13 Jun When Is Underpinning Necessary For Your Property?
It’s sometimes necessary to carry out underpinning on a property. This method of maintaining a buildings structural integrity is used to repair properties suffering from subsidence. Subsidence occurs when the support for the property is removed due to the soil in the foundations moving away from the building. Underpinning costs will depend on many factors but done properly underpinning gives back the building’s support to repair its structure.
Understanding when a property might require underpinning is important because you need to spot subsidence as soon as possible. Use this guide to learn how to spot the signs and understand how underpinning can help to improve the condition of your property.
Spotting the Signs of Subsidence
To determine whether your property requires underpinning you need to know how to recognise the signs of subsidence. There are a few indications you can look out for because subsidence causes your property to move. This can lead to noticeable signs, such as cracks in walls. Here are some of the top indications of subsidence.
Cracked Walls
Cracks in the walls of both the interior and exterior of your home can indicate that the foundation of your property is moving. Cracks around windows and doors can be particularly bad. Cracks caused by subsidence aren’t merely thin hairlines. They are more than 3mm thick, diagonal and broader at the top than at the bottom. You should also be able to see the cracks indoors and outdoors.
Subtle Signs
Some signs of subsidence are a little more subtle than big cracks in your walls. For example a wrinkled paper appearance at wall and ceiling joints could be an indication that your property needs to be underpinned. Doors and windows might also start to stick due to their frames warping.
Leaning
Although it only happens in the worst cases you might also notice that your property is leaning to one side. This can look alarming but professional underpinning contractors will be able to repair the damage for you and get your property upright again.
Confirmation from a Building Survey
If you suspect that your property could be experiencing subsidence, a survey will be necessary to confirm it. If the survey is positive for subsidence a number of methods can be used to repair it. Mini piling contractors and piling contractors carry out similar methods and there is also the ground beam technique. Ground beam contractor services involve a wide range of different techniques.
Causes of Subsidence
Some properties may be particularly at risk of subsidence and in need of building underpinning. Older properties are more likely to experience subsidence compared to new ones. Other risk factors include being in an area with clay soil or an area that is prone to drought. Local mining activity also presents a risk, as do leaks in water mains or drains. If your property has any of these risk factors it’s even more important that you watch out for signs of subsidence.
If you suspect that your property needs underpinning, get in touch with us at BSB Construction Ltd. Call us on 0207 1014487 or email info@bsbconcreteservices.co.uk.
No Comments