sonj186 Report post Posted April 19, 2009 i live in an ex council house that was built around 1950 and i have noticed loads and loads of cracks appearing in the walls! im starting to think it might fall down around me my hubby is not even heere at the mo so i dont really know what to do we have just had cavity insulation done so im wondering if that has caused the cracks but i cant be sure as there have always been cracks round my bedroom window! who would i call in for look would it be a surveyor or a structural engineer type person help!! sonj Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ScienceGeek Report post Posted April 19, 2009 Maybe it is subsidence (sp)? We had that in our old council house, our walls even parted so much that I could fit my hand in the gap! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sonj186 Report post Posted April 19, 2009 aaaaaaaaaaaaggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhh!!!! thats what i was thinking!! OMG im going to wake up in the garden! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mum of 3 Report post Posted April 20, 2009 If these cracks have appeared since the CWI was done, it's most likely that that's caused it. Do you think the cracks go through to the bricks, or is it just the plaster? (Look at the walls outside-Ishould think the cracks would be showing there as well, if it was sudsidence (sp!). We recently had a new roof and all the ceilings now have holes all over them where the plaster covering the nails holding the plaster board up has popped out. The builder just said 'oh yeah, that sometimes happens'!!! A structural engineer should be able to help, but an ordinary surveyor (like you'd use if you were buying a house-try your local estate agent for one) should be able to give an initial diagnosis, for a small fee! Good luck, hope it's nothing serious. <'> Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chris54 Report post Posted April 20, 2009 It could be that the vibration from drilling the holes for the cavity insulation cause the cracks If so nothing to worry about. It could be that having had the cavity insulation do has could a change in the thermal dynamics of the outside and inside walls causing stresses that weren't there before, again nothing to worry about in the short term. Only if the cracks continue to get worse would I worry. Subsidence cracks would usually show up on both the inside and outside walls. More often than not run up and/or down from window and door openings. Even a structural engineer would have to have a look and come back in 6 month to see if things have got worse in that time. My parents house when they bough it the surveyor reckoned part of it was going to fall down any minuet. I looked at it and just could not see that happening. 20 years later when they come to sell it the wall was just the same other than been re-pointed 19 years previously and no problem. I know that it is now recognised that a lot of underpinning was done on houses that if left along would have settled down and just needed a relatively small amount of repair. Just think we look at these old cottages and thing how nice they look with there wonky windows and doors. So in short if it was me I would not worry to much. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sonj186 Report post Posted April 20, 2009 thhanks all, i have had a look outside and cant see any cracks, and all bar one off the cracks are running horizontaly(sp) im hoping its just down to the insulation but i will keep a close eye on them and if needs be call someone in. hopefully the house will still be here in another 50 odd years Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
