Here we are, Middle Georgia has not had any significant rain fall in several weeks. This led me to recall a time about 27 years ago, when a peer of mine was relocating and he placed his home on the market to sell. It had been a dry summer and during the selling process cracks appeared in the brick wall on the back side of the home. The reason given was that the soil had contracted and the foundation gave way under the brick veneer. Needless to say, the $20,000.00 repair job generated a negative cash flow upon closing of the home. With that event in mind, I just spent the last two hours watering the foundation of my two story brick home. While I was doing the watering, I recalled a passage in my recent reading of "The World is Flat," which clearly stated that if everyone is able to participate in Computer Software development by sharing their ideas, a better program will result. With that in mind, I would like to share this information which I acquired during a google search on "brick wall foundation maintenance."

Home Foundation Maintenance Tips
Watering your foundation

The primary objective of a foundation maintenance program should be to keep the soil under the house in a uniform and constant moisture condition. This is best achieved by keeping water from accumulating near the foundation to keep the soil from getting too wet (see below) and by adding moisture during periods of dry weather to keep the soil from getting too dry. Dry, cracked soil near the foundation is an indication of both lack of moisture and the presence of expansive soils. Water should be added to soil around the foundation before the soil drys, shrinks and cracks. This is best accomplished by a watering program during periods of dry weather.
A watering program can be accomplished with a sprinkler system or, especially during periods of extremely dry weather, soaker hoses. Remember, however, that soil that is too wet can be just as damaging as soil that is to dry, so monitor the soil so that it doesn’t get too wet and muddy or too dry and cracked or pulled away from the foundation. Other watering tips include watering at night to limit evaporation and watering more often rather than longer to reduce run-off and conserve water.