House Leveling in Baton Rouge, LA
House leveling brings sagging, sloping floors back toward level by supporting the house on sound piers and correcting what has sunk. We level raised homes on pier and beam and settled slab homes across Baton Rouge, Mid City, Scotlandville, Baker, and Denham Springs.
- Free written inspection report
- Permits through the Permit & Inspection Division of the Department of Development
- Plain answers on repair or monitor
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Please call us at (225) 396-8627.
Signs a House Needs Leveling
You may notice a floor that slopes enough to roll a ball, doors that swing open or closed on their own, cabinets that pull away from the wall, cracks over doorways, or a bounce when you walk across a room. Under a raised home you may see piers leaning, shims that have slipped or crushed, or joists that sag between supports.
These problems usually build slowly. Louisiana's clay soils that swell when wet and shrink when dry move piers and footings a little each season, wood shims shrink and rot in a damp crawl space, and older homes were often set on shallow supports. Leveling corrects the damage and, done right, slows it from coming back.
What Leveling Involves
Readings
A full floor elevation map before any work.
New Piers
Added or replaced supports on solid footings.
Shims
Steel or composite shims instead of wood that rots.
Wood Repair
Rotted sills and sagging joists replaced or sistered.
Leveling a Raised Home
Most leveling work in Baton Rouge is on pier-and-beam houses. We crawl the whole space, map every pier, and take elevation readings across the floors. Then the house is lifted gradually with jacks, failed piers are replaced, new piers are added where spans are too long, and the beams are re-shimmed with materials that will not rot. Lifting slowly lets plaster and trim adjust, which reduces new cracks.
Older homes in Goodwood and the Garden District may have been out of level for decades. We discuss how far to go; returning an old house to dead level can crack finishes, so sometimes the best result is a floor that is flat and stable rather than perfect.
Leveling a Slab Home
A slab cannot be shimmed, so leveling it means installing piers under the low areas and lifting from them. That is the same work described on our foundation repair page. If cracks are what you noticed first, see foundation crack repair to understand which ones matter.
The Process
How Leveling Goes
Inspect
Crawl-space check and floor elevation map.
Plan
Written plan with pier, shim, and wood repairs priced.
Permit
Permit filed with the Permit & Inspection Division of the Department of Development when required.
Lift and Verify
Gradual lift, new supports, final readings.
Where We Level Homes
Moisture Under the House
A wet crawl space speeds up every problem leveling fixes. Standing water softens the soil under piers and rots wood shims and sills. While we are underneath, we look at drainage, vents, and vapor barriers and point out what is letting water in. With the city on bluffs above the Mississippi, with a levee system to the south and frequent heavy rain, keeping water away from the foundation is part of making the work last.
Permits and Contractor Rules
Structural work on a home in the city often needs a permit, which we file with the Permit & Inspection Division of the Department of Development. Louisiana also has rules for contractors: home improvement work on an existing home valued at $7,500 or more falls under LSLBC rules. Ask any company to show its standing with the Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors (LSLBC) before signing.
What to Expect on Schedule
Most raised-home leveling jobs take a few days to a week, depending on how many piers are replaced and how much wood needs repair. Larger houses or homes with extensive rot take longer. We give you the schedule in writing before work starts, along with any inspection the Permit & Inspection Division of the Department of Development requires. Work happens under the house, so daily life inside continues; you may hear jacks and hammering, and doors may need a small adjustment once the house settles onto its new supports. When we finish, we take a new set of elevation readings and walk you through the before and after numbers, so you can see exactly how much the floors moved and where. We also leave notes on what to watch for in the years ahead, such as a door that starts to stick again after a long dry summer, which can be an early sign that a pier needs attention.
Common Questions
Leveling Questions
How much does leveling cost?
It depends on the size of the house, how many piers need replacing or adding, and how much wood is rotted. A few re-shims cost much less than new piers throughout. Permits through the Permit & Inspection Division of the Department of Development are included in our written price.
How often does a raised house need releveling?
With solid footings and non-rotting shims, much less often than with old wood shims. Seasonal movement of clay soils that swell when wet and shrink when dry can still shift piers a little, so we suggest a check every few years.
Can I stay in the house during leveling?
Usually yes. Work happens underneath, and lifting is gradual. Doors may stick or swing differently for a few days as the house settles onto its new supports.
Get Started
Floors sloping or bouncing? Book a free foundation inspection or return to the home page.