Structural Repair Tacoma WA | Beams, Joists & Load Paths | Realty Repair Co.
Tacoma & Pierce County  ·  253-891-9622  ·  $350 Credited Diagnostic  ·  5-Year Structural Guarantee
Pierce County · GC #APCONL*825QO · Direct GC Work

Structural Repair
Tacoma WA

Sagging beams, failed floor joists, sill plate rot, compromised load paths. We perform a forensic root-cause diagnostic before we rebuild anything — so the repair is permanent, not a patch over a problem that will return.

  • Structural beam & post replacement — direct GC work
  • Floor joist sistering & replacement — crawl space & subfloor
  • Sill plate, rim joist & band joist repair
  • Load path assessment & correction
  • Subfloor & structural sheathing replacement
  • Lump-sum fixed pricing — diagnostic credited back in full
Start Here
$350
Forensic Structural Diagnostic
  • Full on-site structural assessment
  • Root cause identification
  • Written findings with photos
  • Lump-sum repair proposal
  • First hour on site included
Schedule Diagnostic →

$350 credited in full toward your repair when you move forward.

Warning Signs

Structural Problems
Don't Wait

Every one of these symptoms is a structural system communicating that something has failed or is actively failing. None of them resolve on their own. Delay increases repair scope — in most cases significantly.

⚠️

The cost of waiting: A sagging floor joist that costs $2,400 to sister today can cost $8,000–$14,000 to replace once the subfloor and finish flooring are compromised. Structural failures compound. Early diagnosis is always the cheaper outcome.

🚶

Floor Feels Soft or Spongy

You feel give when you walk across a specific area. Classic indicator of joist deflection, partial rot, or subfloor delamination.

↕️

Sagging or Uneven Floors

Marbles roll one direction. Furniture rocks on a flat surface. Visible slope across a room. Load path failure or beam sag.

🏃

Bouncy, Springy Subfloor

Floor bounces when you walk near center spans. Joists are under-sized, over-spanned, or have lost cross-bearing connections.

🚪

Doors Sticking or Not Latching

Interior doors that bind seasonally or won't latch year-round can indicate foundation settlement or structural frame movement.

↔️

Visible Cracks in Drywall

Diagonal cracks at window and door corners, or horizontal cracks in walls, indicate differential movement in the structural frame.

🪵

Visible Rot in Crawl Space

Dark discoloration on joists, soft spots when probed, white or black fungal growth on framing. Active rot requires immediate scope assessment.

💧

Musty Odor from Below

Persistent musty smell in the first floor — especially near exterior walls — is fungal activity in the crawl space framing. The source must be found and stopped.

📐

Beam Visible Sag or Twist

A carrying beam that is visibly bowed, twisted, or separating from its posts is a structural priority. It will not recover on its own.

Scope of Services

What We Repair —
Directly as GC

All structural work below is performed directly by APCON LLC under WA GC License #APCONL*825QO. No subcontractors on structural scope — this is our core trade.

Structural Beam Replacement

Sagging carrying beams, failed flush beams, undersized spans. We shore, remove, and replace with correctly sized engineered lumber or dimensional stock — with post bearing corrected.

  • Temporary shoring installation
  • Failed beam removal & disposal
  • Engineered or dimensional lumber replacement
  • Post bearing & footing verification
  • Joist hanger hardware re-installation

Floor Joist Sistering

The most efficient structural repair when joists are deflected but not fully compromised. A full-length sister bears the load while restoring the structural plane of your floor.

  • Full-length sister joist installation
  • Blocking and bridging restoration
  • Subfloor re-fastening as required
  • Bearing correction at sill and beam
  • Moisture barrier inspection concurrent

Floor Joist Replacement

When rot, pest damage, or physical failure has compromised the full joist depth, sistering is not sufficient. We replace fully — including bearing plate and hardware.

  • Full joist removal including rot excision
  • Treated lumber where moisture exposure exists
  • Sill plate assessment concurrent
  • Vapor barrier repair in affected area
  • Subfloor & finish floor re-integration

Sill Plate & Rim Joist Repair

Where the framing meets the foundation. Sill plate rot is among the most common structural failure in Tacoma's moisture climate — and is always repairable.

  • Full rot excision — no partial cuts
  • Pressure-treated sill plate installation
  • Rim/band joist replacement concurrent
  • Sill seal and anchor bolt restoration
  • Drainage source correction recommended

Post & Column Replacement

Point loads need full bearing columns. Rotten or failed posts transfer their failure to the beam above. We replace post and verify the footing beneath before re-loading.

  • Post bearing assessment before removal
  • Treated or composite post installation
  • Post base hardware — code compliant
  • Footing adequacy check concurrent
  • Temporary shoring during replacement

Subfloor & Structural Sheathing

Water damaged, delaminated, or rot-compromised subfloor. We replace only what is actually compromised — with correct adhesive, fastener pattern, and seams over bearing.

  • Full delamination mapping before scope
  • Tongue-and-groove subfloor replacement
  • Adhesive and screw fastening pattern
  • Underlayment re-integration
  • Finish floor transition management
Our Method

Forensic First,
Rebuild Second

We do not enter a repair job with pre-loaded assumptions about scope. Every structural failure has a root cause. Finding it before we open the floor is what separates a permanent repair from a recurring one.

1

Book a $350 Forensic Diagnostic

One call or form. We schedule within 3–5 business days for non-emergency structural issues, sooner for active failures. The $350 fee is credited 100% toward your repair.

2

Root Cause Assessment On-Site

We access crawl space, probe framing, check bearing conditions, trace moisture paths, and evaluate load transfer. We do not give you an estimate based on a 10-minute walkthrough.

3

Written Findings Delivered

You receive a documented report: what failed, why it failed, what conditions allowed it to fail, and a photo-supported written scope. This document is yours regardless of whether you hire us.

4

Lump-Sum Proposal — Fixed Price

One number. Not a range. Not an estimate. A fixed lump-sum that covers all labor and materials for permanent repair. You approved it before we start.

5

Permitted Repair Execution

We pull required permits, execute the structural repair, and document the completed work. Every repair is photograph-documented at each stage — for your records, your insurer, and your future buyer.

6

5-Year Written Guarantee Issued

After project completion you receive a written 5-year guarantee. Same structural problem from our repair — we return, we fix it, no charge. No paperwork. One call.

Ready to Diagnose?

$350
Forensic Structural Diagnostic · Credited Toward Repair
  • Full crawl space & structural access
  • Root cause identification
  • Written findings + photo documentation
  • Fixed lump-sum repair proposal
  • First hour on-site included
  • $350 credited 100% toward repair
Book Your Diagnostic → 📞 253-891-9622
✓ 5-Year Written Guarantee on All Structural Repairs
Fixed Once.
Fixed Right.
Fixed for Good.

Structural repairs fail when the root cause is not addressed. We have seen it — a joist sistered over a wet sill plate that continues to wick moisture, a beam replaced without correcting the drainage that saturated the original post. The repair looks correct. It isn't.

Our process requires that we identify and address the reason the structural failure occurred — the water source, the drainage failure, the inadequate bearing condition — before or concurrent with the structural rebuild. When both are corrected, the failure cannot return.

We back that standard with a written guarantee. If the same structural problem recurs from our repair within five years, we come back and make it right. No paperwork. No runaround. One call.

5-Year Written Guarantee — All Structural Repairs
Common Questions

Structural Repair
FAQ

Questions we hear most often from Tacoma homeowners, agents, and investors.

Soft, spongy floors in Tacoma homes are almost always caused by one of three conditions: dry rot in the subfloor or floor joists from chronic moisture intrusion through the crawl space, joist deflection from age or overloading, or sill plate failure where the framing meets the foundation. All three are diagnosable on-site and permanently repairable. Our $350 diagnostic tells you exactly which failure you have and the fixed cost to correct it.
Sistering means attaching a new, full-length joist directly alongside a damaged or deflected one. The new joist bears the load while the old one is supported. It is a permanent fix when the underlying moisture condition is corrected concurrent with the sistering. A sistered joist over an unresolved moisture source will eventually fail the same way. This is why we address both in every repair.
Joist sistering typically runs $1,800–$4,500 for a defined section. Full beam replacement ranges $4,500–$14,000 depending on span, access, shoring requirements, and concurrent scope. Sill plate work typically runs $2,200–$6,000 per wall run depending on length and concurrent joist damage. Our $350 diagnostic produces a fixed lump-sum before any work starts — no ranges, no surprises.
In most cases, yes. Crawl space joist work, sill plate repair, and beam replacement are typically accessed from below or from the exterior — no interior displacement required. We will tell you directly during the diagnostic if the scope requires any temporary displacement. We do not surprise people on job day.
Permit requirements depend on scope. Like-for-like repairs to existing structural members — sistering joists, replacing in-kind — typically do not require a permit in unincorporated Pierce County. Work that modifies member sizes, spans, or load configurations typically does. We identify permit requirements at the diagnostic stage and pull all required permits as part of your project — included in the lump-sum price.
Book the $350 diagnostic immediately. We assess the flagged conditions, produce written contractor documentation suitable for your agent and the seller's agent, and deliver a fixed lump-sum repair price. For pre-listing and inspection findings, we typically turn around a written scope within 24–48 hours of the diagnostic. Closing timelines are manageable if you move quickly.
Yes — the majority of our structural work is in Tacoma's 1910s–1960s housing stock. Craftsman-era framing uses different species, fastener patterns, and span tables than modern construction. We understand how these homes were built, where they fail, and how to repair them correctly without over-engineering the fix or destroying original material unnecessarily.

The Problem Doesn't
Fix Itself.

Every week a structural problem sits unaddressed, the repair scope grows. Book a $350 forensic diagnostic — you get the root cause identified, a written report, and a fixed price to solve it permanently.

253-891-9622