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Re: New house settling?From: info@builderswebsource.com
Category: Foundations and Basements
Remote Name: 63.198.181.43
Date: 13 Jul 2002
Time: 02:38 AM
CommentsYou just built a new house and are seeing signs of settling, such as small cracks in the brick, as well as molding separating in several places. Your builder says that it is normal for the molding to separate because of the wood drying. In the bathroom the tile is cracking and the builder says it's because it was laid wrong and he will fix it, but this crack is "walking" across the length of the bathroom. You have also had a very rainy period before which it was very dry. From your description, these symptoms definitely sound like classic signs of foundation settling. If your soil was not properly compacted after excavation, or if your soil has a high clay content, it can swell during rainy periods, and shrink during dry periods. The foundation, if properly engineered for the soil conditions, should have been designed to account for soil-related heaving. If not, your home was not properly engineered. Normally, this requires a geotechnical test (involving drilling of soil core samples), which are then analyzed in a laboratory for expansivity, skin friction and shear strength. Depending on the outcome of these tests, the foundation is engineered to mitigate the impact of changes in soil moisture content. For example, pier and gradebeam foundations are commonly used is situations such as this. Since we have no way of knowing what kind of soil you have and whether the foundation was properly engineered (or properly installed), we can only speculate. The cracks you mention do concern us and appear to be signs of a larger problem in the foundation and/or soil and drainage conditions. We urge you to get a second opinion from a licensed structural/civil and/or geotechnical engineering company in your area who can perform an oniste inspection and provide professional advice based on the actual onsite conditions. If you can demonstrate negligence in the design or construction of the structure, you may have some legal recourse against the builder or architect. Please keep us posted on this as you troubleshoot your problem with the aid of local experts who can perform a first-hand visual inspection of the foundation and the soil. Builders Websource.
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