Is this subsidence?

[Matt42]

Hi,

What was just a ridge in our front room has now turned into a long crack. I have checked outside and there appears to be no exact crack the other side on the render but there are other long spider cracks.

The house is 90 years old. I have been told that houses move but this crack looks quite angry. Should I be worried?

//media.diynot.com/149000_148582_88026_26041263_thumb.jpg

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• Matt42
• 11 Jan 2015
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• 11 Jan 2015
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• 11 Jan 2015
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• 11 Jan 2015
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[geraldthehamster]

I notice that someone has replaced the proper window with one made from plastic - it could be that the brickwork above is no longer properly supported.

Cheers
Richard

 

[Matt42]

Thanks. We have been in here 8 years though and what was just a ridge previously under the paint/wallpaperI think has now turned into a crack. The crack runs wall to wall though and not just above the window although it looks worse in the middle of the room for sure. The house is on a slight hill, not subsidence then? What should I do?

 

[ree]

What should you do? You should acknowledge respondents who supply suggestions and ask pertinent questions in answer to your original post - as in your "loft" post last september.

 

[Matt42]

Ree, I apologise if I have offended anyone, including you and Richard, who has contributed. If I hadn't acknowledged a contribution then it would have been an oversight rather than a deliberate intention.

 

[tony1851]

You think those cracks are angry?

I've got a crack in the ceiling coving of my 1920s front room which you can almost put a finger in.

Am I worried??

I'm scared stiff

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• tony1851
• 13 Jul 2013
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• tony1851
• 13 Jul 2013
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[oldbutnotdead]

Call that a crack? Ha!

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• oldbutnotdead
• 12 Jan 2015
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[jeds]

No you shouldn't be worried. Cracks in 90 year old plaster mean nothing. If you fancy it next time you decorate hack the offending plaster off and have a look at the structure underneath. And don't worry about tony - he's just in mood because his house is falling down.

 

[tony1851]

 

[geraldthehamster]

Ree, I apologise if I have offended anyone, including you and Richard, who has contributed. If I hadn't acknowledged a contribution then it would have been an oversight rather than a deliberate intention.

You haven't offended me in the slightest.

I tend to agree with what the non-tetchy replies have said - it doesn't look hugely serious.

Cheers
Richard

 

[Matt42]

Thanks for your reassurances. So it's not a crack going all the way through the breeze block then and is just a superficial plaster crack over laying the brick? We want to redecorate, do we just scrape back and smooth over the plaster ridge/crack with filler then?

Thanks

 

[ree]

Matt42, thank you, i'm sure that it was an oversight.

Why do you mention "breeze block" & "brick" in the same wall area?

The PVC frame in the swept head opening is set well back, so its possible that the original wood frame was not supporting the outer masonry skin? Which implies that there might be a lintel or brick arch.
When did you first notice the cracks? What did your Mortgage Survey Report?

Before decorating, why not remove the 1" x 5" pencil round piece of trim below the curtain rail and post a pic of what you expose - there's possibly a wood lintel behnd it? Cut the paint to cleanly release the trim.

The final pic shows render with a Tyrolean application over: render is, and was, often applied to cover defects.
There is also a high S&C plinth thats touching the ground. Cut back the last 50mm of plinth that touch the ground.
The plinth appears to be projecting (ledging) beyond the Tyrolean, if so, water could be penetrating behind the plinth.
Repairs have been made to the plinth - does the boundary wall butt up to the plinth?
Have you checked for adequate ventilation & the condition of the joist tails in that wall?

My two cents is that the cracking is, and was, thermal movement.
It might be worth your while to put a spirit level on your floors (both ways) at that wall?