Help! I think my house is falling down!

Help! I think my house is falling down!

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red22

Original Poster:

146 posts

169 months

Friday 17th May 2019
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I was investigating some "anomalies" in my wallpaper, sort of like cracks but not. Long story short, started checking brick work outside and noticed some more cracks. Not big ones you can put an arm in but 1-2mm.

Not sure of my reasoning but lifted manhole in patio and discovered this.....





As you can imagine I'm slightly concerned, especially as when I poke a tape measure into the crack it just keeps going.

Basically this entire patio has no soil underneath it......



Weirdly the area under the deck is fine. What worries me the most, is no soil from house foundations out and as the house is built on a concrete slab, how much erosion is under there.

I've contacted the insurance and waiting to hear back bit in the meantime has anyone else had this and what can I expect happen.

Thanks.

red22

Original Poster:

146 posts

169 months

Friday 17th May 2019
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Forgive my ignorance but what's an IC?

Thanks

red22

Original Poster:

146 posts

169 months

Friday 17th May 2019
quotequote all
Hoping it's not going to be that bad.

red22

Original Poster:

146 posts

169 months

Saturday 18th May 2019
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My initial thoughts were leaky pipe but would that cause there to be a total gap under the whole of the patio?


red22

Original Poster:

146 posts

169 months

Sunday 19th May 2019
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Ok. Pics of wallpaper anomalies..





Difficult to get photo because wallpapers so bland, but it looks like the wallpaper has been torn then restuck but over lapping slightly. Sorry best way to describe it. Definitely wierd because it's dot and dab plasterboard underneath.

These are linked across the ceiling by this crack..



Which is over where the stairs are in this pic..



Having gone round the house paying a bit more attention I've found another wallpaper issue in the corner by the French windows in the last pic about a foot long and the French windows seem to have become structural. As in we usually only open one door and now if I open the other it requires a lot of lifting and swearing to get it back. Also the bathroom is above to the right of the last pic. I assumed the was something caught under the door that was rubbing slightly but it's rubbing on the floor so somethings moved there as well.

Looking forward to the new patio though

Thanks

red22

Original Poster:

146 posts

169 months

Sunday 19th May 2019
quotequote all
Yep. Pretty much convinced it's subsidence of some sort.

Question is how invasive is this likely to be. I've got a sneaking suspicion this is going to #@*! with my life for a considerable time.

Update. Garden wall 50mm out top to bottom over 5ft.

red22

Original Poster:

146 posts

169 months

Thursday 23rd May 2019
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Woohoo. Structural Engineer coming tomorrow, wasn't expecting it to be so quick.

red22

Original Poster:

146 posts

169 months

Thursday 23rd May 2019
quotequote all
Funnily enough I was tarting it up to sell sooner rather than later but that's out the window now.


red22

Original Poster:

146 posts

169 months

Monday 23rd September 2019
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Yay 4 months after I contacted the insurance they're starting work.

Thankfully the house isn't falling down and no signs of subsidence. The soil under my patio slab has sunk but this seems to be a because it wasn't compressed enough when initially laid.

So today they start work on excavating my broken drainage pipes. Fingers crossed it goes smoothly.

When that's done I can sort out the patio and the slightly leaning garden wall. Bit gutted the insurance won't cover that but its a lot cheaper than it could have been.