OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Drought conditions – pulling and cracking soil across the Kansas City metro – got some extra attention in Overland Park on Friday.

It was the start of the JOCO Home + Remodeling Show with foundation repair specialists talking about how they are working overtime. Repairmen say conditions have been bad for about the past six months. Clay soils are impacted by moisture – shrinking when we don’t get rain.

“Our phones are going crazy,” Rick Lacombe, certified field inspector with Foundation Recovery Systems, said.

“I can tell you that probably a month ago a lot of these cracks were hairline. And now with this drought really kicking in, some of them you can put your finger through,” Lacombe said.

When clay shrinks in drought it can create empty spaces below your foundation. Your home can sink and have issues – including cracks above windows and doorways.

Even the common advice of watering your foundation probably won’t help, Lacombe said.

“That’s really a myth. I mean, if you think about it, if you’re going to go out and every other day water your foundation – first of all, the soil shrinks away from the foundation so a lot of people end up with water in their basement because of their garden hose, okay?” Lacombe said.

“But if you think about it – a basement is anywhere from 7-to-9-to-10 foot deep. So do you really think that that water is going to work down to the bottom of that foundation because that’s where your footing is at,” Lacombe said.

When the rain comes back – it’s a double-edged sword. The cracks in the soil can actually guide water toward your basement.