We’ve Installed 12,000+ Helical Piers. Here’s The Story Of The 1 That Failed.

When I Informed Our Helical Pier Supplier In New York,
They Flew Out To Amarillo To Fix The Problem!

We’ve installed over 12,000 helical piers from our manufacturer, IDEAL, over the years. And I can count how many times we’ve had a problem on one hand. In fact, all I need is one finger.

Here’s the story…

A few years ago, my crew and I were repairing a foundation in the Amarillo area with helical piers. As we were installing the first pier, the disc on the helix broke off. We’d installed over 10,000 IDEAL helical piers at that point with zero problems, so I was flabbergasted. This kind of thing just doesn’t happen with IDEAL helical piers. Thankfully, we caught it before we drove the pier into the ground, so we swapped it out for a good one we had on hand. (We’re always prepared for this type of thing.)

Later that day, I went back to our warehouse to see if this was a one-off problem or if other helical piers were damaged. After three hours of painstakingly inspecting all 50+ helical piers in our inventory, I found a handful that also had loose discs.

I called our IDEAL representative. I wanted to let him know there seemed to be some sort of manufacturing issue with a particular batch of helical piers. This is where most manufacturers would say, “Thanks for letting us know,” ship us some new product, and never think twice about the issue.

That’s not how IDEAL operates.

Within two days of my call, our IDEAL representative boarded a plane at Greater Rochester International Airport in New York… and took a two-stop, nine-hour flight to inspect the faulty piers in person.

Once our rep arrived, I re-inspected the helical piers with him. He quickly determined the problem: The defective piers somehow missed the welding process when being manufactured. Our rep immediately ordered new helical piers for us and had the faulty ones shipped back.

But that wasn’t all. Not by a long shot.

When our rep got back to the IDEAL office, he informed the company of the issue. IDEAL could have said, “Oh, well… a 0.001% defect rate is still great!” But they didn’t.

Instead, they COMPLETELY OVERHAULED their quality controls. Top to bottom. Inside-out. Backwards and forwards. Defective helical piers had never occurred at IDEAL… and the company going to make darn sure it never happened again.

To say IDEAL is committed to quality is the understatement of the millennia. This kind of dedication to perfection is why we choose to install their helical piers on our customers’ homes. It’s not just because of the quality of the product. It’s how intent the company is at making things better than right.

Bottom line: When I say we have better products, I’m not blowing smoke. We actively seek out the industry’s best manufacturers for ALL of our products—helical piers, slab-lifting foam … you name it. We look for manufacturers that make the best of the best products and will go to the ends of the earth to fix problems.

Or at the very least, fly from upstate New York to Amarillo, Texas.