Foundation repair in Merkel
Foundation help for homes in Merkel, Tye and the farm and ranch country along I-20 west of Abilene.
Merkel is a Taylor County city of 2,471 people (2020 census) about 17 miles west of Abilene, close to Interstate 20. It began around 1870 as Windmill Town and took the name Merkel in 1881, after S. M. Merkel, a German-born early settler. Merkel ISD serves Merkel and also the city of Tye, which had 1,176 residents in 2020 and is part of the Abilene metro area.
What's different about houses out here?
You'll find in-town houses on small lots, older farmhouses on piers, and newer homes on acreage. Larger properties often have long roof lines without gutters, and yards graded for driving rather than drainage. The Abilene soil series, first mapped in Taylor County, is common farm ground in this region. It has a clay subsoil and is well drained at the surface, but houses built on clay still feel it when a wet spring follows a dry year.
Who do you ask about permits?
Merkel and Tye are separate cities from Abilene, so Abilene's permit office doesn't cover them. Ask your contractor what's required and check with your own city hall. Homes outside any city limits fall under Taylor County.
What do Merkel and Tye homeowners usually call about?
- Brick houses that have dropped on one end
- Farmhouse floors that sag between piers
- Runoff problems on bigger lots
- Foundation checks before buying a rural place
Common questions
Will a contractor come out to Merkel or Tye?
Many Abilene-area contractors work the whole county. Call with your address and we'll connect you with one whose service area includes it.
Do Abilene's permit rules apply in Tye?
No. Tye and Merkel are their own cities. Ask the contractor and your city hall what's needed for your job.
Services in Merkel
- Slab foundation repairSupport and raise a section of concrete slab that has dropped, most often along an outside beam or a corner.
- Crawl space foundation repairRe-shim and add supports, reset sunken piers, and replace damaged sills and beams under pier-and-beam houses.
- Foundation piersPressed concrete, steel push and helical piers: how they differ and how to read a pier layout in a proposal.
- Foundation evaluation and crack repairFloor elevations, a read on which cracks are structural, and cosmetic crack repair once the movement is handled.
- Foundation drainageGutters, downspout extensions, regrading and drains that keep storm runoff from soaking the clay at the beam.
Nearby areas
Cracked brick, a sticking door or a floor that slopes?
Call and get connected with a foundation repair contractor who works around Abilene.