Basement walls

[X-Rated]

So far it looks like South Carolina is not happening for us. So I am looking for a less costly place to live.

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m165/n9xr/IMG_5245_zps359dc92b.jpg

Found this one house that seems ideal except for this basement wall. It bulges pretty far out. but...
A. The thing has been concreted up. Looks like it is holding. You can see where the flashlight is that the regular wal was and where it was concreted up to cover the impending collapse. There are no cracks in the concrete.
B. There was a wall built to the left of this shot to relieve the stress in this wall.

So is this house worth the risk? Will this wall remain stable with any certainty?

[K7SGJ]

If it were me, and I was seriously considering buying the house, I would have a structural engineer look at it. Perhaps you could make it a condition of the sale and have the seller pick up the costs. Without it, I would be scared shitless that it might all cave in, and never get a good night of sleep.

[X-Rated]

Finding an inspector is a task. The inspector we had from this hose was worthless. It was a mess of money we spent for nothing. Still cost us thousands in repairs within a year of moving in repairs required that was not caught. But your advice is sound if I can find a real structural engineer. I will look.

[AE1PT]

This is an expensive episode waiting to happen. Looks like there are already water issues.

Very little that can be done here except break the wall out, excavate behind it, rebuild the wall after discovering what drainage or other issue caused the strain on the wall in the first place, rectifying that and then and put a waterproofing coat on all the block walls once rebuilt. Attempting to put horizontal anchors to retain the wall is a fool's errand. Believe me, as I have a master's degree in this stuff.

Ask the seller to reduce the price of the house by at least five grand if you are really interested.

[X-Rated]

This is an expensive episode waiting to happen. Looks like there are already water issues.

Very little that can be done here except break the wall out, excavate behind it, rebuild the wall after discovering what drainage or other issue caused the strain on the wall in the first place, rectifying that and then and put a waterproofing coat on all the block walls once rebuilt. Attempting to put horizontal anchors to retain the wall is a fool's errand. Believe me, as I have a master's degree in this stuff.

Ask the seller to reduce the price of the house by at least five grand if you are really interested.

Your opinion on this means a lot Pat. Thanks.

So are you saying that the job will cost $5000?

[N8YX]

I'm going to go with Pat on this. Said basement looks like an impending mess, and one wonders what else is going to have to be done in the way of exterior drainage improvements to prevent a recurrence.

[X-Rated]

The cement looked several years old and there are no cracks so there is no settling. I thought it might be okay. If it will somehow restart crumbling, I would need to get it fixed.

[NA4BH]

How old is the house? Does the backyard slope towards the house?

[X-Rated]

I think the house was built in 1943. The land immediately surrounding the house is relatively flat. The wall bulge is in the front of the house.

[NA4BH]

For whatever reason the basement wall has pressure on it and it's not likely to stop. If this is in the Chicago area and the bulge is due to water, a couple of good freezes is going to push that wall down. Personally I'd steer clear of the future money pit and look elsewhere. Let the current owners find a new fish to take on their problems.

[X-Rated]

The XYL was thinking about this house. She is shifting to another place soon.

[N2NH]

I gotta agree that this is not the kind of place to live in. Just knowing that is under the house would mean a lot of sleepless nights.

[n2ize]

I knew a people that bought homes with similar basement problems. One wound up having to move out while the house was torn down, the basement re-dug and fortified with new walls and a new house built. He had to shoulder the cost of the entire project. Another person wasn't so lucky. The house collapsed in the middle of the night trapping his wife and kids and severely injuring him. Wife and kids were extracted from the rubble and were okay albeit shaken up badly. The guy fell two stories and some heavy debris landed on him. It was months before he could walk again.

[KK4AMI]

Finding out how the damage occurred would be key to my determining whether or not to buy. If it's the front of the house, the water main to the house might have broken and caused that. Or the gutters weren't draining correctly. In that case, if it was fixed, it may never happen again.

If it's due to natural ground water or improper drainage around the house then you have to worry about it unless you can correct the drainage issue. Good luck, the two things that gave me the biggest ulcer were buying a house and getting married. Never again! :snooty:

[w0aew]

1. Think
2. Google "sinkhole"
3. Think again

[K7SGJ]

Finding out how the damage occurred would be key to my determining whether or not to buy. If it's the front of the house, the water main to the house might have broken and caused that. Or the gutters weren't draining correctly. In that case, if it was fixed, it may never happen again.

If it's due to natural ground water or improper drainage around the house then you have to worry about it unless you can correct the drainage issue. Good luck, the two things that gave me the biggest ulcer were buying a house and getting married. Never again! :snooty:

In that order?