Bowed Foundation Wall - Helical Tiebacks May be the Answer

Are you trying to buy a house and the inspections pointed out a bowing or leaning basement wall?  Still want the house? There are options to ensure the wall is stabilized.  Helical tiebacks are one answer. The tiebacks are a simple two piece system consisting of the tieback and plate. The tieback is essentially a giant screw about 10 feet long. A hole is drilled through the bowed wall and the tieback is inserted in the hole and ‘drilled’ into the earth behind the wall. The tieback is run in until just a few inches is protruding from the wall.  

Next, a steel plate with a hole is placed over the protruding end of the tieback and a nut is then screwed on. This nut is tightened to a certain spec that ensures tension on the wall. There you have it, the wall is now reinforced by the tension of the tieback working to keep the wall stabilized in place.  

How much do helical tiebacks cost, around 2000.00 each. Your application may require several.  Keep in mind these don’t always straighten the wall. They stabilize it to stop further movement.  They can work well on retaining walls too. I see these from time to time as I help people buy and sell real estate in the Dayton, Ohio area. Wall anchors are another option to stabilize.  I’ll cover that in another post.