Southeast Texas heat getting worse and causing home foundation problems

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A combination of heat and little rain is impacting families around southeast Texas.

With some homeowners having patches of dry grass, experts say the drought could impact the foundation of your home.

People are dealing with dry grass and clay soil and are unsure what to do if the problem worsens.

Robert Jackson said the garden in his backyard is barely surviving.

"My grass ain't gonna grow if it's hot," Jackson said. "My okra ain't gonna grow either. It's gonna lay down, but I have to water it twice a day."

The summer drought has him putting in more work to keep his grass and vegetables wet.

ABC13's weather team said southeast Texas hasn't had a drought this bad in the summertime since 2011, which is the worst drought on record for Texas.

The average amount of rain for June is about 6 inches, according to Chief Meteorologist Travis Herzog. He said the area saw less than an inch of rain last month, making it the city's third driest June on record.

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The drought could soon cause problems for the foundations of people's homes.

"Oh the foundation, you can see it cracked," Jackson said. "That's from last year when it was hot. A lot of houses around here, they are getting their foundation worked on. They are getting their houses jacked up and fixed because the ground shifted from being hot, and it's sinking down into the ground."

"Clay as a soil when it doesn't receive moisture, it tends to dry out, it tends to shrink," said Ronald Kaiser, a professor at Texas A&M University. "In that shrinking, that can cause foundation problems around homes."

Kaiser gives advice on how to get through the drought.

"If the drought persists and it gets worse, is to apply that minimum amount of water to your landscape to keep it in a survival mode," Kaiser said. "It may turn brown, it may look ugly, but you want to at least ensure the plants are going to survive and thrive when we get sufficient water."