A house raised and held on box cribs during foundation work provided by Patterson Structural Shoring

House raising (house lifting, house jacking, barn jacking, building jacking) is the process of separating a building from its

foundation Foundation may refer to: * Foundation (nonprofit), a type of charitable organization ** Foundation (United States law), a type of charitable organization in the U.S. ** Private foundation, a charitable organization that, while serving a good cause ...

and temporarily raising it with hydraulic screw jacks. The process is the first step in

structure relocation A structure relocation is the process of moving a structure from one location to another. There are two main ways for a structure to be moved: disassembling and then reassembling it at the required destination, or transporting it whole. For the l ...

in which the building is moved to a different location. House raising may also be a part of a

renovation Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures. Renovations are typically done on either commercial or residential buildings. Additionally, renovation can refer to making something new, ...

to build a foundation under an existing house or make a house larger by building a new floor level creating a two-story house. Often employed in areas that are prone to flooding and storm damage, this process can be achieved through the use of either timber piles or helical piles. Once a house is raised and supported on cribbing, a new foundation can be constructed beneath it.Elevating Your House - Federal Emergency Management Agency
/ref> After

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

and

Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as ''Superstorm Sandy'') was an extremely destructive and strong Atlantic hurricane, as well as the largest Atlantic hurricane on record as measured by diameter, with tropical-storm-force winds spann ...

large numbers of houses in parts of Louisiana, New York and New Jersey were raised to avoid future flooding. Other house raising technologies include the ArrowLift structural lifting system which is an alternative to jacking and shoring methods. Utilizing an electromechanical jacking mechanism, the engineered system offers clear span maneuvering beneath lifted structures. Jacking and

shoring Shoring is the process of temporarily supporting a building, vessel, structure, or trench with shores (props) when in danger of collapse or during repairs or alterations. ''Shoring'' comes from ''shore'', a timber or metal prop. Shoring may be verti ...

, such as using

jack post A jack post (telepost, adjustable steel column) is a steel post used in the construction trades for temporary support of ceilings, walls and trenches (shoring). They are designed to be able to mechanically telescope to about twice their shortest ...

s, are used to hold a wooden building up during foundation and sill repairs. Little published information is available about building jacking methods. The skills are usually acquired through experience working for a building jacking or moving company.

References

External links

''Old-House Journal'' article on jacking pages 18-23.
Civil engineering Foundations (buildings and structures) {{civil-engineering-stub