What is House Underpinning?
Underpinning refers to the construction of additional and stiffer footings to strengthen or stabilize an existing house or property. Usually, underpinning is carried out to support a house which is suffering from subsidence.
One sign that your house needs underpinning Melbourne is when cracks are visible. When the cracks of a building are 1/4 inch, that is a sure indicator that your building has a faulty foundation and it requires underpinning. If your structure exhibits diagonal cracks, you need to call a surveyor to perform a study on the causes.
When should you perform underpinning?
The footings of houses move for different reasons. However, no all footing movements require underpinning.
Underpinning is required when the footing of a building have dropped or subsided for the reason that is unlikely to reverse. For instance, a house footing constructed on loose soil or uncompacted fill will require an underpinning.
How is the process performed?
The process always involves digging new bored pier footing besides a house. The distance to the wall of the house should be between 2-3 meters. Notably, the drilling should be deep enough to support the weight of the building. Once the digging is done, the deeper footing needs to be joined with the existing structure. Often, the process is achieved by undermining the foundation and creating stronger props for the existing footing. Next, the prop and the pier are reinforced with steel reinforcement bars and filled with concrete.
Underpinning Techniques
There are different methods of underpinning a house. These include:
1. Underpinning with brackets and piles: This method is typically used where the traditional process is not possible.
2. Beam and Pile method: The method is used to alleviating footing. It requires a mini-pile to be excavated on the sides of the affected wall.
3. Using Piled Raft: This process is deployed when the whole structure needs underpinning. It is usually recommended when the foundation of the building is too deep.
Tips for underpinning
-The process should be started from the corners moving inwards.
-It must be done only on load-bearing walls.
-Never underpin below non-loaded walls.
One sign that your house needs underpinning Melbourne is when cracks are visible. When the cracks of a building are 1/4 inch, that is a sure indicator that your building has a faulty foundation and it requires underpinning. If your structure exhibits diagonal cracks, you need to call a surveyor to perform a study on the causes.
When should you perform underpinning?
The footings of houses move for different reasons. However, no all footing movements require underpinning.
Underpinning is required when the footing of a building have dropped or subsided for the reason that is unlikely to reverse. For instance, a house footing constructed on loose soil or uncompacted fill will require an underpinning.
How is the process performed?
The process always involves digging new bored pier footing besides a house. The distance to the wall of the house should be between 2-3 meters. Notably, the drilling should be deep enough to support the weight of the building. Once the digging is done, the deeper footing needs to be joined with the existing structure. Often, the process is achieved by undermining the foundation and creating stronger props for the existing footing. Next, the prop and the pier are reinforced with steel reinforcement bars and filled with concrete.
Underpinning Techniques
There are different methods of underpinning a house. These include:
1. Underpinning with brackets and piles: This method is typically used where the traditional process is not possible.
2. Beam and Pile method: The method is used to alleviating footing. It requires a mini-pile to be excavated on the sides of the affected wall.
3. Using Piled Raft: This process is deployed when the whole structure needs underpinning. It is usually recommended when the foundation of the building is too deep.
Tips for underpinning
-The process should be started from the corners moving inwards.
-It must be done only on load-bearing walls.
-Never underpin below non-loaded walls.