Wall straightening device and method of installation

#The present invention relates generally to an apparatus and method for straightening a basement wall which has been pushed in by hydrostatic pressure, and more particularly to a straightening apparatus and method which utilizes an anchoring device.

#A very common problem with many below ground basement walls is that water tends to build up on the outside of such basement walls which causes a very high hydrostatic pressure against the wall. If this pressure becomes significant, it causes the wall to be pushed into the basement to some extent. Commonly, a large horizontal crack will appear in the wall. Besides the obvious problem of the unsightly nature of the crack, it will also permit water into the basement and if the hydrostatic pressure continues to increase the wall could eventually collapse.

#The most common accepted methods and apparatus for straightening a basement wall are illustrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,189,891 and 4,970,835.

#Since the present invention is an improvement in the structure and methods of U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,189,891 and 4,970,835, the following drawings are extracted from these patent references and are appropriately modified to illustrate the principals of the present invention, thereby rendering it more easy to comprehend the improvements of the present invention.

#Other objects and advantages appear hereinafter in the following description and claims. The accompanying drawings show, for the purpose of exemplification, without limiting the invention or appended claims, certain practical embodiments of the present invention wherein:

#FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view of a basement wall which has been pushed in by hydrostatic pressure forces;

#Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding parts throughout the several views, FIG. 1 shows a wall 10 which has been pushed inwardly because of hydrostatic forces against the exterior thereof as indicated by the force arrows 11. A building 12, such as a house, rests on top of the basement wall 10 and a concrete slab 13 supports the bottom of the wall 10. The numeral 14 designates the earth around the basement wall 10. Attention is directed to the crack 15 in the wall 10 which can allow water from within the ground 14 to seep into the basement and which crack 15 also can become large enough due to hydrostatic forces 11 to cause the entire wall 10 to collapse within the basement.

#Referring now to FIG. 2 an anchoring structure 16 is shown. The anchoring structure includes a shaft or elongate rod member 17 which is externally threaded on the ends 18 and 19. An anchoring plate 20, comprised of a pair of plates 21 and 22 welded together, has an opening 23 disposed centrally thereof. A pair of flanges 24 are welded to the plate 22 and are spaced so as to allow a nut 25 to be received therein and held from rotating so that the rod member 17 can be threaded into the nut 25, thereby securing the anchoring plate structure 20 to the rod member 17. An elongated upright wall brace plate 26 is provided for the other end of the rod member 17 and includes a central vertical slot 27 for allowing the end 19 of the rod member 17 to extend therethrough. A washer 28 and an internally threaded nut structure 29 is provided for holding the wall plate 26 from moving outwardly with respect to the rod member 17 once the nut 29 is threadably received on the threads 19 of the rod member 17.

#In order to straighten the wall 10 shown in FIG. 1, a hole 30 is first dug into the earth 14 as is shown in FIG. 3. Then from inside of the basement 31, an opening must be formed through the crack 15 to allow the rod member 17 to be driven therethrough so that the end 18 extends into the hole 30. Normally this would require the use of a drill or chisel or the like in order to make an opening through the crack 15, but it is entirely possible that an opening large enough to receive the shaft 16 would already be present if the wall 10 had buckled to a large degree. Once the rod member 17 is driven inwardly to the position shown in FIG. 3, then the nut 25 is utilized by placing it between the flanges 24, aligning it with the threads 18 of the rod member 17 and then rotating the entire anchoring plate structure 20 so that the nut 25 is firmly secured onto the rod member 17. While this is a preferred embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that other anchoring structures could be used instead of the specific anchoring structure 20 shown, as will be explained in more detail hereinafter, and likewise fastening structures other than the threaded one shown by threads 18 and nut 25 can be utilized to secure such anchoring structure to the rod member 17 and still be within the inventive concept of this invention.