle foundation raising
I start by taking a hard look at what your house sits on now, because for some homes the honest answer is that a lift isn't the right call, and I'd rather tell you that at the estimate than halfway through the job. When it is the right call, we talk through how the house stays level as it goes up and what the old foundation will need. Then the job runs in order, the same way a kitchen runs a recipe. We dig out around the house, separate it from the foundation, raise it on jacks and hold it on temporary supports, build the new or extended walls and footings, the wide concrete base the walls stand on, and lower the house onto them.
A lift usually reaches past the foundation. When an old wall or slab has to come out in pieces, or a basement needs a new opening, we do the concrete cutting ourselves so the cuts stay clean and the concrete around them stays sound. Once the house sits higher, the driveway often doesn't meet the garage the way it used to, so concrete driveway building is often the last piece, with a new slab set to the new height.
Raising a low or wet house
This suits a house that takes on water or sits close to the dirt but stands on a foundation that's still in decent shape. Going up gets the framing and the living space out of the wet.
Replacing a failing foundation
This suits a house whose walls are cracking, bowing or crumbling. With the house up on supports, we can take out the bad walls and build new ones without working around a house resting on them.
Adding height below
This suits owners who want a usable basement or a crawlspace you can actually get into. Raising the house gives us room to build taller walls, though what you can do with that space depends on your flood zone, which we cover below.
Get an on-site look at raising your house
We reply within one business day. I come out myself, look at what your house sits on, and leave you a free estimate on site, with no obligation to book.
(603) 377-5028- Based in
- Merrimack, NH 03054
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 8 AM–10 PM, Sat–Sun: 7 AM–9 PM
What happens when you call about raising your house in Merrimack?
Here's how a lift runs from your first call to the day your house sits on its new foundation, and who you'll deal with along the way.
Call or send the form
Call (603) 377-5028 or send the form and we'll set a time to come out. It helps to know whether your house sits on a basement, a crawlspace or a slab before we talk.
I look at the house myself
I come out, look hard at the foundation and ask how you want to use the space below. You get an estimate on site and my honest read on whether a lift makes sense for your house.
We start the paperwork and prep
Once you say go, we help you get any permit paperwork moving with Merrimack, as covered below. Then we prep the ground around the house.
We lift, pour and set down
Our crew raises the house, builds the new foundation and lowers it back down, and I'm there for the pour and the finish. Before we leave, I walk you through what to watch for while the concrete cures, the slow hardening that keeps going after the pour.
Why Merrimack homeowners call Quality Merrimack Concrete to raise a house
The owner on site throughout
I write the estimate myself, and I'm on site running our own crew when the house goes up and the concrete goes in. You talk to the same person on the first visit and on pour day, so nothing gets lost in between.
Working out of Merrimack since 2013
I started this business here in Merrimack in 2013 after years on restaurant lines, where prep and timing decide how the plate turns out. Concrete runs the same way, so we don't hurry the work under your house to get to the part you can see.
We're licensed and insured
A lift puts a whole house on jacks and supports, so you want the crew under it to be covered. Ask to see our paperwork when I come out.
Tell us what your house sits on now, and send us your details to set up a visit.
Raising a house and building its new foundation in Merrimack
The Town of Merrimack decides what permits a house lift needs, and its list of added permits names lead paint, asbestos and demolition work but not raising a house, so that list doesn't answer the question for your job. Ask Merrimack before anything moves, and we'll help you find out which office handles your job, get the paperwork going and build to whatever they ask. If your lot is in a flood zone, the state planning office also keeps a list of communities with floodplain rules stricter than the federal minimum, which tells you whether Merrimack's flood rules reach past the federal baseline.
Groundwater in New Hampshire soils usually runs highest in spring, around April, and lowest from July through August, and in some soils it swings a lot between spring and fall. That matters when we dig for new footings under a raised house, because a hole that stays dry in August can take on water in April, so we bring up the time of year early. We see the same thing on jobs in Bedford and Nashua.
Questions about foundation raising in Merrimack
How much does it cost to raise a house in Merrimack, NH?
There's no set price for a lift, because every house is a different weight sitting on a different foundation, so I give you a figure after I've looked at yours. The biggest swings come from your choices, like how high you go, whether you want a full basement or a crawlspace underneath, and whether the driveway and steps need rebuilding to meet the house. Call (603) 377-5028 to set up a visit.
Can a slab home be raised?
Sometimes, but lifting a house whose floor is a slab poured right on the soil, with that slab kept whole, is technically hard and often not possible. FEMA's guide on raising homes says a registered design professional should look the slab over thoroughly before you choose this route. If your house is on a slab, I'll tell you plainly at the estimate whether a lift is worth pursuing.
Will my old foundation be reused if I raise my house?
Either it gets extended upward or it comes out and a new one goes in, and FEMA's guide says the choice depends on its condition and whether it can carry more weight. The footings may also need reinforcing or replacing, depending on the house's size, how high it goes and loads such as snow, so a bigger house or a higher lift can each add foundation work. I check both when I come out, because they decide how much new concrete your job needs.
How do I apply for a building permit in Merrimack?
You apply online, because Merrimack takes building permit applications through OpenGov. Whether your lift needs one is Merrimack's call, as I said above, and we'll help you get that paperwork moving.
How do I check if my house is in a flood zone in New Hampshire?
Look up your lot on the state's NH Flood Hazards Viewer, which shows the latest effective and preliminary FEMA flood maps for nearly every community in the state. In most areas it can lay parcel lines over the map, so you can find your own lot. Have that lookup ready when you call us, because it shapes what the space under a raised house can be.
What can I use the space under a raised house for?
FEMA's guide says that under the National Flood Insurance Program, the walled space below a raised home can be used only for parking, getting in and out, or storage. That space also has to be built with materials that stand up to flooding, and service equipment like the furnace and water heater has to sit above the design flood elevation, the flood height the house is built to clear. If you're picturing a finished basement, check your flood map with me first.
Related concrete work around a house lift
Concrete cutting
When part of an old wall or slab has to come out, clean saw cuts take just that piece and leave the concrete around it sound.
Concrete driveway building
If your old driveway is cracked, sinking or puddling, a new slab on a dug-out, packed base gives you a surface that drains away from the house.
Cities where we raise and rebuild foundations
Quality Merrimack Concrete is based in Merrimack, NH, and we work across the cities around it, including Manchester and Tyngsborough, MA. The 12 areas listed here each have their own page, and they aren't the only places we go.
Merrimack, NH
Ask whether your house can be raised
Call (603) 377-5028 with your foundation type and your flood map lookup handy, so we can talk about your house in real terms from the first call.