TerraFirma
Earthquake Retrofitting in PORTLAND, OR

I had two estimates. TerraFirma was much cheaper but more than that they moved fast, were clean, professional. The inspector gave them high marks and I have a house that is earthquake secure to magnitude 8 give ir take.

We purchased a home in 2020 that had undisclosed water infiltration in the basement that resulted in all basement finishes needing to be demolished to clean up the water and remove mold. TerrFirma was the only company who was able to diagnose and address both water infiltration caused by poor exterior yard grading and drainage and also the interior water proofing needed. They also repaired and stabilized a very large structural crack in our basement foundation wall. In addition to doing all this work they were also able to fit earthquake retrofitting into the project while here when asked (after they showed up to start the project). The estimator, Bridget was very meticulous in her bid and made comparing estimates easy. Her experitse, flexibility, follow through and communication were superb. Working with Spencer Hunt, the project foreman, was so stress free. He was able to accommodate our request for earthquake retrofitting even though TerraFirma was extremely busy. He was excellent at explaining everything the crew was doing. He checked in with us through every step of the process to make sure we were educated about and happy with the work. We are so happy we used TerraFirma and would recommend them to anyone who needs drainage, foundation, concrete, earthquake and waterproofing work done in the future!

Everyone, from the job estimator and office staff to that guys that repaired my foundation/driveway and installed the earthquake mitigation system, were very professional and courteous. Very happy with the final result!

No clue if the job ws done technically perfect or not. Hopefully, I will never know (no earthquacks). they kept me well informed, were prompt, polite and left no mess.

When we first bought our 1900s fixer upper, we had no idea what lurked behind the walls of the illegal basement apartment. Once we opened up the space we were in for quite the surprise. All the wooden post holding up the main beam of the house were rotted through at the base. You could stick a pencil through the old, soft wood. Working with TerraFirma to fix the issue was an easy choice. Eric came out to assess our problem. He was friendly and professional as he walked me through the process that was needed to fix our foundation. It wasn't going to be cheap. Don't expect this kind of work to be inexpensive (especially on older homes). We needed concrete to be cut, 2ft cubic footers poured, and six shiny new steel posts. (And while they were coming out anyway, we had them do seismic retrofitting too). There's all kinds of math and engineering that goes into determining what's needed to structurally support a home. TerraFirma handles it all. And they are experienced enough to know what it's going to cost. One of the best parts of working with them (besides the friendly employees and professional workers) is that the price they quote you is going to be the price. Full stop. There are no unexpected add ons at the end. I can sleep well at night knowing TerraFirma's work is holding up our home. A few months later when the rains started in earnest and our basement flooded (an issue we guessed had been going on for a while, hidden by those illegal apartment walls and leading to the rotting of the old wood posts) we knew who to call. Eric came out again to look at options for a sump pump system and even worked on adjusting those plans (while he was on winter vacation with his family!!) when we discovered that a third wall was seeping water and we needed a much larger amount of fixing than originally thought. We no longer have to worry during downpours. While our old fixer upper still needs a lot of work and love, we know that we are (literally) starting from a strong, solid foundation thanks to TerraFirma.

Terra Firma seismically reinforced my home to resist earthquake forces that could cause its wood frame to slide off its concrete foundation. Within about 5 hours, a Terra Firma crew of three bolted steel plates to the perimeter of my home, connected the perimeter stud walls to the concrete foundation walls. The installation was performed professionally, primarily on the exterior, with only only 6 of the 37 plates installed in an interior space where the of the foundation wall was several feet below grade, making exterior installation difficult, if not impossible. Terra Firma's plumber also installed a vibration activated gas supply shut off valve to my gas meter. I'm very pleased with the work and am hopeful that my home will remain habitable after an earthquake.

TerraFirma did a great job with the earthquake update on our home. They were friendly and performed the work in the time expected and at the agreed cost.

Seth came out today to check under my house to give an assessment on ways I can improve my foundation for earthquake protection. He was awesome. He was on time and very personable. He explained things (with pictures) very clearly and answered all my questions. I was very impressed. 🙂

I can't praise Terra Firma enough for their superb service throughout the process of having an earthquake retrofit done on my house!! Design specialist James Kershaw did a thorough assessment and explanation of the recommended work. Scheduler Jonah promptly contacted me with the work dates and coordinated with the plumber for related work. My OUTSTANDING team of workers with Jonathan (foreman), Nathan, Rom, Matt and Daniel worked tirelessly and efficiently and with cheerful and respectful attitudes. They exercised great care in protecting my home and in cleaning up at the end of the job. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this company for their superb, specialized services!!

Seth visited our home to give us a quote on seismic retrofitting. He was on time (and made sure to call when he was heading our way), did a thorough assessment of our home, and was an absolute pleasure to work with. During the assessment, Seth patiently answered all of my questions. It was clear that he was extremely knowledgeable about the available retrofitting options and what best suited our home. The final proposal was easy to understand; it clearly outlined the work to be done, why it needed to be done, and how much various options would cost. Overall, it was an excellent experience.

This company was very professional, clean, and careful doing our earthquake retrofit in our crawlspace. They even worked out a schedule with another company that took down and then replaced the air ducts that were in the way, minimizing the time we were without heat. I suppose the real test will be after an earthquake... but from what we can tell, I would recommend them for your project.

I worked in the real estate industry for 5+ years and would recommend TF to clients but never had the chance to use them personally until recently. They are simply the best around as measured by the people on their team, the proposal they made (I had 3 different contractors bid our basement work), the execution, the willingness to get it right, and the fact that in my instance I was able to complete Radon, Earthquake Retrofitting, and Basement Waterpoofing with the same outfit with great long term financing and a warranty in place. I highly recommend Terra Firma. Thanks guys!