Reinforcing concrete block wall?
 

I have a concrete block wall (foundation for a rear single-story
enclosed porch, 10 feet long, 6 blocks high... maybe 3.5-4 feet high?)
that has buckled inward (as much as 6" in center) due to moisture
freezing/expanding in the ground outside. The top course-and-a-half is
above the exterior grade, and the inside of the wall (under the porch
floor) has dirt up about a third of the height.

We have done the following already:
- installed gutters above to route water away from foundation
- dug down to bottom (unmoved) course on both inside and out
- jacked up porch floor to take weight off wall, and shifted blocks
back to plumb
- made plans to fill the 1-foot space immediately outside wall with
stone gravel to improve water drainage
- made plans to grade dirt away from house to improve water drainage

My question: What steps can/should I take to keep the blocks where I
have (re)placed them?

Obviously, the cement seams between the blocks are long-since
compromised. My thoughts include:
- metal mesh bolted to inside of wall (attached to every block) to take
tensile loads of future pressure on outside
- parging cement on inside/outside surfaces to keep moisture from
between blocks
- building buttresses of blocks inside (think steps of blocks,
perpendicular to wall, at say three points along length)
- piling/packing the dirt back aalong the inside wall surface
- pour a concrete/cement buttress along inside length (not easy, since
porch floor is in the way)

Which (combination) of these options would you employ, or what other
suggestions might you have?

Additional info: This house in in upstate NY (Ithaca). We are fixing
up to sell - already have new residence in NJ.

Thanks for any advice,

Teo

Reinforcing concrete block wall?
 

There are companies that somehow miraclously fix walls like these but
havent used them

I would install a interior french drain so mo water can ever build up
there again/

We need water to live but uits a homes enemy.

Whatever you do fix it RIGHT so at home resale time its not a big
issue.

probably best to execavate top footer level outside and rebuild wall
completely.

i would stil;l install french drain so it doesnt reoccur. since the
wall moved a lot get a structural engineers opinion

Reinforcing concrete block wall?
 

at this point, hire a pro or rebuild the wall compleately

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wrote:
I have a concrete block wall (foundation for a rear single-story
enclosed porch, 10 feet long, 6 blocks high... maybe 3.5-4 feet high?)
that has buckled inward (as much as 6" in center) due to moisture
freezing/expanding in the ground outside. The top course-and-a-half is
above the exterior grade, and the inside of the wall (under the porch
floor) has dirt up about a third of the height.

We have done the following already:
- installed gutters above to route water away from foundation
- dug down to bottom (unmoved) course on both inside and out
- jacked up porch floor to take weight off wall, and shifted blocks
back to plumb
- made plans to fill the 1-foot space immediately outside wall with
stone gravel to improve water drainage
- made plans to grade dirt away from house to improve water drainage

My question: What steps can/should I take to keep the blocks where I
have (re)placed them?

Obviously, the cement seams between the blocks are long-since
compromised. My thoughts include:
- metal mesh bolted to inside of wall (attached to every block) to take
tensile loads of future pressure on outside
- parging cement on inside/outside surfaces to keep moisture from
between blocks
- building buttresses of blocks inside (think steps of blocks,
perpendicular to wall, at say three points along length)
- piling/packing the dirt back aalong the inside wall surface
- pour a concrete/cement buttress along inside length (not easy, since
porch floor is in the way)

Which (combination) of these options would you employ, or what other
suggestions might you have?

Additional info: This house in in upstate NY (Ithaca). We are fixing
up to sell - already have new residence in NJ.

Thanks for any advice,

Teo

Reinforcing concrete block wall?
 

wrote:
at this point, hire a pro or rebuild the wall compleately


yeah your selling any patrch job will appear just that and cost you big
bucks. TODAY 90+% want homes in perfect move in condition and get home
inspections.

by patching make do you are elminating 90% of perspective buyers and
that leaves those looking for just a low price:(

You want to give it away:(

I recommend yu yourself get a home inspection from a well known company
and fix everything you can to make selling easier and less stressful...

Reinforcing concrete block wall?
 

wrote:
I have a concrete block wall (foundation for a rear single-story
enclosed porch, 10 feet long, 6 blocks high... maybe 3.5-4 feet high?)
that has buckled inward (as much as 6" in center) due to moisture
freezing/expanding in the ground outside. The top course-and-a-half is
above the exterior grade, and the inside of the wall (under the porch
floor) has dirt up about a third of the height.

We have done the following already:
- installed gutters above to route water away from foundation
- dug down to bottom (unmoved) course on both inside and out
- jacked up porch floor to take weight off wall, and shifted blocks
back to plumb
- made plans to fill the 1-foot space immediately outside wall with
stone gravel to improve water drainage
- made plans to grade dirt away from house to improve water drainage

My question: What steps can/should I take to keep the blocks where I
have (re)placed them?

Obviously, the cement seams between the blocks are long-since
compromised. My thoughts include:
- metal mesh bolted to inside of wall (attached to every block) to take
tensile loads of future pressure on outside
- parging cement on inside/outside surfaces to keep moisture from
between blocks
- building buttresses of blocks inside (think steps of blocks,
perpendicular to wall, at say three points along length)
- piling/packing the dirt back aalong the inside wall surface
- pour a concrete/cement buttress along inside length (not easy, since
porch floor is in the way)

Which (combination) of these options would you employ, or what other
suggestions might you have?

Additional info: This house in in upstate NY (Ithaca). We are fixing
up to sell - already have new residence in NJ.

Thanks for any advice,

Teo

All of your proposed fixes would -probably- work but...as others have
said, you might as well rebuild the wall. It won't cost much more than
your fixes and will be done right. Of course do the french drain and
rock fill thing to.

When rebuilding the wall use "Z-bar" between every other course and
rebar plus concrete fill of the cavities in about every 4 blocks.

Harry K

Reinforcing concrete block wall?
 

On 21 Sep 2006 13:39:59 -0700, wrote:

I have a concrete block wall (foundation for a rear single-story
enclosed porch, 10 feet long, 6 blocks high... maybe 3.5-4 feet high?)
that has buckled inward (as much as 6" in center) due to moisture
freezing/expanding in the ground outside. The top course-and-a-half is
.. . .
My question: What steps can/should I take to keep the blocks where I
have (re)placed them?
.. . .
- metal mesh bolted to inside of wall (attached to every block) to take
tensile loads of future pressure on outside
- parging cement on inside/outside surfaces to keep moisture from
between blocks
- building buttresses of blocks inside (think steps of blocks,
perpendicular to wall, at say three points along length)
- piling/packing the dirt back aalong the inside wall surface
- pour a concrete/cement buttress along inside length (not easy, since
porch floor is in the way)

Metal mesh won't really keep the blocks from shifting around,
it will just keep individual blocks from popping out.
The problem with internal buttresses is that they
need a footing sufficient to carry the load of themselves
AND the redirected thrust of the soil/water on the walls.
And 4" of poured slab may not be enough, so you risk
having the buttresses punch right through your cellar
floor as the whole wall tries to roll.

In any case, I think what you want is horizontal
steel beams every 24" to 32" up the wall, held in place
by one or more of:

(A)Concrete buttresses/Pillasters.
(B)Vertical steel beams anchored in the slab
at the bottom and by wood or steel
overhead beams braced against the far wall.
(C)Stainless steel cables and turnbuckles
attached to deadmen outside the wall.


If you were going to continue living there,
I'd say dig a wide trench around the house,
and build another foundation wall about 4' out,
with arched buttresses between the two walls,
which would give you a really cool perimeter tunnel,
but that's not worth it if you're just going to
sell the house.

Reinforcing concrete block wall?
 

Harry K wrote:
wrote:
I have a concrete block wall (foundation for a rear single-story
enclosed porch, 10 feet long, 6 blocks high... maybe 3.5-4 feet high?)
that has buckled inward (as much as 6" in center) due to moisture
freezing/expanding in the ground outside. The top course-and-a-half is
above the exterior grade, and the inside of the wall (under the porch
floor) has dirt up about a third of the height.

We have done the following already:
- installed gutters above to route water away from foundation
- dug down to bottom (unmoved) course on both inside and out
- jacked up porch floor to take weight off wall, and shifted blocks
back to plumb
- made plans to fill the 1-foot space immediately outside wall with
stone gravel to improve water drainage
- made plans to grade dirt away from house to improve water drainage

My question: What steps can/should I take to keep the blocks where I
have (re)placed them?

Obviously, the cement seams between the blocks are long-since
compromised. My thoughts include:
- metal mesh bolted to inside of wall (attached to every block) to take
tensile loads of future pressure on outside
- parging cement on inside/outside surfaces to keep moisture from
between blocks
- building buttresses of blocks inside (think steps of blocks,
perpendicular to wall, at say three points along length)
- piling/packing the dirt back aalong the inside wall surface
- pour a concrete/cement buttress along inside length (not easy, since
porch floor is in the way)

Which (combination) of these options would you employ, or what other
suggestions might you have?

Additional info: This house in in upstate NY (Ithaca). We are fixing
up to sell - already have new residence in NJ.

Thanks for any advice,

Teo

All of your proposed fixes would -probably- work but...as others have
said, you might as well rebuild the wall. It won't cost much more than
your fixes and will be done right. Of course do the french drain and
rock fill thing to.

When rebuilding the wall use "Z-bar" between every other course and
rebar plus concrete fill of the cavities in about every 4 blocks.

Harry K

I would fix all of the motar joints in the wall, then knock out the top
block of the wall, shove rebar in there and pour those cells solid with
concrete, then replace the top block. I would work the whole wall
using this process, and pour the whole wall solid.. or at least every
other cell with rebar and concrete.

This sounds like a lot of work, but it isn't, and its sure easier and
cheaper than ripping down the wall and rebuilding.. I poured my 8"
block walls every 16" for my addition in two weeks, mixing the concrete
myself. I'd buy or rent a concrete mixer.

8" block - 40 cells is 1 yard of concrete. I think...

Reinforcing concrete block wall?
 

I would fix all of the motar joints in the wall, then knock out the top
block of the wall, shove rebar in there and pour those cells solid with
concrete, then replace the top block. I would work the whole wall
using this process, and pour the whole wall solid.. or at least every
other cell with rebar and concrete.

I think this is the solution I will attempt. There is a vendor in town
who will do small loads of cement. The wall is only there to hold up
the back porch, which could be done with footings and posts, except
that the crawlspace underneath is the only access to the plumbing
running to the kitchen & bath (part of the cobbed-on addition on this
200-year-old house). This sounds like a reasonable way to make it
stable and provide the weather-barrier needed to protect access to that
plumbing.

Thanks for the suggestions and the advice.

Regards,
Teo

Reinforcing concrete block wall?