Seismic Safety
Seismic Safety
We’ve retrofitted more homes in Southern California than any other Seismic Safety Contractor!
Weinstein offers FREE seismic safety inspections throughout Los Angeles, Long Beach, Santa Ana as well as Pasadena, Pomona, North Hollywood, Palmdale, Whittier, Fullerton, La Puente, Simi Valley, Costa Mesa, Downey, Ventura, Bell Gardens, Burbank, Norwalk, Lancaster, Inglewood, Orange, Irvine and nearby areas.
- Southern California has about 10,000 earthquakes each year, though most are so small that they are never felt.
- Of those, 15-20 are greater than magnitude 4.0.
- Large earthquakes create an aftershock sequence that can produce many additional earthquakes of all magnitudes for many months.
- Earthquakes can occur in any type of weather – cold, hot, rainy or dry. There is no such thing as “earthquake weather.” So earthquake preparedness should be 24/7 and seismic safety at the forefront of every homeowner in So Cal.
- The San Andreas Fault is not a single, continuous fault, but rather a fault zone consisting of many different segments. Its fault system is more than 800 miles long.
- Most earthquakes occur at depths of less than 50 miles below the Earth’s surface.
*(Borrowed from an article published about seismic safety and other natural disaster awareness tips in the Los Angeles area).
Weinstein Retrofitting Systems is a full service construction company founded on the principles of seismic safety.
While keeping an emergency kit and securing heavy furniture around the house to avoid injury and costly damages are highly effective and encouraged, seismic safety encompasses the protection of the house structure itself, the framing within which all of the collected valuables transform your house into something much more… your home.
Seismic safety for your house on a raised crawl space foundation is to tie the structural components of the home together. Weinstein Retrofitting Systems will help you achieve seismic safety by earthquake retrofitting the foundation of your home.
Seismic safety is an important part of Los Angeles culture, and for this reason, Weinstein Retrofitting Systems will perform a free crawl under your home, addressing any weaknesses found in the raised foundation portion as well as successfully addressing any of your seismic safety concerns.
Why must seismic safety include the examination of your crawl space? One of the best ways to imagine your home when it is not connected to the foundation is much like a glass of water sitting on top of a coffee table. It is easy to imagine that the glass will slip right off during an earthquake and shatter into pieces. This is almost exactly true for your home: when the mudsill of the home is not tied to the concrete foundation, it may slide off and whole sections of your home may collapse or become seriously damaged.
Seismic safety is not just about how prepared you are with a flashlight, but how prepared your home is to withstand the destructive force of the next Big One. By keeping the components of your home tied together, you have taken the best possible step to secure your belongings, to protect your loved ones, and to ensure that your experience in the next major earthquake is in the best interest of one of your largest investments… your home.
Contact us today to schedule your free seismic safety inspection!
When the Big One strikes and your home may be one of the several that become severely damaged, damages don’t excuse homeowners from making mortgage payments. If your home becomes damaged or completely destroyed, then as the old one becomes repaired, you are paying “twice the rent.”
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Ensure your seismic safety and keep your home from damaging. Give the home “inoculations” by retrofitting the home, as many older homes in the Greater Los Angeles area are susceptible to catching a sickness – a terrible disease – it’s called earthquake damage. Just like a child gets inoculations, your home can do the same.
Weinstein Retrofitting Systems is much like a seismic safety doctor to your home’s foundation.
Just like you would get a checkup once a year at the doctor’s office, our foundation specialists will provide your home with a seismic safety inspection. One of the best differences is that Weinstein Retrofitting Systems performs free seismic safety inspections for homeowners and will provide you with a free estimate as well. Weinstein specializes in analyzing the condition of your home’s foundation, the most crucial part of any structure in order to withstand an earthquake for optimal seismic safety. The foundation is the part of your home on which the home rests. Rest assured that earthquake retrofitting your home is the best possible step a homeowner can take to prepare for an earthquake here in Earthquake Country, protecting your loved ones from risk of injury and significantly increasing the resistance to earthquake damage to your home.
Weinstein Retrofitting Systems is a family owned company that you can trust, and will never suggest preparing for an earthquake in a way that is unnecessary to you, your family and your home. We have been operating in the LA area and Southern California for over 35 years, earning the reputation of being your neighborhood seismic safety expert. Our policy is to be completely honest with our neighbors!
Contact us today to schedule your free seismic safety inspection!
Because we are seismic safety experts!
Earthquake retrofitting your home or property is generally speaking not a do-it-yourself project. This is especially true when taking into account the very definition of retrofitting: adding parts or equipment that was nonexistent at the time of original construction. This has one important implication for homes in California with raised foundations, or “California basements”: the space provided to work in is virtually impossible to perform manual labor, particularly when it comes to foundation corrective work where foundation replacement may be needed, or when a part of the foundation needs to come apart without jeopardizing or compromising the stability of the structure.
Instructions for performing the retrofit are readily available online or through your local department of building and safety. Working in the small space without prior experience, however, may lead to setbacks, delays, mistakes, and perhaps even injuries. Weinstein Retrofitting Systems enforces the best safety practices. We conduct and partake in extensive safety training programs, and we are certified by OSHA. Our crew members are even certified by Red Cross. Due to our strict adherence to safety and time tested procedures, we have an incredible safety record not to mention we are fully licensed, bonded, and insured. Best of all, for ordinary house bolting or earthquake retrofitting, the work is usually completed in about two days.
When you choose Weinstein Retrofitting Systems, not only do you get the satisfaction of seismic safety and efficiency, but you also obtain a 25-year guarantee warranty on all labor and material.
This warranty is crucial as not only is the next major earthquake predicted to occur within the next decade, but it poses a serious question, which every prospective buyer should ask: “Will this company be around in 25 years from now?”
It is never possible to predict if a contractor will still be in business, but a great indicator rests in the records of the company’s history. You should always do your research on any contractor you wish to move forward with. Weinstein Retrofitting Systems is a subsidiary of Weinstein Construction Corporation, which has been in business since 1977. Weinstein has built over one million square feet of construction and maintains an A+ with the Better Business Bureau.
What sets Weinstein Retrofitting Systems apart from those who specialized in foundations after the Northridge earthquake? Aside from conducting over 65,000 free foundation inspections and successfully retrofitting over 7,000 homes, more than any other earthquake retrofitting company in Southern California, Weinstein Construction Corp. was appointed by FEMA in 1995 as the Los Angeles leader to administer grants to homeowners who applied and qualified to receive subsidized earthquake retrofitting and seismic safety work. Weinstein was chosen due to the extreme customer satisfaction already being provided to all of our clients as well as multiple successes across several construction projects. Mr. Weinstein personally began his career building homes from the foundation up.
Weinstein recognized the need for thousands of homes that would benefit from its services even after FEMA ended its grant program, and it therefore formed Weinstein Retrofitting Systems, promising to be one of the first operational businesses when the Big One strikes, honoring the 25-year guarantee warranty, and striving to provide you with an excellent construction experience today for seismic safety tomorrow!
Contact us today to schedule your free seismic safety inspection!
Rest Assured!
That in having your home earthquake retrofitted by Weinstein Retrofitting Systems, you will take the best step possible to protect yourself and your family!
- Earthquake Retrofitting or House Bolting:
A safe house is one on a firm foundation that can withstand the destructive motions of an earthquake. Weinstein Retrofitting Systems can securely fasten your home’s components together. Your home’s chances of withstanding the next earthquake will be greatly improved. - Foundation Joist Anchor:
Vertically attaches the floor joists to the foundation to resist uplifts. - Cripple Wall Bracing:
Braces cripple walls with plywood panels for extra strength. - Retrofit Anchors:
Literally bolts your home to its foundation. - Foundation Anchor:
Provides horizontal strapping to the foundation. Resists side-to-side movement. - T-Strap Tie:
Post to beam connectors to transfer uplift loads in pier systems. - Framing Anchors:
Post to pier connectors to transfter uplift loads in pier systems. - Waterproofing Protection:
Prevents penetration of water inside the foundation, reduces corrosion of metal earthquake retrofitting and seismic safety hardware. - Crawl Space Protection:
If your home has a dirt crawl space, moisture and insects from the earth literally eat the wood products supporting your home. Think about it: streams of moisture fills your crawl space constantly, evaporating and bringing with it foul smells, harmful radon gas, as well as nasty fungus. You and your loved ones inhale all this as you sleep, usually a mere two feet above your crawl space. Not only is this humid and musty environment perfect for insects that can eat your home from under you, it is also a major energy drain, making it much more expensive to heat or cool your home. By using the revolutionary “Clean Space System” we can create a barrier between your home and the soil. This will prevent the intrusion of mildew, radon gases and unwanted vermin under your home. - Drainage Systems:
We offer a wide array of drainage systems that will prevent serious water damage to your home and put water where it belongs. - Foundation Replacement & Foundation Repair:
-Temporary shoring is placed to support your home.
-The damaged foundation is removed.
-A new reinforced concrete foundation is poured in place. - Floor Leveling:
-Support beams and jacks are placed under your home.
-Slowly and carefully, the jacks are evenly raised and new piers are added.
-The new piers hold the adjustment in place and stabilize your floors. - Caissons:
-Support high concentrated loads, used to achieve structural support under your home.
-Caissons foundation work is the process of drilling 24”-36” round holes in the ground, all the way to the bedrock. Caissons are used to prevent houses from sinking, especially houses built on hillsides.
With many other products and services to offer, Weinstein Retrofitting Systems specializes in keeping your home safe against natural disasters here in Earthquake Country. The seismic safety of your home is our specialty.
Contact us today to schedule your free seismic safety inspection!
DON’T begin to run into other rooms unless if you are saving children. If your roof is not seismically braced, then it may collapse in on you at weak points throughout the house. Running during the shaking can be very dangerous. Seek cover immediately and try to stay where you are if it is safe to do so.
In considering your options for earthquake safety, if you are in bed while the shaking happens, DON’T get up from your bed because you may run risk of injury such as seriously harming your feet and legs, causing you to be disabled. Stay in bed and cover your face with a pillow doing your best to protect your face from any falling debris. DON’T place your bed under ceiling fans or next to windows and DON’T place heavy objects by your bed. Keep your bed area clear from any dangers, which is a positive step towards practicing earthquake safety.
Earthquake safety of the foundation is an integral part to keeping the rest of your home safe for earthquakes, as the foundation, whether it is the basement or crawl space, is considered to be the “weak story,” the weakest point of the home that suffers the most damage during an earthquake. DO perform the earthquake retrofitting suggestions provided here by Weinstein Retrofitting Systems.
Most homes in any given neighborhood in Los Angeles are designed similarly. If your home is earthquake retrofitted, then DO take a look around the neighborhood after you know it is safe to leave your home, and take notice to any differences between your home and a similarly designed home that had not been retrofitted. DO encourage your neighbors to give Weinstein Retrofitting Systems a call to schedule their free earthquake retrofitting and seismic safety inspection as well as your own!