FAQ's

Most jobs take one to two weeks - some longer, some shorter.  If we expect your project to be outside of the standard range, we will certainly let you know. 

Our typical project costs between 5 and 9 thousand dollars.  "Typical" is defined as a home of average size on a cast concrete foundation, either a crawl space or an unfinished basement, with no unusual structural issues.  The most common reason for a project to exceed that range is if the basement is finished and we have to remove and replace siding or interior wall coverings (sheetrock, paneling) to perform our work.  Other complicating factors include large size, concrete block or brick foundation, lack of foundation, foundation cracks, a steep site, many windows on the lower level, a home over three stories (including basement), or an especially tall cripple (pony) wall.

With few exceptions, NO.  Almost all of Western Washington's communities have followed Seattle's lead.  Seattle was part of the pilot Project Impact program, which created retrofitting standards and improved the permitting process making it easier and less expensive to secure a building permit for this work.  All this was done so that homeowners would have the work done under a permit, to ensure that building inspectors would inspect the work, to ensure that the proper elements are installed properly.  The advantages to you are numerous: disclosure implications and increased resale value should you sell your home, assurance that the work is done safely and properly, and eliminating the risk of being fined or having your job shut down.

While this work will make your house much less likely to suffer serious damage in an earthquake, if "the big one" is big enough, all bets are off.  Even if an earthquake damages your home, this work may make the difference between your family living in the home while repairs are performed, or living in a FEMA trailer. 

There are far too many variables for any engineer to predict what effect a particular magnitude of earthquake may have...  What are the soils like under your home?  Are they prone to liquefaction?  How near is the epicenter?  How deep is the quake?  What is the lateral acceleration?  We do know that retrofitting works.  The standards for methods and materials were derived from analysis of previous destructive earthquakes - what made the difference between houses that survived the quake and houses that didn't?  The results are proven to work, but the results are anecdotal rather than predictable.  See our "Does It Work?" page for a powerful example.

We will be using industrial tools to drill into your concrete foundation and drive anchors into those holes.  We will be using noisy pneumatic nailers powered by noisy air compressors.  We are often disturbing thick layers of ancient dust and creating fine, gritty concrete dust, which has a way of getting everywhere.  What we can promise is that we will work as efficiently as possible to minimize the duration of the job, and that we will take care to protect your home by using dust barriers, drop cloths, fans, vacuums, etc.  We clean up after, and often during, each work day.  Sometimes communication is the best protection - we will let you know when the dustiest parts of the job will occur so you can turn off your furnace and avoid blowing the dust around your house.  We will do our best to minimize the disruption.

You'll need to ask your insurance agent to be sure, but more and more we are asked to retrofit homes because it is required for earthquake coverage.  When we are done, you will have a signed off building permit, plans indicating the work that was done, and a Sound Seismic certificate stating that your home has been retrofitted to Project Impact standards or a structural engineer's specifications.  This satisfies insurance requirements.

While our remodeling crews limit their work to Seattle, Sound Seismic's territory encompasses a much larger area, including most of King and Snohomish Counties.  From Seattle North to Everett, Northwest to Snohomish, East to Woodinville and Issaquah, Southeast to Maple Valley, and South to Kent and Des Moines. 

Yes.  Let us know if you have plans to enlarge or alter your home.  We can ask our engineer to accomodate the addition when specifying the elements we will incorporate into your retrofit.  An additional floor may require more and larger bolts, and may require us to treat a larger percentage of the perimeter wall.  This will involve a modest increase in cost, but is much less onerous than re-doing our work at a later date.

We can also design the retrofit around future windows or doors in the basement.  Just let us know where you imagine them, and we will see if we can achieve the required engineering values without treating that area.

When we began retrofitting, all methods required a cast concrete foundation to bolt to.  Back then, a block foundation would require substantial reinforcement to allow us to secure a house to it. 

The past few years have produced new hardware and techniques that allow us to secure homes to block foundations for about the same cost as for homes on concrete foundations.  Ask our sales person to explain this technology!

First of all, good job planning the retrofit first.  You'd be surprised how many people call and say they just finished their basement and now they want to retrofit.  We can do it, but it's less expensive if the retrofit is performed first.

Things to consider include:

• Wiring - do you want any wiring in the exterior wall?  It may need to be installed before we install our shear panels.
• Plumbing - Are your water pipes galvanized steel?  If so, it might make sense to repipe before the retrofit.  Furthermore, having a plan for the future of the basement can help locate plumbing.
• Windows - Bedrooms require windows that meet special egress requirements for fire safety.  We need to know where any future windows will be located so we can work around those areas.

Codes have already changed.  The bolts we use now are different than those allowed in the past.  Extra framing anchors are specified by today's requirements.  In addition, building departments are allowing certain new methods to be used on a case-by-case basis. 

Make sure your retrofitter specializes in this work.  Just because a contractor took the course several years ago, just because he retrofitted a home in 2005, doesn't mean they are up on today's requirements.

If you are handy and not afraid of a little (dirty) hard work, we support your decision to perform your own retrofit.  But be careful about just installing some brackets or straps that you find at Home Depot.  Sometimes hardware stores include items in their retrofitting displays that do not meet code. 

If you intend to do your own work, take a class, get information from your building department, draw a plan, consult an engineer if required, secure a permit, and make sure you use the right tools, techniques, methods and products.  Good luck!