A crack on one of the walls of my house has appeared to grow in length
and slightly in width over the course of this year. Previously it's
been the same for years, so am not sure why it should suddenly grow
again.

I have a 1950s house with a cavity wall. The crack is on the inner
wall (I can't see anything on the outside wall) and runs from one of
the bottom corners of my (upstairs) landing window diagonally upwards
across the flank wall for a good 3 feet.

At the moment the crack appears small in width, ranging from a fraction
of a mm to 1mm - but it is so noticeable because of the position.
It's just in one of those pieces of walls that you look at every time
you use the stairs!

The crack also seems to increase in 'width' depending upon whether
the sun is shining on that part of the house.

Does anyone think I should be worried? All of the reading I have done
suggests that if it were serious - like subsidence - it would likely
manifest itself on the outside walls as well and would likely be near
the ground. I did wonder whether it was just the roof shifting
slightly for some reason and causing the load to be re-distributed?

I don't really want to get a surveyor in because of the cost for what
may be such a trivial problem - houses after all get cracks! But I
am looking at moving and don't want it to cause a problem with a sale.

Anyone got any ideas or comments?

"Pasta" wrote in message
oups.com...
A crack on one of the walls of my house has appeared to grow in length
and slightly in width over the course of this year. Previously it's
been the same for years, so am not sure why it should suddenly grow
again.

I have a 1950s house with a cavity wall. The crack is on the inner
wall (I can't see anything on the outside wall) and runs from one of
the bottom corners of my (upstairs) landing window diagonally upwards
across the flank wall for a good 3 feet.

At the moment the crack appears small in width, ranging from a fraction
of a mm to 1mm - but it is so noticeable because of the position.
It's just in one of those pieces of walls that you look at every time
you use the stairs!

The crack also seems to increase in 'width' depending upon whether
the sun is shining on that part of the house.

Does anyone think I should be worried? All of the reading I have done
suggests that if it were serious - like subsidence - it would likely
manifest itself on the outside walls as well and would likely be near
the ground. I did wonder whether it was just the roof shifting
slightly for some reason and causing the load to be re-distributed?

I don't really want to get a surveyor in because of the cost for what
may be such a trivial problem - houses after all get cracks! But I
am looking at moving and don't want it to cause a problem with a sale.

Anyone got any ideas or comments?


It might be worth getting an engineer in to have a look at it. If you think
it is still moving, then it's best to catch it now, or at least have it
looked at to make sure.

"Pasta" wrote in message
oups.com...
A crack on one of the walls of my house has appeared to grow in length
and slightly in width over the course of this year. Previously it's
been the same for years, so am not sure why it should suddenly grow
again.

I have a 1950s house with a cavity wall. The crack is on the inner
wall (I can't see anything on the outside wall) and runs from one of
the bottom corners of my (upstairs) landing window diagonally upwards
across the flank wall for a good 3 feet.

At the moment the crack appears small in width, ranging from a fraction
of a mm to 1mm - but it is so noticeable because of the position.
It's just in one of those pieces of walls that you look at every time
you use the stairs!

The crack also seems to increase in 'width' depending upon whether
the sun is shining on that part of the house.

Does anyone think I should be worried? All of the reading I have done
suggests that if it were serious - like subsidence - it would likely
manifest itself on the outside walls as well and would likely be near
the ground. I did wonder whether it was just the roof shifting
slightly for some reason and causing the load to be re-distributed?

I don't really want to get a surveyor in because of the cost for what
may be such a trivial problem - houses after all get cracks! But I
am looking at moving and don't want it to cause a problem with a sale.

Anyone got any ideas or comments?


A 1mm crack isn't a great cause for concern IMHO, though the fact it has
opened up recently after years of being stable means it's worth keeping
an eye on. You could mark and date the end of the crack for instance.

My brother's house has a seasonal crack in it and it makes its presence
felt by rippling the wallpaper in one corner of the loo in summer: come
winter its gone again.

The things to try and look at, IMO, are whether you have a water leak under
the house which is undermining things. Sometimes you can hear a hiss
even when all the water is off. Have you a water meter you can inspect over
a
period when you use no water? The other possibilty might be a leaky drain.
Depending on your drain layout it might be possible to block the drain at an
inspection pit near your boundary wall and fill the drain up and see if the
level goes down over a period of an hour. Easy to do if you have an outside
gully
etc.

Also, have you trees or shrubs or creepers planted near the house that are
coming
on? Some trees etc are worse than others at extracting water from the soil.
You may
have to cut something down to be on the safe side.

Another sort of subsidence is differential mass subsidence, where one wall
of a house
is heavier than the others ( fewer windows/doors ) and that will can sink
relative to the
rest.

A crack running from a window corner is a classic. Stress is concentrated in
the corners
of apertures. You may well get a crack in the outer skin eventually, not
necessarily
exactly in the same place as the inside crack.

Another type of crack is due to wall ties rusting, though that shouldn't
affect a '50's house,
and the cracks would be horizontal and periodic.

Another is due to the roof ties 'relaxing' and allowing the roof to sag
under its own weight,
which will spread it out, and I believe that will try and tilt the walls
outwards near the top.
I understand this typically gives horizontal cracks.

Yet another type of crack is due to a lack of wall ties keeping the inner
and outer leaves
of bricks together, and also if the first floor floorboards are not tied to
the inner brick leaf
in some positive way, just using the inner leaf to take the weight of the
first floor. If the
floorboards/joists are bolted to the inner brick leaf then the tendency for
the wall to bend
is much reduced.

These are just some ideas for you to mull over: some of them are unlikely
causes of
diagonal cracks, but it is a complicated subject and if I were you I would
keep an eye on
things, try and read up on the subject a bit, find a way to monitor the
crack quantitatively,
and try and eliminate some of the options I've listed.

It may just be that you are on clay soil in the southeast and the dry spring
has taken too
much water out of the soil.

I'm not an expert.

Andy.

In message .com,
Pasta writes
I don't really want to get a surveyor in because of the cost for what
may be such a trivial problem - houses after all get cracks! But I am
looking at moving and don't want it to cause a problem with a sale.

If you are concerned about it, multiply that concern by a factor of many
in the minds, (or slimy negotiating actions), in potential buyers. The
cost of a structural engineers report is insignificant in relation to
the cost of not doing it.

A few hundred quid buys you a report which you can show to buyers to
confirm that it is a trivial problem, or the confidence to fill the
crack and paint over it.

Alternatively, it identifies a problem which you will need to deal with
before you sell.

--
Richard Faulkner

Richard Faulkner wrote:
In message .com,
Pasta writes

I don't really want to get a surveyor in because of the cost for what
may be such a trivial problem - houses after all get cracks! But I am
looking at moving and don't want it to cause a problem with a sale.

If you are concerned about it, multiply that concern by a factor of many
in the minds, (or slimy negotiating actions), in potential buyers. The
cost of a structural engineers report is insignificant in relation to
the cost of not doing it.

A few hundred quid buys you a report which you can show to buyers to
confirm that it is a trivial problem, or the confidence to fill the
crack and paint over it.

Alternatively, it identifies a problem which you will need to deal with
before you sell.

--
Richard Faulkner


Doing that would only set the alarm bells ringing. 1mm is not an issue.
Try polyfilla. Cost =A31.

NT

Thanks for the replies so far guys.

I looked at this crack this morning and it was hardly visible, but last
night after the sun was shining on the wall all day it looked like a
gaping cavern!. I guess some of it is down to perspective - the minute
you notice something like this, you can't help but notice it
continually!

I have looked around a bit closer and can see a horizontal crack
running accross the same wall in the room next door a few inches below
the ceiling. It runs right accross the wall in this room. Again it's
quite small in width at the moment.

Given all of this it does seem to point to being the fact that the roof
has spread slightly and maybe has pulled the top few layers of bricks
out. That would certainly fit in with the long horizontal crack I have
found, and perhaps explains the other one.

I may well get an engineer in now to assess the roof - of course that
leads to another problem! Anyone know the difference between a
Chartered Surveyor(which seems to be the people advertising in the
main) and a structural engineer? Would I get a better service from one
than the other? or are they the same 'thing' listing under different
guises?

"Pasta" wrote:
Thanks for the replies so far guys.

I looked at this crack this morning and it was hardly visible, but last
night after the sun was shining on the wall all day it looked like a
gaping cavern!. I guess some of it is down to perspective - the minute
you notice something like this, you can't help but notice it
continually!

I have looked around a bit closer and can see a horizontal crack
running accross the same wall in the room next door a few inches below
the ceiling. It runs right accross the wall in this room. Again it's
quite small in width at the moment.

Given all of this it does seem to point to being the fact that the roof
has spread slightly and maybe has pulled the top few layers of bricks
out. That would certainly fit in with the long horizontal crack I have
found, and perhaps explains the other one.

I may well get an engineer in now to assess the roof - of course that
leads to another problem! Anyone know the difference between a
Chartered Surveyor(which seems to be the people advertising in the
main) and a structural engineer? Would I get a better service from one
than the other? or are they the same 'thing' listing under different
guises?

You want a structural engineer.
www.yell.com is your friend.

Al

"Pasta" wrote in message
oups.com...
Thanks for the replies so far guys.

I looked at this crack this morning and it was hardly visible, but last
night after the sun was shining on the wall all day it looked like a
gaping cavern!. I guess some of it is down to perspective - the minute
you notice something like this, you can't help but notice it
continually!

The way to tell if it is actually getting bigger or moving is to araldite a
strip of glass or ceramic tile across the crack. Any movement will crack
the glass/tile.

Dave

In message .com,
Pasta writes
I may well get an engineer in now to assess the roof - of course that
leads to another problem! Anyone know the difference between a
Chartered Surveyor(which seems to be the people advertising in the
main) and a structural engineer? Would I get a better service from one
than the other? or are they the same 'thing' listing under different
guises?

You need a Structural Engineer. A Chartered Surveyor would take your
money, express some concern over the cracks, and pass the buck,
suggesting that you get a Structural Engineer to inspect and comment.

--
Richard Faulkner

Pasta wrote:

Thanks for the replies so far guys.

I looked at this crack this morning and it was hardly visible, but last
night after the sun was shining on the wall all day it looked like a
gaping cavern!. I guess some of it is down to perspective - the minute
you notice something like this, you can't help but notice it
continually!

I have looked around a bit closer and can see a horizontal crack
running accross the same wall in the room next door a few inches below
the ceiling. It runs right accross the wall in this room. Again it's
quite small in width at the moment.

Given all of this it does seem to point to being the fact that the roof
has spread slightly and maybe has pulled the top few layers of bricks
out. That would certainly fit in with the long horizontal crack I have
found, and perhaps explains the other one.

I may well get an engineer in now to assess the roof - of course that
leads to another problem! Anyone know the difference between a
Chartered Surveyor(which seems to be the people advertising in the
main) and a structural engineer? Would I get a better service from one
than the other? or are they the same 'thing' listing under different
guises?

the day you employ a struc eng to diagnose a 1mm crack is the day youve
lost all perspective.


NT

Richard Faulkner wrote:
In message .com,
Pasta writes

I may well get an engineer in now to assess the roof - of course that
leads to another problem! Anyone know the difference between a
Chartered Surveyor(which seems to be the people advertising in the
main) and a structural engineer? Would I get a better service from
one than the other? or are they the same 'thing' listing under
different guises?


You need a Structural Engineer. A Chartered Surveyor would take your
money, express some concern over the cracks, and pass the buck,
suggesting that you get a Structural Engineer to inspect and comment.

Or just inform your insurance company. I've heard they don't consider
anything you can't put your fist in as a crack

"Pasta" wrote in message
oups.com...
Thanks for the replies so far guys.

I looked at this crack this morning and it was hardly visible, but last
night after the sun was shining on the wall all day it looked like a
gaping cavern!. I guess some of it is down to perspective - the minute
you notice something like this, you can't help but notice it
continually!

I have looked around a bit closer and can see a horizontal crack
running accross the same wall in the room next door a few inches below
the ceiling. It runs right accross the wall in this room. Again it's
quite small in width at the moment.

Given all of this it does seem to point to being the fact that the roof
has spread slightly and maybe has pulled the top few layers of bricks
out. That would certainly fit in with the long horizontal crack I have
found, and perhaps explains the other one.

I may well get an engineer in now to assess the roof - of course that
leads to another problem! Anyone know the difference between a
Chartered Surveyor(which seems to be the people advertising in the
main) and a structural engineer? Would I get a better service from one
than the other? or are they the same 'thing' listing under different
guises?


As another poster said, getting in a structural engineer to look at a 1mm
crack
is rather taking a sledgehammer to crack a nut. If I were you ( I have a
1/4"
wide crack by the way, eeeeeh,you're lucky! ) I'd just apply a bit of logic
and
observation to the crack for the time being. If it widens markedly in a
short
amount of time ( sub one year, say ) then by all means get someone to take
a look.

Given your observations so far, I would glue some thin watch glass over
the
crack at right angles to it ( I actually found that if I heated up some
shattered light bulb
glass I had with a gas burner I could stretch it flat and thin - ideal )
with epoxy and
note the date. As the OP that suggested this idea says, the glass is brittle
and will
crack with any movement.

Second, I would see if there is some sort of correlation between sunshine
and crack
width, or even seasonality and crack width: that'll give you a big clue if
there is a
connection. I don't know that there'd be anything to see in your attic, if
it is roof spreading,
but it might be worth taking a gander up there and minutely inspecting the
beams and
their ties and seating to see if there are any clues. It may not be possible
to see
minute movements in a timber structure.

And of course, you could search the web to see if there is any professional
( or otherwise )
info out there on this subject.

Andy.

In message . com,
writes
Pasta wrote:

Thanks for the replies so far guys.

I looked at this crack this morning and it was hardly visible, but last
night after the sun was shining on the wall all day it looked like a
gaping cavern!. I guess some of it is down to perspective - the minute
you notice something like this, you can't help but notice it
continually!

I have looked around a bit closer and can see a horizontal crack
running accross the same wall in the room next door a few inches below
the ceiling. It runs right accross the wall in this room. Again it's
quite small in width at the moment.

Given all of this it does seem to point to being the fact that the roof
has spread slightly and maybe has pulled the top few layers of bricks
out. That would certainly fit in with the long horizontal crack I have
found, and perhaps explains the other one.

I may well get an engineer in now to assess the roof - of course that
leads to another problem! Anyone know the difference between a
Chartered Surveyor(which seems to be the people advertising in the
main) and a structural engineer? Would I get a better service from one
than the other? or are they the same 'thing' listing under different
guises?

the day you employ a struc eng to diagnose a 1mm crack is the day youve
lost all perspective.


If he wasnt thinking of selling, I would tend to suggest a "wait and
see" approach. However, the day most buyers see a 1mm crack, is the day
they use it to negotiate the price down. An engineers report is a small
price to pay to remove the doubt, and the negotiation.

Regds

--
Richard Faulkner

Pasta wrote:

A crack on one of the walls of my house has appeared to grow in length
and slightly in width over the course of this year. Previously it's
been the same for years, so am not sure why it should suddenly grow
again.

Near drought cionditions + clay soil + tree growth nearby = shrinking
soil...?

I have a 1950s house with a cavity wall. The crack is on the inner
wall (I can't see anything on the outside wall) and runs from one of
the bottom corners of my (upstairs) landing window diagonally upwards
across the flank wall for a good 3 feet.

At the moment the crack appears small in width, ranging from a fraction
of a mm to 1mm - but it is so noticeable because of the position.
It's just in one of those pieces of walls that you look at every time
you use the stairs!

The crack also seems to increase in 'width' depending upon whether
the sun is shining on that part of the house.

Does anyone think I should be worried? All of the reading I have done
suggests that if it were serious - like subsidence - it would likely
manifest itself on the outside walls as well and would likely be near
the ground. I did wonder whether it was just the roof shifting
slightly for some reason and causing the load to be re-distributed?

I don't really want to get a surveyor in because of the cost for what
may be such a trivial problem - houses after all get cracks! But I
am looking at moving and don't want it to cause a problem with a sale.

Anyone got any ideas or comments?