Has My Wall Shifted Upwards?

[purplelily]

I recently bought a small Victorian terraced house. Unfortunately I didn't have a structural survey carried out (crazy, I know).

After the purchase went through, I noticed a crack in one of the bedrooms, in one corner, going from floor to ceiling. It's not very wide - I'd say a maximum of a millimetre wide.

However, since noticing this, I've also noticed that the skirting board on one of the walls seems to have 'shifted' upwards, so that it's about half an inch higher than the one it's at right-angles with. Does this mean that there is likely to have been subsidence at some point?

I'm wondering about my best options - whether to have a structural survey now, or whether to skim plaster the walls in that room as intended and just see whether the crack comes through again.

Thanks in advance!

[March-Hare]

Personally I would get a full structural done now and follow any advice ...... expensive but cheaper than ignoring problems in the long run

[soapnumpty]

I would agree you need to get a structural engineer to look at it. If it is subsidence the cracks would be on the ground floor, coming up from the ground. If the cracks are only on the 1st floor it could be a problem with the roof or lintels above the windows. Find out what is causing the problem then ring your insurers to check if they will cover it. Although speaking as someone who works in insurance, it is unlikely to be covered.

Did you find out whether the property had suffered from subsidence before, or any other structural problems?

[purplelily]

Thank you both, I think that this is what I'll have to do. At least I'll know exactly what I'm dealing with. The estate agent/owner said that there had been no evidence of subsidence, but I know now that I should have had a structural surveyor in. The speed of the London property market, and the number of properties I'd been outbid on, made me panic-buy, I think.

As regards it being on the first floor, I did wonder whether the roof tiles might have something to do with it - they were originally slate, but are now generic red roofing tiles which I assume are heavier.

A structural surveyor it shall be, and I'll have to keep my fingers crossed that any remedial work isn't too expensive!

[soapnumpty]

Good luck! Yes you could be right. The roof could be struggling under the weight of the tiles and pushing down and outwards. If TheBuilder is on here he might be able to advise you better.

[buildersmate]

Cracks are only a problem if they are continuing to shift, and a one milliametre wide crack is chicken-feed. It could have happened years ago.
I'd put a pencil mark across it to see if one side shifts against the other over say a month, and not spend money on the surveyor right now.

[purplelily]

Thanks so much buildersmate, I could definitely do with saving up some more money for a full survey if it can wait a bit longer. My concern is something terrible happening, like the roof suddenly caving in - presumably something like this isn't likely to happen?! Excuse my ignorance :D

[Clanad]

Does the basement have access? Or alternately, does the foundation have a 'crawl space' that will allow you to see the foundation directly under the area you describe? If so, you'd want to see how it's supported. Additionally, if the foundation is a basement, you'd be alert for any 'Bowing" (i.e. bulging) of the interior wall.

Here in the U.S., older homes often have cracks in load bearing walls that usually don't' cause concern. Especially here in the northern latitudes, we see winters with temperatures of -20 F or more and late at night they bang and pop as the outer structure contracts with the cold (and expands in the hot summers). While there's no great concern structurally, some walls will crack due to the relief of stresses...

[Mosaic]

To add to Buildersmate's advice: serious structural cracking usually presents as wider at one end of the crack than the other, so in watching for any movement of your pencil line, observe each end of the crack and see if it is wider at one end or same width all the way along.
In older houses the walls and floors are seldom 'true'. In my house there are door frames that are completely daft - your skirting board may have been wonky since it was built, and got past inspection by having a piece of furniture in front of it.

[Peter Pedant]

Get a structural survey and follow advice

I thought it must be London - speed is of the essence.
My brother managed to sell a subsiding house in Hammersmith we thought it was nothing short of a miracle.

Close you eyes - get it done - and think of the capital gain for the next year ( 50k I think )

[The Builder]

Nothing much to add to what's already been said, Lily.

I'm assuming it's where the front wall joins a side wall. I've seen this a couple of times. Victorian terraces were often very weak when it comes to cross-tieing. In short... holding the front wall in place.

Slate roofs are comparatively light. Concrete tiles are maybe three times the load. I guess you have "roof spread". Eventually there may be a serious failure, but in many cases it goes no further, resulting in an "historic" crack rather than a worrying recent one.

I would have a Structural Engineer rather than a Surveyor. Nothing against Surveyors, but they would most likely eventually employ an SE to provide a practical solution anyway.

The last time I fixed this (assuming it is the roof spreading), I simply fitted a 25mm diameter round bar connecting the front roof slope to the rear one.

In the roof-space ..... along the top of the ceiling rafters ... hooked and fixed over the front and rear wall plates. (They're just the lengths of 4x2 that the rafters are nailed to.)

The bar simply ties the front slope to the rear. The idea is to stop it from moving any more. Something similar may need to be fixed at bedroom floor level, but the SE will decide that.

Don't panic :o)

[purplelily]

Thank you all so much for continuing to respond.

Clanad - I don't have a basement or crawl space (which is a shame, I'd love a basement room!).

Mosaic - the crack looks to be the same at top and bottom at the moment, but I've made several pencil marks now, as per The Builder's advice, and I'll watch out for any changes in the width as well.

Peter - funny you should say that, the house next door and the house directly opposite have both just sold for 50k more than I paid not long ago! Mine could do with some TLC though. London is one crazy city.

The Builder - more great advice, thanks for explaining so clearly. I didn't realise there was a difference between a structural engineer and a structural surveyor, that's good to know. And yes, that's exactly where the crack is.

Thanks again all, I feel a lot better now! ☺️