New homes with a basement
Block walls carry the house and hold back the soil around a basement, and laying them course by course lets us work in window openings and follow a sloped lot.
Foundation block wall installation in Little Rock AR - a wall that sits on firm ground
Building a house or addition and need block walls under it? We set them on solid ground and brace them before the dirt goes back.
- Fully licensed and insured.
- Free estimates at your property.
- Expect a reply within 1 business day.
What a block foundation wall does for your house
Foundation block wall installation in Little Rock means building the concrete block walls your house sits on, set on a footing and built to hold back the soil packed against them. At Capstone Little Rock Masonry & Concrete, we build them for new homes, additions and garages.
The price mostly comes down to how long and how tall the walls run, how much soft ground has to come out before the footing goes in, and whether the design calls for steel or waterproofing. The schedule turns on the weather, the dig and when your framer can get the floor on. The estimate is where that gets pinned down for your lot, because I look at it in person and write up what we'd do and why.
The owner on every job
I come out to look at each job and work it alongside the crew, so the person who wrote up your plan is the one watching the footing and first course go in.
Explained until it makes sense
I'd rather walk you through the footing, the steel and the drainage twice than have you sign off on a foundation you don't understand, so ask as often as you need.
Learned on Little Rock crews
I carried block for my dad long before laying a course, then worked crews around Little Rock until starting this business in 2021, so I know how houses here are built.
How we build a block foundation wall
It starts below the footing. We dig down to firm soil that hasn't been disturbed, and where the ground is soft we take that layer out and replace it with compacted soil, gravel or concrete, because a wall is only as steady as what's under it.
Arkansas has a lot of expansive clay, ground that swells when it's wet and shrinks as it dries, and houses can crack apart when a build doesn't plan for it. We run into that clay in Little Rock and the cities around it across central Arkansas, so we size up the soil before the plan is set, not after the block is up.
Then the block goes up course by course, and we hold off on backfill until the wall is braced or your floor framing is on, because a wall built to be held at the top can crack or even fail if the dirt goes in first. If you plan to finish the basement, we bring up keeping it dry at the start, since whatever goes on the outside of the wall has to go on before the dirt does. Once the house is up, the same footing work carries into outdoor kitchen masonry on the patio and walkway construction out to the drive.
Where block foundation walls get used
Houses over a crawlspace
A short block wall over a crawlspace holds the floor up off damp ground and leaves room to get under the house later for plumbing, wiring or repairs.
Room additions on older houses
An addition needs its own foundation that meets the old one, so we set the new footing and block to the height and line of the house you already have.
Garages and workshops
A detached garage or shop can sit on a block stem wall, a short foundation wall on a footing, which lifts the framing off the ground so rainwater doesn't soak into it.
Get a written plan for your foundation wall
Send the form and we'll reply within one business day to set a time. I'll come out, look at the site in person and write up what we'd do and why, free and with no obligation.
Your property address
With the address we can check which office covers your lot before I come out, so the first visit can stay on the ground and the wall.
Inside city limits or not
Tell us whether the lot sits inside Little Rock city limits, because that decides which office we check with about a permit for the wall.
Your plans for the basement
If the basement will be finished as living space, say so up front, because that changes how we plan to keep the wall dry, and it's far easier before the block goes up.
Block, brick and concrete examples
These examples show block foundations, brick and concrete finishes and layouts you might want to point at and talk through with us.
Questions about block foundation walls
These are the questions that come up before a block foundation goes in around Little Rock, answered the way I'd answer them on site.
Does a concrete block foundation wall need steel reinforcement?
Not always, but a wall holding back a lot of soil may need it. Block foundation walls can be built without reinforcing steel, and the heavier the backfill against the wall, the more that changes. When we look at your plans, we'll go over how much soil will sit against each wall and whether the design calls for steel.
Does my basement need waterproofing or is dampproofing enough?
Plan on waterproofing if the basement will be living space. One trade field guide calls for it then, and where soil drains slowly, the wall sits below the water table or drainage is unreliable. It's usually elastic, so it can bridge small cracks. One waterproofing maker suggests learning how your water table shifts through the year before choosing a system, so ask how we'd check it.
What should go back against a new foundation wall as backfill?
The best backfill is free-draining granular fill, like gravel, with no expansive clay in it. Water needs a way to get away from the wall, and heavy clay that drains poorly lets water pressure build up against the block. Ask what fill is going in, because the answer tells you how well your foundation will shed water.
Do I need a permit for a foundation wall in Little Rock?
Inside city limits, building permits come from the City of Little Rock's Building Permit Desk, which you can reach at (501) 371-4832 or Permits@littlerock.gov. The city no longer handles permits or planning outside its limits, so lots past the line aren't handled by the city. Before work starts we check with the office that covers your address, and when a permit is needed we apply for it.
What license should a foundation contractor have in Arkansas?
Look for a state home improvement license that lists the foundation specialty, which covers foundation construction and stabilization. A Limited license covers residential projects under $50,000 in labor and material, and an Unlimited license covers any size, so check that the license fits the size of your job. We're fully licensed and insured, and you can ask to see it when I come out.
Masonry work that goes with a new foundation
Call before the footing gets dug
Soil questions are easiest to settle before the excavator leaves, so call (501) 274-1083, email or send the form while your plans are still on paper.