joists help

[Sund123]

Hi guys I wonder if any of you can give me some info.
Im a plumber/gas engineer so know a bit about most trades but not on this topic.
I've seen a house that i think i might buy. Its over a 100 year old and needs absolutley gutting. I don't mind this. There is cracking along the side of the property externally and mirrors that on the inside.
I know due to a guy who was going to buy the house and had a £2000 survey done that wall ties are needed to be replaced. Fair enough. But this is what Im concerned about. The survey also mentioned the joists were originally laid the wrong way and would need correcting or sstrenghteningThe estimated cost would be around only £500. The guy with the survey said the ceilings would need to come down (the house has 3 floors) in order to do this.
I was thinking is there no way you could get some floorboards up and use some sort of metal bracket and screw them to the joists over certain distance?? Im sure I saw something simlar on' My House Is Falling Down ' with Sarah Beeney, or Im just imagining it and there isnt such a product out there to do that.
If not how would you go about doing something like this.
I know sometimes surveys maybe have to bring things up to justify the hefty price tag and the fact its stood there for 100 years already, but i feel if im going to spend many££££ doing it up I may as well get it structuraly sound first off.
Any advice welcome

 

[r896neo]

When joists run front to back of a house they provide no extra strengthening to a large gable which can sometimes belly out in the middle. You can in some cirumstances use long screw ties through the gable and into several joists to tie the gable to them.

It needs an engineers input really as there may be a lot of other strapping and tie-ing in required to the joists and other walls to stiffen the whole structure.

It is often terminated outside in a cross shaped metal band like this.

http://www.aynho.org.uk/sites/default/files/images/walk27.img_assist_custom-149x126.jpg

Are the cracks vertical or horizontal? They sound more concerning than anything else. Wall ties failure could be responsible for horizontal cracks but vertical cracks are more indicative of movement. Surely the survey gave details about the cracking cause and possible cost to remedy?

 

[Sund123]

Hin neo, thanks for your reply.
Yes the crack is horizontal and the survey did bring up the need for new wall ties. a quote of around £3200 to replace old, install new wall ties and do any rendering.
The house is called the poplar, because of 2 poplar trees that used to be there many years ago and were cut down, this was mentioned it could have contributed to the cracks and said there would be no further damage done to the house as they are now dead.
The thing with the joists was estimated at only £500 to fix. Is there such a metal bracket where you screw them into the joists and joining them together??

 

[r896neo]

Yes try heli-fix they do crack stitching bars etc and probably make them.

 

[DAZB]

The joist work referred to involves fixing wall straps. You will need to remove floorboards and skirting/plaster and you fix the long 1200mm galvanised type with holes in to the external walls with resin fixings and then the straps are laid over and housed into the joists at right angles obviously and timber noggins fitted tight between the joists and then it all secured with fixings so it effectively attaches the wall to several joists. This is done at roughly 1m intervals. You may have to do it to both skins of brickwork by chopping bricks out to get to fix to the outer skin and then walling it in again dependant on the survey. I did the same thing to a customers house in Leeds many years ago and it worked a treat and the house has been bought and sold several times since then.

Update.....
After a bit of digging for you I have found these which are the latest equivalent or the above method but without the hard work. You can use the drop down list to choose from 1m long to 2m long ties and I would say the longer the better and make sure you get plenty of resin into the holes with the rods. Feel free to send financial reward my way for the time & money I've just saved you lol !! :

http://www.twistfix.co.uk/products/wall-ties-remedial/lateral-restraint-wall-tie-kit-product.html

 

[Sund123]

Thanks very much for all your help