Hi!
New here but got a lot of tips and learning a lot. I thought I’d get some guidance regarding the gable on our house. We bought a townhouse we love 7 months ago where much was renovated, we were well aware there was a crack in the gable, it looked small and has now gotten bigger because they "cheated" in fixing it, the previous residents also repainted the house but the paint is peeling which must have been poorly done. How worried should one be about the house collapsing, nervous as heck😁?
The house was built in 1903, basement + 2 floors. It's attached to another house. Drained about 4 years ago? NOTE in the picture I've done a quick fix myself until we hopefully can re-plaster the house. Grateful for answers
The house won't collapse, so you can sleep peacefully. Old houses often have plank walls, which makes them even more stable. It's likely that there have been ground settlements during the re-drainage. Maybe it was left open a bit too long and the bearing layer began to give way slightly. In the picture, it looks like the ground has settled (the innermost row of stones slopes upwards). I would guess that the ground around the house will soon have settled completely, and that in a year or so you can open up the crack (remove the plaster from the entire crack) and repair it properly.
The house won't collapse, so you can sleep soundly. Old houses often have plank walls, which makes them even more stable. It's likely that there have been ground settlements during the re-drainage. Perhaps it was left open a little too long and the bearing layer started to give way slightly. In the picture, it looks like the ground has settled (the innermost row of stones is tilting upwards). I would think that the ground around the house will soon have finished settling and that in a year or so you can open up the crack (remove the render in the whole crack) and repair it properly.
Thanks for the response, Thiger! It makes one nervous, after the drainage they relaid the paving stones so it should be right. The downside now also is the foundation where there have been frost damages and it bulges out in cracks. But I'll chip it down soon and re-plaster it. Perhaps you can answer why some houses like ours have a ledge on the foundation that protrudes about 2 cm from the house wall?
The ground always settles after re-draining, which in itself is nothing unusual. That's why it's usually best to re-drain in the fall and wait until early summer before laying stone, etc. This allows the ground to work through a wet period and frost. In early summer, you level the surface and lay the paving stones according to all the rules of the craft. This at least creates the best conditions to avoid wavy stone paths. However, settling can still occur...
Regarding the foundation, I assume it's just a design feature a'la Skånelänga. It seems that way with your minimal eaves as well. This allows the rain to always reach the façade and it gets wet. Probably requires a bit more maintenance, but many find it very attractive...
Have the cracks gotten worse and worse or does it seem to have stopped? Do you have mesh behind the plaster?
I would recommend applying some fiber-reinforced plaster, preferably down to the mesh if there is any.
I don't think the big crack in the facade is getting bigger, but sure, there are small cracks I don't immediately recognize. Probably something resulting from poor repairs by the previous owner😞
In the base, moisture has definitely gotten in and now it's cracking, I can hear that it's kind of hollow behind it. 99% sure the house isn't meshed. Do you think it's worth knocking down the base before I start on the facade?
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