I have a concrete block wall (foundation for a rear single-story enclosed porch, 10 feet long, 6 blocks high... maybe 3.5-4 feet high?) that has buckled inward (as much as 6" in center) due to moisture freezing/expanding in the ground outside. The top course-and-a-half is above the exterior grade, and the inside of the wall (under the porch floor) has dirt up about a third of the height.
We have done the following already:
- installed gutters above to route water away from foundation
- dug down to bottom (unmoved) course on both inside and out
- jacked up porch floor to take weight off wall, and shifted blocks back to plumb
- made plans to fill the 1-foot space immediately outside wall with stone gravel to improve water drainage
- made plans to grade dirt away from house to improve water drainage
My question: What steps can/should I take to keep the blocks where I have (re)placed them?
Obviously, the cement seams between the blocks are long-since compromised. My thoughts include:
- metal mesh bolted to inside of wall (attached to every block) to take tensile loads of future pressure on outside
- parging cement on inside/outside surfaces to keep moisture from between blocks
- building buttresses of blocks inside (think steps of blocks, perpendicular to wall, at say three points along length)
- piling/packing the dirt back aalong the inside wall surface
- pour a concrete/cement buttress along inside length (not easy, since porch floor is in the way)
Which (combination) of these options would you employ, or what other suggestions might you have?
Additional info: This house in in upstate NY (Ithaca). We are fixing up to sell - already have new residence in NJ.
Thanks for any advice,
Teo