External Crack! Structural Repair to Victorian Property

[dickens]

Help!

We have a victorian property and I have noticed the external brickwork above our bay window has moved. It seems that the lintel has moved and cracked and the brickwork above has shifted and caused a huge crack. Can anyone recommend someone to look at it ASAP please? Has anyone used Godden structural repairs before http://goddenstructural.com/ ?

I'd like to get some reviews on these guys or anyone else you have hired to do such work.

Thank you.

[ed_pete]

I have used Goddens before and was very pleased with the outcome. I'm need to contact them again as I too have a crack above my bay that I suspect is a result of the hot summer.

[cella]

We have a similar problem with ours and it's going through the insurance channel who deal with everybody concerned.

[Sue]

Same here.

Thousand pound excess and no doubt a hike in future premiums.

They've done all the investigating, and now a company called GeoBear is going to inject some stuff beneath the bay to stablise it, meanwhile I have massive cracks right through to my living room, through which the wind is blowing :(

https://www.geobear.co.uk/

After that it has to be rebuilt, and after that redecorated inside and outside.

I gather that the stabilising should be done quite quickly, however due to the very hot summer and the number of insurance claims, the rebuilding and redecorating may take longer.

Depending on what has caused the cracks, dickens, I wouldn't have thought it was much use just doing repairs to the cracks without addressing the cause as well? Or have I misunderstood your post?

[dickens]

Yes, you're right we need to find the cause as well. Godden came this morning and it's not subsidence thank god. We are going to go ahead and get them to fix it. I'll let you know how it goes.

[Jenny1]

A really useful guide in these circumstances is 'Has your House Got Cracks?'. The book was commissioned by the Institution of Civil Engineers and The Building Research Establishment and is a clear, straightforward guide for homeowners.

[Sue]

dickens Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Yes, you're right we need to find the cause as

> well. Godden came this morning and it's not

> subsidence thank god. We are going to go ahead and

> get them to fix it. I'll let you know how it goes.

What else could cause a building to move?

[rendelharris]

Sue Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> dickens Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > Yes, you're right we need to find the cause as

> > well. Godden came this morning and it's not

> > subsidence thank god. We are going to go ahead

> and

> > get them to fix it. I'll let you know how it

> goes.

>

>

> What else could cause a building to move?

Weathering, chemical reactions, moisture changes, "creep" (slight imbalances in original construction get worse over many years), plant roots - they can all cause cracks without subsidence!

[diable rouge]

Old age!...:)

[ths0105]

Hi Dickens,

Does your crack look anything like the attached? I would be interested in your experience - feel free to DM.

Thanks

[flocker spotter]

bays do not have the same foundation depth as the rest of the house so differential in movement is common. bay rebuilds with decent foundations are not unusual. Despite their reputation, the majority of ED victorian stock was built quickly and to a price by speculative carpetbagger developers ( sounds familiar) - and it is only when you get into the guts of the, you can see where corners were cut

[dickens]

The crack to our property was a lot worse but it turned out that the movement to our property was due to the hot summer we had and the fact that it's sat on clay soil. I can't believe that lovely hot summer cost me ?????? :-)

[cella]

Buildings insurance surely?

[dickens]

We didn't because our excess is quite high plus we needed it done ASAP. Godden are very busy. They fixed our problem last week otherwise it would've been after Christmas.

[Sue]

dickens Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

it

> turned out that the movement to our property was

> due to the hot summer we had and the fact that

> it's sat on clay soil.

That is subsidence then, no?

ETA: Why did Goddens originally tell you it wasn't?

[cella]

I'm really confused by this. Ours is being monitored over many months before thee insurance company devise the best method to deal with the subsidence/cracks. I appreciate you want it done quickly, I certainly can't wait to have the work done, but I really can't see how a company can do this sort of repair work so quickly without doing any of the monitoring etc. Can you say what the actual diagnosis was?

[Sue]

Mine was/is so bad they are doing it without monitoring.

They took soil samples to about three (possibly more, I can't remember) metres down and sent them off for analysis.

I'm very glad I was insured. Depending on how far the bay returns to its previous position after GeoBear have done their stuff, the whole thing may have to be rebuilt.

Then it will all need redecorating inside and outside.

ETA: Also, do not assume you are on clay.

GeoBear initially assumed my bay was on clay and that the subsidence was due to roots from a nearby street tree.

After they had drilled down and analysed the soil, they found it was on made up soil and something else, shale I think (I don't have their report to hand) and they didn't find clay till several metres down.

If the cause of the subsidence isn't properly identified and addressed, you may well have further problems.

It's not necessarily a case of just repairing cracks.