possible subsidence??

[mickash01]

Hi,

I'm a little worried about one corner of my house,
it is only 5 years old, and some flags are starting to drop, where it most severe, i'm finding fractures in the brick work, some are fine lines others i can manage to put a 50p in between, i am noticing new cracks on a daily basis, the ground underneath is mostly clay i beleive.

if you zoom in on two of the pics you can clearly see the cracks developing further up the wall, and a fractured brick.

one more of advice i need is, would the builder have a guarantee within a certain amount of time of me owning the propert? my family are the only people to have lived here.

many thanks in advance
mick

http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x198/mickash01/DSC02361.jpg
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x198/mickash01/DSC02362.jpg
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x198/mickash01/DSC02363.jpg
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x198/mickash01/DSC02360.jpg

 

[sqidd1g]

Hi --- subsidence is caused by the clay sub-structure cracking due to a lack of moisture which then causes voids to form --- this in turn allows for the foundations of your property to sink.
The opposite of subsidence is 'heave' --- where the clay swells rather than shrinks.

From your photos it does appear that there is movement on the corner --- however, if this is 'local' to one corner only of your property it may be that there is a leaking drain or possible a tree sited very close (root growth affecting the clay).

With regard to warranty --- if your house was built by a reputable builder then they should have offered a NHBC 10year warranty on the property.
This should include cover for subsidence.

Assuming you don't have NHBC cover but do have buildings insurance on the property I would contact the insurer asap re the possibility of subsidence as they will wish to monitor the issue prior to deciding what action to take --- insurers do not like paying out these days so they will check out the drains first and the possibility of root growth affecting the clay before deciding on underpinning the foundations.

However, remember that you will have to pay a £1000 excess on a subsidence claim --- if you can assess whether the drains or root growth is the cause of the issue you could save yourself a few quid.

Hope this helps.

sqidd1g

 

[mickash01]

Thanks for the advice,

As far as I can gather, the closest drain is about 5 meters away, and no trees in the vicinity that haven't been planted within a year.

Its seems as though there has not been a good job done of ground works, if you see the photo of where the flag has dropped, the block work under the damp course is visible.

Thanks again for the advice, really appreciate it!!

 

[^woody^]

The cracked brick is just that a cracked brick - probably done when built

The corner engineers look like they have been knocked when built and there seem to be two shades of mortar - all indicating an as-built quality issue.

And subsidence does not tend to pull out the top brick of engineers or any brick for that matter like that one has been.

Your other cracks may be normal shrinkage

 

[hotrod]

Ditto. I don't think there's anything too obvious to worry about in that brickwork. Those hairline cracks in the bricks could have been in the the brick when they were laid and the bricky would never have realised they're that small they're cosmetic.

 

[surly]

new houses should have a 10 year warranty with the NHBC (national house builders council) which is taken out by the builders.
contact them and they should send someone out to inspect the damage

 

[mointainwalker]

I wouldn't hold your breath for that visit.