Post Extension Cracks - Should we be worried?

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Hi

We had some work carried out July last year for a single storey extension and bathroom renovation. We had lots of problems with the builders including a bad bathroom install, which we have had to get re-done by another contractor (going through Citizens Advice and ADR on this for our money back).

We now have a fear that our extension to our untrained eyes, maybe not as good as we hoped. When they removed walls and put in beams, we had ALOT of crack appear upstairs including the window above no longer closing. They told us this was normal and adjusted the supports. In hindsight, alarm bells should have be ringing and we should have got external advice at that time. But I had just given birth to our first baby, so life was a little whirlwind!

In the last few months we have noticed further cracks appearing on the house.

1. External where the new extension meets house
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2. Above window which had major cracks during build and window didn't close. Left below window from ledge (if you can zoom to see!)

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There are further hairlines going through walls and areas they had replastered from cracks.

The building work was signed off by Building Regs and had calcs done for the beam.

The bathroom fitters we just had in noted that the house wasn't level suggesting possible subsidence.

Is the above normal? Who should we speak to for further advice?

Thanks in advance!

Sammi
 

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Going to have problems in summer then as I suffer from terrible hay fever!

Safe was the incorrect word to use. Just mean as our life savings have gone into this, we don't want to find out years on when we sell up that it has been done crap and devalued the house.
 
I'm impressed as to how well the bricklayer matched the new pointing to the old :)
 
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Going to have problems in summer then as I suffer from terrible hay fever!

Safe was the incorrect word to use. Just mean as our life savings have gone into this, we don't want to find out years on when we sell up that it has been done crap and devalued the house.
The crack where new meets old is not serious - probably no more than initial shrinkage of the hard cement mortar.
 
If the window is only a few courses above the steel, the brickwork probably dropped a bit at the time of the work.

The new to old brickwork is nothing to be concerned about.

Out of level is not an indicator of subsidence, on its own. Old house are often out of level. Badly build new houses, the same!
 
None of the cracking is normal. Probably best to get an independent structural survey and add the costs and the cost of any remedial work to your ADR claim.
 
Thanks for the serious replies and no further taking the ****. Much appreciated.
 

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