Written By Bridget Stieb, Director of Marketing at LUX Foundation Solutions •
Reviewed by LUX’s foundation repair specialists serving Northern Virginia & Florida
The Problem: Exterior Wall Cracking from Foundation Settlement
Charles from the Florida Department of Transportation contacted LUX Foundation Solutions after exterior wall cracks appeared on one of their single-story commercial property in Jacksonville, FL. The cracking was visible enough that it needed a professional assessment before it got any worse.
Our team inspected the building and confirmed what the cracks were pointing to. The soil beneath the foundation had shifted, causing measurable settlement and observed cracking in the foundation walls of the CMU structure. In Northeast Florida, sandy soil compresses over time due to soil settlement, and once it loses its load-bearing capacity under a commercial footing, the structure above starts to move with it.
Without transferring the load to stable soil at depth, the cracking does not stop on its own.
Our Solution: Push Pier Installation for Commercial Foundation Repair
To stop the settlement and stabilize the commercial foundation, LUX installed an engineered push pier system beneath the foundation. Push piers are the right solution for this type of problem because they bypass the unstable surface soil entirely and transfer the building’s load down to stable bearing strata at depth, where it should have been supported from the start.
Here is how the repair was completed:
Step 1: Excavation at Each Pier Location
The team excavated at each of the 15 pier locations along the affected foundation wall, exposing the footings. In Jacksonville, we often find that the top layer of soil looks stable at grade but becomes increasingly loose or saturated as you dig deeper, which is exactly why we excavate to fully expose the footing before placing any hardware. Rushing this step leads to bracket misalignment and compromised load transfer.
Step 2: Pier Installation and Load Transfer
A steel bracket was positioned against the exposed footing at each of the 15 locations and secured in place per the engineering plan. Each pier shaft was driven to a minimum of 8 feet below grade, or deeper until reaching the verification load of 33,100 lbs, confirming the pier had reached stable bearing strata. Eight piers were installed along the front wall spanning roughly 50 feet, with the remaining seven piers along the adjoining wall.
Once all 15 piers were in place, the foundation load was transferred from the unstable soil onto the pier system. LUX attempted to lift the structure as much as possible to correct the settlement, with stabilization as the primary goal.
Step 3: Backfill and Site Restoration
Once all 15 piers were installed and the load transfer was complete, each excavation location was carefully backfilled and compacted. The site was cleaned and restored, leaving the commercial property ready for normal operations with no visible disruption to the surrounding area.
The Result: A Stabilized Commercial Foundation in Jacksonville, FL
Before the repair, foundation settlement had been pushing through to the exterior walls of the Florida DOT building, showing up as visible cracking that raised structural concerns. After LUX installed 15 engineered push piers, the foundation load was transferred off the failing soil and onto stable bearing strata at depth, stopping the settlement that had been driving the damage.
The results:
✅Exterior wall cracking caused by foundation settlement has been stabilized; the building is no longer moving in the treated area.
✅The foundation load is now carried by stable bearing soil at depth, not the loose surface soil that had been shifting beneath the footing.
✅The commercial foundation passed engineering inspection with full documentation, and County permits on record.
✅The property was returned to normal operations the same day the work was completed, with no extended downtime for the facility.
For commercial and residential owners, foundation settlement does not fix itself, and it does not get easier to deal with while you decide what to do. The longer a settling foundation goes unaddressed, the more of the structure gets involved and the more disruptive the eventual repair becomes. Catching it at the wall crack stage, before it reaches interior components, is always the better outcome.
Learn more about our commercial foundation repair and push pier installation services across Jacksonville and Northeast Florida.
Get a Free Assessment to Fix Foundation Crack
If you are seeing exterior wall cracks on your commercial or residential property, that is your signal to get it looked at. Wall cracks from foundation settlement do not stay the same size, and the repair gets more involved the longer it sits.
LUX Foundation Solutions provides engineered push pier installation and complete commercial foundation repair across Northern Florida communities, backed by licensed engineering and county-permitted installations.
Contact us today at 904-231-9926 for a free foundation assessment.
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About the Author
Bridget Stieb
Bridget is the Director of Marketing at Lux Foundation Solutions, bringing firsthand knowledge of the foundation repair, basement waterproofing, crawl space repair, concrete repair, and seawall needs of homeowners across Northern Virginia, the Shenandoah Valley, North Central Virginia, West Virginia, and Florida. She works closely with structural repair specialists to translate real-world inspection and repair data into homeowner guidance on foundation, basement, crawl space, and concrete issues. With a deep understanding of local homeowner concerns in both regions, she is committed to delivering clear, trustworthy content that helps families protect their homes. When she is not working on a marketing strategy, Bridget enjoys spending time with her family, friends and being outdoors.
