Isbon Engineering & Associates

He recommended I use a company that offers a new technology that injections foam to lift the slab instead of lifting the walls. I am waiting for that company to call me back. The cost of the evaluation was reasonable. He was very thorough and professional.

David did a very thorough inspection and said I did not need any peers. He saved me about 9,000 dollars.

We are very appreciative and so thankful for David's help and highly recommend him!

It went well. He was punctual and well informed. However, I will have to recontract him as I am still having issues.

David Isbon arrived exactly at the scheduled time. He proceeded to obtain elevation measurements at many points inside our home. He confirmed what we suspected - that the front half of our home had settled. We had three doors including the front door that were hard to shut, or that wouldn't remain closed. We also had two fairly minor cracks along the sheetrock boundaries on the walls. We had already obtained three estimates from foundation repair companies that are rated highly on Angie's List. I wanted the engineer's report to help us decide how to proceed. David agreed that there was settling of the foundation in several different places, but he recommended against having foundation repair work done. Instead, he recommended that we address the dry soil conditions by installing a drip irrigation system completely surrounding the perimeter of the house. He informed us that such systems can be run anytime, even with the watering restrictions we must observe in Rowlett. He further stated that the main culprit was a large Live Oak tree in our front yard, that is less than 30 feet from the house. Roots are running under the slab seeking water, drying the soil under the slab further, causing the slab to settle. As I type this, Rick's Tree Service from Rowlett is removing that tree now. This engineering report cost us $310, but David said that with the caliche clay soil we have, no type of foundation repair would last long, unless very large piers were drilled all the way down to solid bed rock. So, for now, we have decided to try to remedy the dry soil problem, instead of having foundation work done, which would have cost us an average of about $4,000. I am so very happy that I decided to call David Isbon before we had the foundation work performed. David also does home inspections. Although I hope I never need Isbon Engineering again, but if I do, I will glady hire them again!

He explained everything he did in terms we could understand.

He spent about 2 hours doing the complete analysis and we discussed during (I asked questions) and when he was done. A day later, as promised, he sent me the complete report with drawings. I would definitely recommend his services to check your foundation - he is an independent engineer and has no affiliation with any foundation companies.

David arrived promptly as scheduled to complete a structural engineering report on the status of my foundation. We took a quick look at the areas of concern that I had noticed and then I left David to complete his report. He quickly mapped out the house and completed a floor elevation survey, then went through it in detail with myself and my wife. Since David's report was received, I have been able to forward the details of the work needed to other companies via e-mail and get bids WITHOUT needing to take time off from work to meet with these contractors. I had already gotten several bids of varying opinions and highly recommend that anyone with concerns about their foundation seek a structural engineering report first!

I was very impressed with David. He was knowledgable, helpful, & professional. I highly recommend him as a structural engineer.

I had a couple of small cracks in the drywall of my living and larger ones in the garage. A few years ago a foundation company suggested piers in the garage area at an estimated cost of $17,000. That's right?..17K!! The "fox was in the hen house"!! I decided to bring in an "unbiased" third party to evaluate my home structure. Isbon Engineering & Associates had great reviews on Angie's list so I called and set an appointment. David Isbon came out and evaluated my home and determined that no foundation work was needed. He was extremely thorough. He spent about 1.5 hours taking elevations of my home and making a drawing. He was prompt, friendly and very courteous. He put me at ease when he said, "if this were my home, I wouldn't do anything to it". I consider the $310.00 money well spent. It helped me avoid the temptation of letting a foundation company talk me into something that didn't need to be done. I highly recommend this company to anyone who is unsure of their foundation issues.

To begin with, Mr. Isbon arrived an impressive 15 minutes earlier than promised. Considering the numerous cracks in our walls and doors that won't latch, we were braced for a report suggesting many thousands of dollars of foundation repairs. Much to our delight and relief, the recommended "fix" was much less aggressive. He was professional, efficient, explained the process of the recommended "fix" and answered all of our questions to our utmost satisfaction. I would hire and recommend Mr. Isbon for any structural engineering requirement.

Mr. Isbon came out and did an outside walk through inspection of the foundation and then came inside and took elevation measurements all throughout the house. Afterwards he gave me a verbal initial assessment of my foundation followed up by an official Engineering Report and elevation survey drawing. The report included recommendations for maintaining the foundation.

He was awesome. Isbon Engineering & Associates is a foundation structural engineer. Everybody was telling me that I needed the foundation work. I had to have the foundation work to one side of the house. He came over on the exact date. He gave me an awesome report. He is perfect. He and his wife worked together. She gave me the complete details over the phone. She was very busy. I had to wait three weeks before I could get an appointment. I was willing to wait. He came in and stayed all afternoon. He came in at 2 o'clock and left here at 5 or 6 o'clock. He went through my whole house and gathered complete foundation analysis. He sent me a report. Basically, he said that my foundation was fine. I had some issues that I needed to watch. I might need eventually about seven in the back. If anybody who is willing to do foundation, they should get their own structural engineer. It would be crazy not to. This guy saved me probably about over $10000 because all of these companies are telling me that I need all these stuff. The whole process with him was awesome. I would come back in two years to recheck my foundation. To analyze the foundation, he charges about $300. He gives me a complete report on the whole house. My house is a smaller house, so it costed me about $500. It was worth every penny I've spent.

We were in a bind. Right in the middle of a kitchen remodel we discovered that the floor wasn't level. Since we had no idea what the implications of that were and what might be done to fix it, we decided to halt construction and hire a structural engineer to examine the slab and advise us. We called numerous engineers, but everyone was booked out at least a month in advance. David, understanding our situation, offered to drop by late in the day after his last appointment. He was on time, patiently explained what the problems were and potential solutions and finished on time. We got his report, complete with structural drawing showing the changes in elevation, two business days later. I couldn't be more pleased. I would definitely use David again in the future.

David was very pleasant and thorough. He explained step by step what he was doing and his recommendations. After a contractor told me my problem could be fixed with $2900 worth of pier work, I contacted Isbon. I was told that my issue was minor(1" of slope), and that it probably could be corrected with soaker hoses and a careful watering regimen. I am taking his advice, and may have him come back and check it in 18 mos. or so. If you think you may have an issue, call him before calling a contractor.

I had some cracks in my walls and doors were sticking so I called Isbon Engineering out to inspect my foundation. David Isbon did an inspection of my property and took elevation measurements on my foundation. He drew up a diagram of my property that showed where the foundation was not level and identified my neighbor?s tree as the cause. He then went over the different options available to correct the problem. After some discussion we agreed that the best course of action was to install a root barrier between my foundation and my neighbor?s tree, and to use soaker hoses to water the foundation regularly. Then, if this did not resolve the problem within 6-8 months, piers could be installed. The next day, David Isbon emailed me his full report. The report showed where the foundation was not level, where the root barrier should be installed, and where the piers should be placed if needed. I?m really glad I called a structural engineer instead of a foundation repair company. I now feel confident that I know exactly what is going on with my foundation and I?m not at the mercy of a salesman trying to get me to make expensive repairs.

I made an appointment with David to come out and perform a structural evaluation of my home due to indications within the house of foundation issues (wall cracks, etc). He spent about an hour or so assessing the outside of the house as well as taking interior measurements. He also took the time to walk through the home with me so that I could show him examples of what had caused my concerns. In the end, he recommended that I remove a couple of trees that were too close to the house and indicated that no foundation repairs were required at this time. He also let me know of some alternative trees that were smaller and wouldn't require as much water and could be planted in place of the old trees. A couple of days after his visit I received an official CAD drawing of the house and the measurements he recorded. Working with David was a great experience and I would definitely recommend him to others.

The engineer was very professional, pleasant, and friendly. He looked all through the interior and the exterior of the house. I am not qualified to judge his competency, but it seemed to me that he really knows his stuff. We had a tight time constraint, and the engineer was running a little late due to work he had on other homes that day. As a result, we had to postpone, and he was very apologetic. He was willing to come the next day, a Saturday, even though he was completely booked, but he was very concerned that if any earlier job ran late, then he would be late to our home again. It was revealing how concerned he was about the prospect of being late twice. He obviously takes that very seriously, and he deserves credit for that. We ended up scheduling the appointment for another day, and he arrived right on schedule. The experience was very positive, and I would highly recommend Isbon.

Mr. Isbon took the time to explain the next steps we should take to stabilize our shifting house. He was professional, punctual, attentive, and helpful. I wish we had known of him before we ever had any work done on our foundation.

He was awesome!!!! One of the nicest people that we've had in our home in a long time. Incredibly professional, honest, thoughtful, and knowledgeable. He's definitely the way to go if you're worried about your foundation, rather than calling foundation repair companies out who will say that you need work, no matter what!

David was great to work with. He did a thorough inspection (pre foundation repair & post foundation repair) of the foundation and explained everything to me in great detail. He also explained that in our area (Carrollton) that the soil is not the best for houses and that it is certainly possible for more shifting to take place over the years. He also went over the watering schedule & I learned that I was doing my foundation watering incorrectly. Only quibble would be price. David is more than others, but when it comes to your home's foundation, I don't mind paying a little more for high quality work.

They did the service and gave us a feedback on thing that we needed to do. We've used them four years ago and we had a good experience with them. He's very thorough and sent a complete report. Our purpose in using him that he's not bias. He is not selling anything except his services with his knowledge. He would be kind to tell if you need some expensive kind of work done at your house. He is going to give cost effective ideas that are appropriate for the property that he's looking at.

Excellent. David is extremely professional and knowledgeable. We were immediately at ease with him. He told us there wasn't any severe structural damage at all. He gave my husband some advice on how to further strengthen those weak attic beams and said that our house was extremely level and not at risk for foundation issues. We were so pleased with his thoroughness and knowledge. We would definitely recommend David to anyone!

The inspection took about an hour and David was very informative and friendly. Some potential buyers of her house had questions since there were a few cracks in the sheet rock in the house. We were informed it did not need any piers and it was within the guidelines for foundations. We needed someone that did not have a stake in the outcome. Foundation companies make their money repairing your foundation and if you call them out you can bet they will tell you you need work. Davis is neutral person in this as he doesn't own a foundation company and will be honest and tell you either yes it does need some work or no it does not. In her case, she did not need any. This is something that potential buyers can see know in advance of purchasing a home. Thank you David for your prompt return of the papers. I would use Isbon engineering again and have already passed their name on to my realtor. She has passed their name on to one of her other customers.

I highly recommend that you get an independent engineering assessment done if you are planning on having foundation repairs performed. In our case David Isbon was actually the second study we had performed. The first study recommended so many piers both external and internal to the house, that the cost of the work merited a second opinion. I am very glad we took that step. Isbon's recommendations were much more reasonable both in cost and impact. With the first study we would have had to move out of the house and then replace all floor covers through out the house. I refer to the first study as the "pier happy study". I had both studies reviewed by a close friend who was one of the most respected commercial engineering geologists in North Texas. He referred to Isbon's report as the "real" engineering report. Isbon's recommendations also incorporated the impact of large trees on your foundation. With the installation of root barriers we expect to see a positive rehydration of the foundation of the next six to eighteen months.