Construction Help Needed !

[ECIGTT]

I just completed building a new house and realized after the plastering is done there is a huge crack on one side of the house. Does anyone have any Idea if this can be cause by -

A pond located about 8 feet away from the house or the big mango tree next to it? I am located in central and willing to pay for the repairs once it can be fixed for good.

[skylinechild]

I just completed building a new house and realized after the plastering is done there is a huge crack on one side of the house. Does anyone have any Idea if this can be cause by -

A pond located about 8 feet away from the house or the big mango three next to it? I am located in central and willing to pay for the repairs once it can be fixed for good.

dont you mean a big mango tree???

three = number
tree = a grown up plant

and it could be either the tree or pond.....ask the man who build the foundation for that wall how deep the foundation went....if it's 4 ft and you have a pond close by, it's supposed to be way more deeper with good 5/8 or 3/4 steel.....

[ECIGTT]

sorry made a little mistake.,

[De Dragon]

Does the crack go deeper than the mortar layer?

[ECIGTT]

yes the blocks itself is cracked . like a zig zag line

[De Dragon]

yes the blocks itself is cracked . like a zig zag line

Fack! May be foundation problems. Try Rahtid on the forums, I know he's into construction.

[rdeonarine]

the cracks you described sounds more than superficial, some more details are required, are the walls, hollow clay blocks or concrete blocks, if conc blocks were used:
1.was any horizontal and vertical reinforcement used in the wall?
2. when you say 'just completed', exactly what how long ago was this?
3. what is the proximity of the building from the pond?
4. is the tree still alive, roots from a big tree such as that usually cause settling problems for the foundations, which over time can cause walls to crack.
5. what area was this building constructed, was piling done
Until you provide some additional details, all i can do is speculate as to the cause of your problem

[Zeriam]

sounds like poor foundation work maybe

[ECIGTT]

Hollow clay were used:
1.vertical reinforcement used in the corners with steel coming up from the foundation and casted into a post in each corner.

2. The blocks work was completed in November last year, the roof in January and plastering also.

3. The pond is about 8 feet away from the back of the house.

4. Yes the tree is still alive and about 10 feet away from the house buts its a big tree.

5. Piling was never done because i believe when i paid the builders to do my work i was ripped off as i was not in the country.

I am willing to pay once these cracks can be permanently fixed. You are welcome to visit my place in cunupia for a site visit. call 620-2862 please i need help here.

[rdeonarine]

8' from the back of the house is extremely close, is this a natural pond or was it man made, proper planning for this project should of taken that into consideration, depending on the size of the pond, it should of been drained, filled with earth and allowed to settle for a period of time, the tree should of been cut down and the roots excavated and removed.
were the blocks used vertical core or horizontal,sounds more like vertical core tho, if 4"thick HCB were used the corners and junctions points should of been reinforced conc columns.
If your foundation works were poor, i.e. if no piling was done , this would contribute to your problem as well, soil conditions would have dictated this, generally the type of soil in central and south is expansive clay, meaning it cracks in dry season and 'swells' in the wet and as a result cause movement of the foundation, which result in cracks,
Sadly there are temporary fixes which can be very costly and dont last very long (a couple of years max)this includes stitching of the wall and applying a cementitious grout , depending on the extent of the damage, you may have to end up re-building

[speed demon]

i agree with the above assessment, but i will lean more toward issues of settlement or to be more precise differential settlement i.e. one area sinking more than the other. I say this because of the time frame within which the house was loaded with the block work and then the roof also that we havnt had much rain to cause any contraction and expansion of the soil ( provided he is located in expansion clay area and not just the basic central red clay etc etc).

So potential problems

1. The area where the foundation was placed was not properly prepared
2. The foundation was not done properly to adequately bridge weak soil areas

One question though, we kept focusing on the blockwork crack. are there any signs of cracking in the concrete floor in that area or anywhere else. Tiles raising etc its an indicator as well.

Either way is foundation work thats got to be done if the damage isnt to great. Worst case scenario some level of rebuild.

[Shooter_boy_J]

Call UdECott! I hear them does do good work!

[rdeonarine]

Speed demon, i agree with you totally,
differential settlement would have occured if proper compaction was not achieved, either way , with regards to the cracking of the walls, the best method for a 'fix' would be to drill a roughly 3 to 4" from where the crack stops, about 1/2" and inject a high strength non shrink grout, to first prevent the crack from spreading, the crack then needs to widened and all loose material removed, then a mesh fabric like 'hi rib' wire needs to be installed and re-plastered, mind you this will not permanently solve the problem, but should last for a couple years if its done properly

[Greypatch]

For a proper answer one will have to take a lok at the wall and its surrondings.

[speed demon]

indeed or great one ........................

[cornstarz]

post up some pics showing the distance form the pond and the tree from the building and a closeup and a general pic of the area which is cracked

[Ignorant Ignis]

first thing first ........

take a small piece of 5/32" glass 2" x 4" and stick it to the wall across the crack with contact cement.
the glue should be on either side of the glass.

post back here the date u applied it and the date it broke......

don't do anything till then ............

to many rip off contractors in Trinidad

[Mr. Red Sleeper]

For a proper answer one will have to take a lok at the wall and its surrondings.

Well said.

[Ignorant Ignis]

For a proper answer one will have to take a lok at the wall and its surrondings.

Well said.

looking would only lead to a guesstimate ..... and u could end up spending a few k on a problem that would return.

u have a serious problem that could lead to further damage

u need a structural engineer to take a look at it ... not a "contractor"

but follow my advice first

[ECIGTT]

what do you mean by - take a small piece of 5/32" glass 2" x 4" and stick it to the wall across the crack with contact cement.
the glue should be on either side of the glass.

whats your number can i call you on this?

[Rahtid]

first thing first ........

take a small piece of 5/32" glass 2" x 4" and stick it to the wall across the crack with contact cement.
the glue should be on either side of the glass.

post back here the date u applied it and the date it broke......

don't do anything till then ............

to many rip off contractors in Trinidad

i do this with many jobs i get to repair buildings, but i drill the glass tho, i have many pics with before and after.

right now i doing one, just its a four storey building

[rjaggs]

^i would like to see some pics of this

[Mr. Red Sleeper]

first thing first ........

take a small piece of 5/32" glass 2" x 4" and stick it to the wall across the crack with contact cement.
the glue should be on either side of the glass.

post back here the date u applied it and the date it broke......

don't do anything till then ............

to many rip off contractors in Trinidad

i do this with many jobs i get to repair buildings, but i drill the glass tho, i have many pics with before and after.

right now i doing one, just its a four storey building

Rahtid, could you detail for me exactly how this "science" works?

[Rahtid]

rjaggs,
Mr. Red Sleeper,

stay tuned for more info, i kinda lil busy nah

[rjaggs]

staying tuned

[Rahtid]

rjaggs,
Mr. Red Sleeper,

stay tuned for more info, i kinda lil busy nah

pm me a number,ill explain

i showed it to the author of the thread along wit pics

[redman2k8]

U must heard this already but I have the same problem at my folks place... Basically it's foundation settlement. As you have a pond close by... Water is finding it's way in ur foundation blocks making it unstable. The worst that can happen is the cracks would continue to open until u could see outside brother man... It would affect ur roof as well... and the wall is pulling apart, so to speak... An Engineering partner mine recommended Geotech... seeing they have Soil Engineers instead of Structural Engineers...

Structural Engineers would be able to give u detail (referring to the CRACK AND NOT HOW TO FIX WHAT'S CAUSING THE CRACK), instructing the contractor how to proceed, including materials to be supplied etc.

Soil Engineers would test the soil to determine the integrity, based on that, they would provide u with a method of arresting the problem which would be the settlement causing the crack...

Take this info homie...

Geotech Trinidad Office
4 Niles Street, Tunapuna,
Rep. of Trinidad and Tobago, W.I.
Phone: (868) 663-2051, 662-5445, 645-1437
Fax: (868) 645-0793

Email: info@geotechassociates.com

Regards,
Brentte D. Winchester
Architectural Technician

[Ignorant Ignis]

U must heard this already but I have the same problem at my folks place... Basically it's foundation settlement. As you have a pond close by... Water is finding it's way in ur foundation blocks making it unstable. The worst that can happen is the cracks would continue to open until u could see outside brother man... It would affect ur roof as well... and the wall is pulling apart, so to speak... An Engineering partner mine recommended Geotech... seeing they have Soil Engineers instead of Structural Engineers...

Structural Engineers would be able to give u detail (referring to the CRACK AND NOT HOW TO FIX WHAT'S CAUSING THE CRACK), instructing the contractor how to proceed, including materials to be supplied etc.

Soil Engineers would test the soil to determine the integrity, based on that, they would provide u with a method of arresting the problem which would be the settlement causing the crack...

very good info here ......



Take this info homie...

Geotech Trinidad Office
4 Niles Street, Tunapuna,
Rep. of Trinidad and Tobago, W.I.
Phone: (868) 663-2051, 662-5445, 645-1437
Fax: (868) 645-0793

Email: info@geotechassociates.com

Regards,
Brentte D. Winchester
Architectural Technician