Expansion/contraction in winter

[John Smith]

I have a 3 year old house that has a problem with expansion/contraction in the winter. The house was built in the summer and consequently during the winter I have a couple of doorways that go out of square and a few cracks appear. Then when it warms up again that doorways go back to normal and the cracks close up. (This is all on the inside).

I feel I should mention that the house is about ~80ft long with a ~35ft steel I-beam supporting the back half of the roof. The beam was glued in place.

I am not sure if the beam contracting is the problem or not. Any ideas about what is causing it, and how to fix it?

thanks

[George E. Cawthon]

Don't think your problem is thermal expansion and contraction. Doors moving around usually indicate supports (foundation) moving around. If your house is built on clay, the clay will expand and contract with moisture content and the movement will likely be uneven from end to end and from side to side under your house.

[tbasc]

The possible causes for this recurring problem are too complex to find at a distance. If it were my house, I'd be concerned about damage caused by the movement. You might find a forensic architect or engineer to examine the problem and suggest a fix. TB

[trader4]

That would be the first time I ever heard of a steel beam being glued into place. It's very unclear what's really going on here. How out of square do the doorways get? Where are the cracks appearing and how big are they?

If I had to guess, I would think one of the problems might be the difference in expansion rates of wood vs the steel beam? But if it were me, I'd get a structural engineer in to take a look, especially since it's a new house and under any new home warranty, a lot more is covered earlier than later/

I am not sure if the beam contracting is the problem or not. Any ideas

[m Ransley]

How big are the cracks, there is an amount considered normal and of no concern, are they 1/32", or 1/4" I know an area of town built on an underground river that all houses in the area have doors that dont close in spring. Glued on beam, No. Just get a pro out.

[Joseph Meehan]

It's hard to say since there are a number of possibilities. In any case, I would suspect that the problem is more a matter of humidity than temperature. In addition I suspect that a good part of the problem is that the house was built will wood that was too high a moisture content and have dried out.