Hi All,
I've got an older block house built in the 1940's. It's a decent place. The ground is shifting and the walls are starting to crack in several places. I'd like to tie the walls together with rebar and concrete in the voids of the internal block. The idea is to make the block walls into a one-piece wall.
Are any "systems" available or are any "how-to's" available on how to accomplish this? Any info really appreciated.
If ground is shifting, you need to stabilize the ground and maybe reinforce the foundation. Call a foundation repair company. Mud jacking, pured-in-place pilings, altered ground water flow paths, there are all sorts of cures they can try depending on your situation.
Putting rebar in the walls and pouring them full of concrete will make little difference. Well-built structures crack or collapse all the time if there is not a solid footing underneath them.
-- aem sends...
I'm not sure it is going to solve the problem. I'm not a structural engineer, but perhaps you should talk to one. You may need to do some outdoor work to take stresses off the walls. What is causing the ground to shift? I'd find out and fix that if possible.
There really isn't a way of doing that after the block walls are built...
You have that option to grout the block cavities as you are building the wall and reinforcing with rebar but once the wall is completed you really can't change it in the ways you want to without tearing it all out and starting again with a new wall...
As others have said, even properly designed and reinforced structures crack when their foundations shift and settle...
You should pay more attention to what is causing the shifting and correcting that problem before you go off and choose to INCREASE the amount the building weighs by grouting your block walls solid... Imagine how much worse the settling and cracking problem would be if your building had fully grouted block walls now ?
Do you have a water problem on your site ? Has new construction in your area effected the water flow patterns through your property ? Did you have a poorly engineered or designed foundation for your site conditions ?
Good Luck...
~~ Evan
How long have you owned it, by now id think settling stopped, stopped along time ago, is this new movement. How big a crack are you talking about, if its maybe 1/4" and not moving then motaring would probably fix it. You nned to get people out that can see it, we cant.
I would suggest a strutural professional be consulted first. If it is basicaly sound, I seem to recall a liquid materal with, I seem to remember fiberglass stands in a media that could be painted or trowled onto a wall providing additional strength stabilizing the wall.
Good Luck and do step one first.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.