Big cracks in loft after open plan kitchen (merged threads)

i'm not if my last update was posted properly, so again thankyou all so much, it's good to know cracks in above the beam are more acceptable

SE coming today at 1700 hrs, i've attached his plans should you wish to see them as it may answer some of your questions, he's a nice guy and has been happy to come & reassure me on 2 occasions now, i'm guessing this type of project may sometimes cause a little anxiety with homeowners


m

Hi Tony
Yes I was getting confused!!! No beams that size in the crystal palace i'm guessing.

you might want to remove your address from the documents @Mike1801Mike

ah - don't know how to remove a document on here, any suggestions?

so the SE came and said the crack was old and likely not to do with the open plan works, i totally overlooked that there we're old cobwebs in there, but nevertheless the mere fact it was there was my concern. He said that houses this old will often develop cracks like this as the rear part of the house can sometimes move away from the front, he said he'd seen this before and seemed very confident. The crack can be patched using helifix which we have used before on outside and the chimney breast will need repointing but neither is urgent. The bricks are quite soft in places and the lime mortar is like loose sand now. He said the house is structurally fine and we have nothing to worry about as everything should have been built to spec according to his plans.

I am mercifully now less worried than I was, it is a shame the house underwent a bit of warping during the build though it seems this is possible at any point when you own an old house.

Thankyou everyone for your attention to this, i haven't forgotten that i can get a 2nd opinon from an SE but you helped reassure & signpost me whilst i waited his attendance

regards

m

Mike1801Mike said:

don't know how to remove a document on here, any suggestions?

Click to expand...

Click edit under your post, then press More Options, then you can delete the attachment at the bottom, then save your edits.

Did he have anything to say about the baggy floor, i know i wouldn't be happy with that after a refurb

Have removed the file thanks

I got an email from the SE afterwards, see below

Hi Michael,
Further to my visit on the 5th February 2020 as requested, I write to confirm my observations and conclusions as follows;

1. In terms of the crack you have noticed in the party wall, photo left below, this is not in the zone of the works carried out and is on the line of the main rear elevation of the house, therefore could not be attributed to the works. It is of long standing as there is dust and cobwebs in the crack . As discussed obviously it would be advisable to repair using a helifix type bonded repair.
2. The cracking in the chimney stack the rigthand photo again looks to be of long standing with dust and cobwebs in the crack itself. This chimney does take support on the new works installed at ground floor level so could be related to that as a result of the normal levels of movement expected with works of this type. Again it would a advisable to carry out repairs to reinstate the integrity of the wall, these could be simply mortar pointing.

In summary, in my opinion there is nothing that I have seen to suggest that there are any structural issues to give cause for concern. We also noted that there appears to be no cracking to ground or first floor levels beyond that which we would expect for a property of this type and age that has be subjected to the significant structural alterations that have been carried out.

I hope this puts you mind at rest. I have not charged for this visit as a good will gesture.


I've started looking for a tradesperson to do the suggested repairs.

He didn't say anything about he saggy floor this time as i didn't ask him. However the first time he attended he said this was normal for an older house to do this even without building works. He measured the slump widthways and I believe he said the angle was equal on both sides which meant the beam was the correct height so was not a concern and any any prospective buyers should assume old houses will be slightly warped in places. I figured after removing the arch the crossways beam just wasn't packed properly to the joists above have naturally slumped too? The bathroom is directly above this and has the main slump and at some point we are hoping to renovate that so i'll ask if the floor can be adjusted to reflect the slump - or is this mad?

Thankyou all again

Michael

Mike1801Mike said:

I hope this puts you mind at rest. I have not charged for this visit as a good will gesture.

Click to expand...

That's nice of him! Send him a create of beer, sounds like a good guy.