Empowering Homeowners through Education

The goal of HOUSETIPS is to help homeowners better understand the various systems of their house and provide insight to common and unusual issues that may occur. With decades of experience as forensic engineers, plan designers, home inspectors, and contractors, our team has unique experience in diagnosing failure patterns in houses. Our team has witnessed needless, costly repairs without repair of the actual cause of the damage. We want you better informed to save time and money so we tailored our content to help homeowners identify issues, possibly solve problems, and consider practical repairs. We hope you enjoy and benefit from the content presented by HOUSETIPS.

Structural Problems

The Importance of Properly Assessing a Home – Case Study

by HOUSETIPS | September 12, 2023 | Foundations, Structural Problems | 0 Comments

Many articles on the HOUSETIPS website result from years of experience looking at foundation failure. This case study is about one client's concern about the foundation of her home. The client contacted our team to learn about problems with her home. She feared the...

What Do Floor Tile Cracks Mean?

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Structural Problems | 0 Comments

What Causes Floor Tiles to Crack? Unfortunately, floor tile cracks are common in houses. The floor tile crack may actually grow in length or width. When you look around the room, absolutely no other signs of cracks or distress exist. Your house may be less than a...

Garage Slab Cracks

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Structural Problems | 0 Comments

Garage Slab Cracks Garage slab cracks are caused by various conditions and show up in the slab in different ways. Two common conditions include (1) “spider cracks” generally located in the center or open area of the garage and (2) a long crack near the common wall of...

Foundation Corner Crack

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Structural Problems | 0 Comments

Foundation corner cracks are extremely common in residential concrete foundation slabs. These cracks are also commonly referred to as slab cracks. They occur, as the name suggests, at the corner of the foundation where brick veneer is installed on the house. That’s...

Types of Basements

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Basements, Structural Problems | 0 Comments

Why do some houses have basements, and what are the different kinds of basements? In the simplest of terms, a basement is part of the foundation that supports the house and the “need” for a basement is usually the result of where the house is located. In coastal...

How Can I Tell If I Have Structural Problems In My House?

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Structural Problems | 0 Comments

What are the signs of structural problems in a house? - This type of question is usually the result of suspicions that come from noticing cracks in concrete, bricks, drywall, or doors or windows that do not operate correctly. In other words when you see something...

What Does A Sag in My Roof Mean?

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Structural Problems | 0 Comments

Houston, we have a problem! How much of a problem depends largely on how large is the roof sag? And we are going to differentiate between a sag and a hole, as this may have been caused by a tree or branch falling on the roof. What Does a Sagging Roof Mean? Generally,...

Common Wood Destroying Insects

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Structural Problems | 0 Comments

Wood destroying insects are always a concern for homeowners, with the most egregious of the insects being termites. Common wood destroying insects in houses include termites, powderpost beetles, and carpenter bees. Potential damage caused by each of these insects...

How Can I Tell If A Wall Is A Load Bearing Wall?

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Structural Problems | 0 Comments

How can I identify a load bearing wall? - This question is easy to answer, although getting the needed information can sometimes be difficult. It typically means getting up in the attic and possibly moving some insulation to expose the ceiling joists. What is a Load...

How Do I Repair Foundation Failure?

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Structural Problems | 0 Comments

Foremost, foundation repair is beyond the ability of most homeowners, due to the equipment and knowledge required. The foundation of a home supports the entire house, so the weights involved are extreme. The nature of the question presumes the foundation is no longer...

Why are my wood floors buckled?

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Moisture Problems | 0 Comments

Frustrated? Did you recently replace the floors in your house and find your new wood floors are buckled or “cupped”? Do you have an older home where the wood floors have been installed for years only to recognize the wooden floors began the buckle? What possibly has...

What causes ceiling stains in my house?

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Moisture Problems | 0 Comments

Common Causes of Water Stains on the Ceiling What causes water stains on the ceiling of your home? There are many reasons for why these stains may occur, here are a few common causes and tips for locating the problem. Often, water sources such as condensation...

Where do I look for roof leaks?

by HOUSETIPS | January 10, 2023 | Moisture Problems | 0 Comments

Quite often roof leaks first show up as damp spots on the drywall ceiling somewhere in the house. And since most of our houses have pitched (sloped) roofs and water runs downhill, the location of a roof leak is very often somewhere “uphill” on the roof. Here are some...

5 Benefits of a Metal Roof

by HOUSETIPS | June 7, 2023 | Roof | 0 Comments

The decision to change the roof cover of your house is important because of the expense and intrusion into the solitude of your house and surroundings. Most homeowners are aware that changing a roof can be one of the largest expenses in maintaining their house. And...