Your house wall has sunk, what will you do?

That was the question my client wanted answered when he booked defect inspection and report on his investment unit in Sunbury. He had already had several repair quotes from underpinning contractors but they differed wildly ( from $6500 to $15000) with confusing scope of work.

The inspection revealed section of the timber floor had subsided and the brick wall on the corner had subsided approximately 60mm. This was enough for some ugly cracking inside dwelling and for brickwork separating from window frame externally.

The first step was to diagnose the cause of the problem and in the rear of the yard,  poor drainage and neglected site maintenance was detected.

The second step was how to fix it and I outlined drainage and maintenance improvements that were required to stop it happening again once the house was fixed.

The actual wall repair proposal consisted of traditional underpinning and I advised the client what to look for in the contractor, what procedure will apply and what to watch out for. As experienced underpinning contractor myself I was able to explain advantages and difficulties of that method.

The alternative to underpinning is expanding resin injection into the foundation material and I pointed the client in the direction of getting some quotes for that.

The third option was the “cheat sheet” , not rally cheating but an option that comes from extensive experience that can get you the result with unconventional methods.(nothing illegal or underhand just creative solutions)

I outlined two unconventional options but in away that gave my client understanding and confidence. Either of the options should come in at about half the cost of the lowest underpinning quote and could be done in one third of the time. Best of all it was simple and easy for him to understand and control it. At the fraction of the cost he feared he would have to pay he was all smiles.

I have the best job in the world, people actually smile when they pay me. Beat that!

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