Advice please - wall cracks - normal?
Discussion
I viewed a house yesterday which I really like, but I have some concerns about the cracks in the walls.
It has cracks in almost every room, either in the wall, in the coving, or in the door frame (sometimes more than one of these things). Is that normal? It also has in a few areas the ceiling separating from the walls. The house is about 25 years old (built originally by Wimpey), and hasn't had any work done to it in the last 12 years bar a new bathroom. It has a few large trees in the garden - perhaps that could be causing the problem?
Here are some photos. You can see the worst crack in the last couple of photos. This is in the living room, where outside is a large tree about 6 foot or so away from it. Perhaps slightly further away.
It has cracks in almost every room, either in the wall, in the coving, or in the door frame (sometimes more than one of these things). Is that normal? It also has in a few areas the ceiling separating from the walls. The house is about 25 years old (built originally by Wimpey), and hasn't had any work done to it in the last 12 years bar a new bathroom. It has a few large trees in the garden - perhaps that could be causing the problem?
Here are some photos. You can see the worst crack in the last couple of photos. This is in the living room, where outside is a large tree about 6 foot or so away from it. Perhaps slightly further away.
Doesn't look like anything major. Anything large enough to get a pound coin into and I'd start to be concerned. Also look at the outside of the building for corresponding cracks, if both outside and inside then it could be of concern. From the pictures it just looks like a bit settling and/or normal expansion contraction. Nothing a bit of Polyfilla probably would resolve.
If in doubt get a decent survey and find out if the trees that are close can be removed. Do this before you go ahead with the purchase as some trees have preservation orders etc.
If in doubt get a decent survey and find out if the trees that are close can be removed. Do this before you go ahead with the purchase as some trees have preservation orders etc.
Lovely Artex. No doubt full of white asbestos too.
Cracks don't look too bad, perhaps they are fond of door slamming.
The cracks around the ceiling are interesting, is that a roof space above or another room ?
If roofspace it may warrent more investigation.
Damp in the bathroom looks more of a concern
Hard to say from the photos but it looks like its barely been touched in 25 years, the cracks aren't serious but may warrant a bit of investigation , the cracks around the cornice are nothing, the one in the bathroom is slightly bigger but certainly doesn't mean the house will fall down. I wouldn't be put off buying it.
Pulse said:
Here are some photos. You can see the worst crack in the last couple of photos. This is in the living room, where outside is a large tree about 6 foot or so away from it. Perhaps slightly further away.
This is an odd one, not sure what would cause that crack in the corner, but something doesn't look right to me. I would be looking outside for any corresponding cracks / movement. Those cracks look to be the start of something more serious.Also, a tree 6 foot away from an elevation? How big is this tree? That certainly doesn't sound right.
If in doubt, you need to get a surveyor to have a detailed look, nobody is going to diagnose that reliably from those pictures.
The fact that it looks like it hasn't been decorated for a long time is probably a good sign, in that those cracks have probably been there for a while. At least you know nothing has been covered up!
Personally, I can't see anything there that would particularly worry me, assuming there are no matching cracks on the outside. I viewed a house yesterday which is up for auction, and the cracks were big enough to get my thumb into!
The fact that it looks like it hasn't been decorated for a long time is probably a good sign, in that those cracks have probably been there for a while. At least you know nothing has been covered up!
Personally, I can't see anything there that would particularly worry me, assuming there are no matching cracks on the outside. I viewed a house yesterday which is up for auction, and the cracks were big enough to get my thumb into!
You think that is bad, try living in a victorian terrace, if it has the original lythe plaster it just cracks after 100 years.
Only way Im getting rid of them properly (already used plaster to fix them all and 5% have come back) is to rip out all the old stuff and replace with plasterboard, even then there is no proof the building might not move and crack them again.
Only way Im getting rid of them properly (already used plaster to fix them all and 5% have come back) is to rip out all the old stuff and replace with plasterboard, even then there is no proof the building might not move and crack them again.
Ilovetwiglets said:
Our house is full of cracks like that, the surveyor said it was nothing to worry about and common in buildings of a similar age and area. ... built on clay
Normal for houses built on clay rich areas. As long as the surveryor confirms that the movement is historic rather than recent then all good. jason61c said:
Why would you remove the lime plaster+ gypsum has zero movement so will only crack worse.
There is so much bowing on the walls were 100 years just have taken their toll, don't get me wrong, I love the period look that its not perfect, has battle damage and is all original, however were I live people expect perfection and it knocks £10-15k at least off the price of the property.I would keep it, but when I renovate there is no point in doing half a job as its wasting money.
Du1point8 said:
There is so much bowing on the walls were 100 years just have taken their toll, don't get me wrong, I love the period look that its not perfect, has battle damage and is all original, however were I live people expect perfection and it knocks £10-15k at least off the price of the property.
I would keep it, but when I renovate there is no point in doing half a job as its wasting money.
Do not replace it with modern products unless they confirm what you are putting in is breathable.I would keep it, but when I renovate there is no point in doing half a job as its wasting money.
If you want to completely redo the render, my strong advice would be to do so with period products. If it's done properly (horse hair etc) then it will last a long time.
If you just replace with modern B&Q/modern building type products, you will be creating many more problems for yourself not too far down the track IMO.
Also be prepared for a lot of additional work being required once you start getting under the skin.
(If the bowed walls are down to the original frame/foundation not being squared, I'd also avoid trying to straighten it. You may think people want "perfection", but sometimes that means not eradicating character.)
Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff