How Does Lack of Water Affect Structures in Northern California?

These photos are an example of an issue becoming more common these days. The soil around us is shrinking at an alarming rate, and how will our infrastructure survive? I’m surprised more of these photos haven’t been posted everywhere. No one seems to be talking about the buildings and homes settling.

At Brooks Painting we are getting calls weekly, and more of them since January this year, about concrete buildings cracking, new larger cracks showing up and repairs made a year ago coming back bigger. Drywall cracks and ceilings leaning. The problem is growing and what do we do? We need to make the repairs so if it does rain more damage won’t be created. But if the repairs just won’t last, how do we fix this growing problem? We wish we had the answer!

We have made repairs on drywall and stucco buildings this year. Then we are painting and the cracks are back before we are done with the project. We have had to take pictures of repairs to show we have made the corrections because clients are surprised the crack is back and larger than before. This is definitely an issue that is growing with no end in sight so far. What happens if it does start to rain? Who has repairs they didn’t fix or didn’t know about and now the roof leaks, walls leak, foundation leaks, mud slides and who knows what? It feels like a slippery slope we are on and I hope rain and a resolution comes soon!