Before & After Photos

Our silicone-based sealant, NexusPro, looks great, and works better than traditional, off-the-shelf caulking to protect your concrete from the elements.

Why should you seal your joints on your concrete?

When it rains, the moisture can wash away the soil or leave it so saturated and soft that it cannot support the concrete above it. Sometimes this is due to improper drainage, or other times it is a matter of unusual amounts of water getting to the soil underneath the concrete. Lines in the concrete are called control joints because they are supposed to control the cracking patterns when the concrete was initially poured. These control joints will eventually crack through the slab after the concrete is poured in place. This is a perfect path for water to flow down and under the concrete slab. This creates more erosion and more wet, weak soil. When this happens, the soil shifts, and there becomes unsupported areas of concrete, which will result in additional cracks in the concrete or unlevel concrete. Another type of movement that could occur in the concrete if the joints are not sealed is heave. Heave is caused by the ground's expansion and is usually associated with clay soils that swell when they get wet. If you get too much moisture underneath your slab, that soil will expand and cause the concrete to become uneven in portions, in parts. This can also occur during the winter months. If there is moisture in the expansive clay soil and it freezes, it will swell. Similar to a pop bottle in the freezer. Sealing the joints between the concrete slabs that make up your driveway or sidewalk is a crucial step to preventing future damage like sinking and cracking.

Urethane or polyurethane caulks adhere well to concrete. This material provides an impermeable adhesive to prevent moisture, air, and debris from entering cracks. The downside to urethane caulk breaks down and degrades when UV light is present. This is not ideal for outside concrete, and we expect to replace it every few years. 

Our silicone-based sealant, NexusPro, not only looks great but works better than traditional, off-the-shelf caulking material to protect your concrete - and the soil it rests on - from the elements. It remains highly flexible regardless of the weather conditions. It will not de-bond, and it is UV resistant so that it won't crack or breakdown. NexusPro has a quick curing process, so you only must wait for hours instead of days to drive or walk on the sealed areas.

Expert installation is vital. Our technicians will carefully prep and clean the existing joints and cracks. Then several passes are made with a spatula spoon to make sure there is a perfect result. The final touch of sand is then applied to help blend in the color of the concrete.

By preventing water from seeping through concrete slabs, the soil below is less prone to erosion and settlement, which is the root of almost every issue related to concrete sinking and cracking.

Check out a before and after photo from one of our recent concrete repair projects in Omaha, NE.

Having a home that is 100 years old means that the homeowner must handle problems with unique solutions, especially repairing the foundation and waterproofing.

For Michael and his mother, this was the case for the foundation of their home in Omaha, Nebraska. The foundation was made of brick and had been DIY-repaired several times with concrete patches. Still, water continued to fill the basement during snow melts or when it rained.  

Over a year ago, Michael had several contractors give estimates to repair the foundation. While Thrasher Foundation Repair provided a proposal, another contractor was awarded the job. That contractor did some work to replace part of a wall but left Michael with a mess and a basement that still flooded when it rained. While Michael was fighting the previous contractor to get his money back, he decided to reach back out to Thrasher Foundation Repair to get another opinion.

A Permanent Solution for a Wet Basement and Damp Crawlspace

System Design Specialist Wyatt Simon visited the home and inspected the entire foundation to make recommendations. Michael’s desire was for a permanent solution that would allow for the basement to be used as a recreation space in the future. He and his mother also have allergies and were hoping to improve the air quality in the home as well. Wyatt was able to identify three primary issues. One, there were portions of the foundation wall that needed to be shored up. Two, the basement needed a waterproofing system to keep it dry. Three, the dirt crawlspace needed sealing to prevent humidity from continuing to cause air quality issues.

Wyatt proposed a structural repair to the failing portions of the brick foundation. 

Thrasher recommended a perimeter drainage system specially designed for old stone foundations to control the water.

After- A TripleSafe Sump Pump System was installed in the corner, and the drainage system directs all water from under the floor to be pumped outside.  This system prevents the three most common sump pump failures: mechanical failure, power interruption, and pump capacity.

 Parts of the basement floor were broken up and replaced as part of installing that system. The system drains to a sump pump system, with Michael choosing to add a battery back-up pump to ensure the basement stays dry during power outages. Lastly, Wyatt suggested a liner to encapsulate the crawlspace and seal the dirt off from the rest of the house. The liner provided a barrier between the damp earth and the dry indoor air. We used the same CleanSpace product on the brick walls to prevent moisture from seeping through the brick.

After- Once all the systems are installed, you can see the possibilities for next steps in refinishing the basement.

Michael had Wyatt out several times to make sure he understood the project and because he didn’t want any of the issues that he had with his previous contractor to be a problem again. It’s one of the reasons Thrasher is so devoted to redefining the contractor – customer experience. We see a world where the contractor does it right the first time, uses the highest quality materials, trains their employees to deliver the best customer experience, and offers a permanent solution that they stand behind. We believe the bar for an exceptional customer experience can be set so high that mediocrity in the contracting world is simply no longer accepted or tolerated.

Michael then moved forward with the project, and the Thrasher team was able to complete all the work in a few days. Michael and his mother gave rave reviews of the project and are grateful to have a 25-year warranty on all of the work performed. 

When you’re ready to move forward with a fix-it project in your home, we hope that you will give us the opportunity to have a free inspection. With more than 45 years fixing foundations, leveling concrete and waterproofing basements, we’ve seen it all. Give us a call to schedule an appointment or fill out the form, here.

Mark and Linda S. had been doing home improvements and started to notice cracks appear on the drywall, the new front door was also sticking. So, they decided that it was time to call an expert in foundation repair in Omaha.

We sent System Design Specialist Eric Wulf out and he evaluated the home. He was able to identify that the soil under the footing had washed out and caused the home to settle, causing the cracks to form.

We removed sections of the concrete slab in the garage and front door stoop slab. We then installed push piers 43’-46’ feet deep to load the bearing strata, 1.5 to 2 times the weight of the home was put on the piers to push them that deep. We were also able to lift the foot door to stop it from sticking. The home is now completely stabilized. 

This "before" photo shows how gutters can get clogged if they aren't protected properly. An Easy fix to this problem is installing RainDrop gutter guards! The "after" photo displays RainDrop that has been installed. RainDrop can fit new or existing gutters and are extremely durable. 

We installed carbon armor to help support these foundation walls!