Building Inspections

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alasta

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#293578 31-Jan-2022 09:14

Last year I purchased a newly built house and I am considering getting an independent building inspection done so that I can ensure that I have identified all defects before the one year statutory warranty expires. The defects that I know about thus far are mainly cosmetic and building infrastructure issues that don't present any major financial risk to me, however I have some concerns around a large crack in one of the load bearing horizontal beams under the house as pictured below.

Should I get this checked out and, if so, can anyone recommend anyone in Wellington to do it?

eracode

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#2859018 31-Jan-2022 10:05

IANA builder but that looks like fairly normal ‘checking’ - maybe a bit more than normal. However given that the bearer is under compression load, probably nothing to be worried about. Experts may disagree.

(For a one year old new-build, that piece of timber looks quite old compared to the joists resting on it - and looks like it has earlier nail holes in it and an old finishing coating. The check/crack also looks quite old - not recent. Has it been recycled? Not that it necessarily matters but you would expect to be buying a house built from new materials.)

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alasta

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#2859413 31-Jan-2022 16:40

Thanks for that. I got one of my colleagues to look at the photo and he seems to think it's normal for native timber to crack like that so maybe it'll be okay.

That is an interesting observation regarding the possible reuse of the timber. I get the impression that some corners have been cut.

tchart

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#2859435 31-Jan-2022 17:54

IANA builder either but I was under the impression that bearers should be on top of the piles and not bolted horizontally like that. It’s hard to tell from the photo. Do the piles/poles have a section cut out?

I could be wrong though but I can’t see why the building spec for a deck wouldn’t allow that but a house would…

alasta

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#2859449 31-Jan-2022 19:09

Yes, it's hard to see from the photo but the piles have got a ledge in them for the horizontal beams to rest on. It's not clear to me how much of the load is being taken by the bolt vs the ledge on the pile.

Ruphus

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#2859688 1-Feb-2022 00:45

The bearer does have some straining on it but it looks fine. Nails get hammered into timber all the time when houses are being built for various reasons i.e. running string lines, and you can see that the holes have a rectangular shape to them so only the tip of the nail has been driven in.

insane

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#2859754 1-Feb-2022 09:43

IANA builder either, but I'm guessing the end grain could be sealed and the crack dressed to prevent moisture getting in there. It looks like a fairly sizable beam and would/should have been overengineered to begin with. And as far as I know you can drill out up to 1/3 of the width of lumber (in the middle that is) and still not sacrifice it's loading capability, so I'd guess that a crack like that is a non-issue.

With materials shortages I'd imagine using substitutes would be fairly common now?

That part of the house does look fairly exposed to the elements though, and I can't see any moisture barrier on the ground - assumed those were mandatory now, no?

tchart

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#2859759 1-Feb-2022 09:55

alasta:
Yes, it's hard to see from the photo but the piles have got a ledge in them for the horizontal beams to rest on. It's not clear to me how much of the load is being taken by the bolt vs the ledge on the pile.

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alasta

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#2859793 1-Feb-2022 10:51

insane:

IANA builder either, but I'm guessing the end grain could be sealed and the crack dressed to prevent moisture getting in there. It looks like a fairly sizable beam and would/should have been overengineered to begin with. And as far as I know you can drill out up to 1/3 of the width of lumber (in the middle that is) and still not sacrifice it's loading capability, so I'd guess that a crack like that is a non-issue.

Thanks, that's useful to know.

That part of the house does look fairly exposed to the elements though, and I can't see any moisture barrier on the ground - assumed those were mandatory now, no?

Most of the structural members are exposed to weather, but all of them have good airflow so I'm thinking that rotting isn't too much of a risk?

The building is elevated off the ground on a sloping section and has underfloor panels instead of a moisture barrier. The photo captures a part of the building where one of the underfloor panels is missing due to the builders having 'forgotten' about it (!!!) so it will eventually be fixed when I chase them up a dozen more times.

insane

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#2859874 1-Feb-2022 12:08

Yeah I'm not too sure sorry. My place is also on a slope, but has skirts around it. The clearance varies from 30cm to standing height. I have the greenstuff underfloor insulation and the ground moisture mat prevents rising damp and the insulation from getting moist. I can't visualise the panels you're talking about so perhaps it serves the same purpose.

I went around a few weeks back with my new non contact moisture meter thingy and the timbers are all well below tolerance except for one (which I cannot explain as there's no water or pipes anywhere neat it). House feels drier since having it done, and because of an adjacent house, I got it for free under some government scheme.

You'd think you shouldn't have to do QA on a new build and that it would be done right first time aye.

wellygary

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#2859877 1-Feb-2022 12:12

alasta:

Yes, it's hard to see from the photo but the piles have got a ledge in them for the horizontal beams to rest on. It's not clear to me how much of the load is being taken by the bolt vs the ledge on the pile.

The ledge will be taking most /if not all of the weight, the bolt is to stop the beam moving out laterally and coming off the ledge...

alasta

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#2859881 1-Feb-2022 12:19

wellygary:

alasta:

Yes, it's hard to see from the photo but the piles have got a ledge in them for the horizontal beams to rest on. It's not clear to me how much of the load is being taken by the bolt vs the ledge on the pile.

The ledge will be taking most /if not all of the weight, the bolt is to stop the beam moving out laterally and coming off the ledge...

That is interesting because some of the piles seem to have a few millimetres of spacing between the ledge and the horizontal beam, which suggests that the bolt is taking the structural load. I will have a closer look at it.