Rotted Floor Joist, Beam and Sill Plate Repair in Wichita Falls, TX: Cut Out and Replaced From Underneath
Your rotted joists, girders and sill plates get cut out and replaced from underneath, each priced on its own line before any framing comes out.
- Free on-site inspection
- Joist, girder and sill plate priced apart
- Written itemized quote
Wichita Falls Foundation Works cuts out and replaces rotted joists, girders and sill plates under pier and beam houses across Wichita Falls and Wichita County. A soft spot under your floor rarely means the same thing as one that is simply out of level, and we settle which you have before anything gets priced. Our written itemized quote breaks the job into three lines, per joist, per girder and per foot of sill plate, and it says plainly what happens if the rot runs further than it looks once we are under the house. Call (940) 202-0406 and we'll get your free on-site inspection on the calendar.
What beam, joist and sill plate repair includes
Getting under the house comes first, because nobody prices rot from the yard. Pier and beam repair starts with the same walk, but this job means we find the ends of the joists, the girder and the sill plate, then set temporary jacking and cribbing to take the load off that run. We cut out the rot and replace it, and the load goes back down once new framing sits in place.
Our quote never blends the three. We price a joist per joist, a girder per beam, sill plate by the linear foot. A contingency line covers what nobody can see until the framing opens up. Termite treatment and the plumbing repair that let the water in are somebody else's bill.
What you get in writing before any framing is cut
Every job starts with a free on-site inspection and ends with a written itemized quote that prices the joist, the girder and the sill plate on separate lines. You get the warranty terms in writing, with the transfer terms spelled out before anyone signs. We quote your scheduling window up front, whether the house sits in Wichita Falls or elsewhere in Wichita County.
Signs the framing under the floor has gone
- soft or spongy spots underfoot in one part of a room
- a floor that gives near an outside wall, a bathroom or a laundry
- staining and crumbling wood where a joist meets the girder or the sill plate
- a sag running along one line rather than a general slope
- squeak and movement at a single bearing point
- a musty crawl space under the part of the floor that feels worst
A sagging floor is a support problem. Rot is a material problem. We have to get underneath to know which one you actually have.
What Wichita Falls homeowners get from Wichita Falls Foundation Works
Support or material is the first thing our estimator settles, because a re-shim under a sound joist and a replaced girder are different jobs at different prices. Water is almost always the reason the framing failed, whether that is a plumbing leak, a grading problem sending surface water under the house, or a crawl space with no barrier, and new lumber laid over the same source rots the same way the old lumber did. Texas does not license foundation repair contractors; ask any company for proof of general liability insurance, a written warranty with the transfer terms spelled out, and whether an engineer's report from a Texas professional engineer is included or billed separately. The City of Wichita Falls licenses and registers contractors and requires a permit before repair or alteration work starts; ask to see both.
Replacing a joist, a girder or a run of sill plate
One rotted joist. We reach it from below wherever the crawl space allows, cut it out, replace it and price it on its own line.
A girder or main beam. Jacking and cribbing take the load off that run first, and a beam costs more than a single joist because more of the floor depends on it.
Sill plate. We price it by the linear foot, because a few feet at one corner and a long run along a whole wall are not the same job.
So a long beam run sometimes meets pier and beam repair head on, new piers going in under it. Where the floor above is sound but out of level, floor leveling and shimming is the job you want. Where the moisture is still coming in, crawl space repair deals with the source, not the framing.
How the job runs, the crawl space look to the load back down
- Free on-site inspection: our estimator gets under the house to see the ends of the joists, the girder line and the sill plate, plus elevation readings above.
- Our written itemized quote: joists, girders and sill plate on separate lines in their own units, with a contingency line for rot that runs further than it looks.
- We set temporary jacking and cribbing to take the load off the run being replaced.
- We cut the rotted material out and replace it. Flooring above comes up only where a run cannot be reached from underneath, and we make that call on the quote before the day arrives.
- The load comes back down, we check elevations again, and the water source gets fixed or quoted so the new lumber does not sit on the same path as the old.
North Texas repair companies publish two to three days for pier and beam work, and this job sits inside that window.
Why the framing under an older Wichita Falls house takes on water
NOAA's 1991-2020 annual rainfall normal at Wichita Falls Municipal Airport is 27.89 inches, and it does not arrive evenly. May is the wettest month at 3.81 inches, July drops to 2.02, and that swing keeps clay moving under a house all year round.
Census Bureau tables say ZCTA 76309 holds 6,609 housing units with a median year built of 1959, old enough that plenty of original floor framing has sat through decades of that swing. Kamay and Tillman, the clays USDA soil surveys map most often under this county, are slow-permeability soils, and Hollister runs very slow with high runoff. Flat lots on any of them shed water rather than absorb it, and that runoff is usually where water under your floor starts.
How much does floor joist and beam repair cost in Wichita Falls?
A single rotted joist runs $350 to $1,000, a girder or main beam $1,500 to $5,000, and sill plate work about $100 to $200 per linear foot. A long beam run with new piers under it lands at $3,500 to $9,000, and a whole pier and beam job sits in the wider $2,000 to $12,000 band.
In practice, how many joists or beam runs are rotted, how far the rot travels, crawl space height, and whether flooring above must come up are what move your number. Call (940) 202-0406 and we'll turn this into one written figure after the free inspection.
| Work | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Beam, joist and sill plate repair (rot and structural replacement under a pier and beam floor) | $350 to $1,000 per rotted joist replaced | Girder or main beam $1,500 to $5,000 each, sill plate about $100 to $200 per linear foot, a long run with new piers $3,500 to $9,000. |
| Pier and beam repair (whole job) | $2,000 to $12,000 per job | A re-shim alone sits at the bottom of the band; new piers, beam work and drainage sit at the top. |
Swipe the table sideways to see the notes column.
Typical quotes for Wichita County. We price every job after the free inspection.
Joist and beam work across Wichita County
This work runs across Wichita County and the towns beyond it, serving Wichita Falls and Wichita County alike. Archer City, Nocona and Vernon sit on the same clay and much of the same older housing stock that puts floor framing at risk, and we quote the scheduling window around the drive instead of folding it into your price.
What happens when you call
The inspection
A free on-site inspection comes first. We come to the property, look at the work in person, measure, and check the things that change the price before quoting anything.
A written, itemized quote
Every line item goes on paper before any work starts: prep, materials, labor, cleanup and the scheduling window. No verbal numbers.
Warranty terms in the contract
Workmanship and material warranty terms come in writing and go in your contract so you can read them before you sign.
Scheduling you can plan around
You get a start window and a working-day estimate up front, and the crew tells you before anything changes.
Who this is not for
Wichita Falls Foundation Works handles foundation repair and the related work listed on this site. It does not take on unrelated trades; if your job is outside that scope, a specialist in that trade is the right call.
Beam and joist repair questions from Wichita Falls homeowners
How do I tell a rotted joist from a floor that is simply sagging?
A sagging floor is a support problem, and rot is a material problem. Rot shows up as soft or spongy spots underfoot, a musty crawl space, and crumbling wood where a joist meets the girder. If the floor is simply out of level, floor leveling and shimming is the job you want.
What does replacing a rotted joist or beam cost?
$350 to $1,000 per rotted joist replaced. A girder or main beam runs $1,500 to $5,000, and sill plate work costs about $100 to $200 per linear foot. A long run of beam with new piers under it runs $3,500 to $9,000.
Can one bad beam be replaced without touching the rest of the floor?
Usually, yes. Temporary jacking and cribbing take the load off that one run while we replace it, so the rest of the floor stays undisturbed. What decides the real scope is how far the rot travels once we can see the ends, which is why our quote carries a contingency line instead of a surprise later.
What caused the rot in the first place?
Water. A plumbing leak, a grading problem sending surface water under the house, or a crawl space with no barrier are the usual sources. Flat lots on the clays here shed water rather than absorb it, and unless we fix that source, new lumber goes the same way the old lumber did.
Does the flooring above have to come up?
Most of the work happens from underneath, wherever the crawl space allows it. Flooring comes up only where we cannot reach a run that way or the subfloor itself is gone, and we make that call on the quote, before the day we arrive.
What if it turns out to be termites rather than water?
Termite damage shows up once the floor is open, and it changes the job. The structural replacement is what we price; the treatment itself is a separate trade we do not do. The two quotes then run side by side, and ours says plainly which half it covers.
A soft spot in the floor stops being a mystery once somebody gets under the house with a light. Rot and settlement look similar from the living room and nothing alike from the crawl space, and guessing between them from upstairs wastes everybody's time. Call (940) 202-0406 and we'll come look from underneath, where the answer actually is. No rush, and no charge to ask.
Get a written quote
Call (940) 202-0406 or send the form. The next step is a free on-site inspection and a written quote with every line item before any work starts.
Call (940) 202-0406