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Old 06-10-2016, 06:12 PM
 
23 posts, read 26,120 times
Reputation: 12

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So my husband and I purchased a house 2 years ago. Since the basement wall was bowed in, we decided to hire a structural engineer to evaluate before purchasing (we found the engineer on our own). The engineer said it was about 2", wasn't a big concern and recommended regrading the yard, etc. which we did.

Fast forward 2 years, we found the wall is still moving (caused pipe to crack) and brought the same engineer back out. We can't figure out how water is putting pressure on the wall and the engineer decided to measure this time rather than eye-ball it and realized the wall is actually pushed in 4" and the house is only sitting on a small portion of the of the concrete foundation (i.e. that wall that moved). If he would have told us that 2 years ago, we wouldn't have purchased the house. We are looking at about $15,000-20,000 in repairs and he recommends a tie-back system.

Does anyone have any experience in a tie-back system for a bowed basement wall? Who did you use?Should we fix it to the best of our abilities and just sell it to get away from the problem? I like the house and the location, but it is unnerving having structural issues. Even with the 'fix', there is no 100% guarantee.
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Old 06-10-2016, 07:00 PM
 
Location: Highlands Ranch, CO
556 posts, read 763,105 times
Reputation: 848
Quote:
Originally Posted by ClimborSki View Post
So my husband and I purchased a house 2 years ago. Since the basement wall was bowed in, we decided to hire a structural engineer to evaluate before purchasing (we found the engineer on our own). The engineer said it was about 2", wasn't a big concern and recommended regrading the yard, etc. which we did.

Fast forward 2 years, we found the wall is still moving (caused pipe to crack) and brought the same engineer back out. We can't figure out how water is putting pressure on the wall and the engineer decided to measure this time rather than eye-ball it and realized the wall is actually pushed in 4" and the house is only sitting on a small portion of the of the concrete foundation (i.e. that wall that moved). If he would have told us that 2 years ago, we wouldn't have purchased the house. We are looking at about $15,000-20,000 in repairs and he recommends a tie-back system.

Does anyone have any experience in a tie-back system for a bowed basement wall? Who did you use?Should we fix it to the best of our abilities and just sell it to get away from the problem? I like the house and the location, but it is unnerving having structural issues. Even with the 'fix', there is no 100% guarantee.
I don't really know, but I'm assuming this is something insurance will cover?
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Old 06-10-2016, 07:30 PM
 
23 posts, read 26,120 times
Reputation: 12
I doubt insurance will cover it as it is maintenance related, not a sudden loss due to an unforeseen circumstances.
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Old 06-10-2016, 07:46 PM
 
Location: Highlands Ranch, CO
556 posts, read 763,105 times
Reputation: 848
Quote:
Originally Posted by ClimborSki View Post
I doubt insurance will cover it as it is maintenance related, not a sudden loss due to an unforeseen circumstances.
That's lame. Im sorry.
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Old 06-10-2016, 07:53 PM
 
Location: OH>IL>CO>CT
7,516 posts, read 13,621,554 times
Reputation: 11908
Have you or the engineer ever heard of bentonite clay ?
If not, here is some reading:
Expansive Soils Destroy Homes in Colorado - Colorado Inspection Services
Swelling Soils | Colorado Geological Survey
https://www.denvergov.org/Portals/42...ve%20Soils.pdf
Here
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Old 06-10-2016, 08:33 PM
 
2,175 posts, read 4,299,085 times
Reputation: 3491
You can sue the engineer for malpractice and hopefully cover your costs that way.
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Old 06-10-2016, 09:19 PM
 
23 posts, read 26,120 times
Reputation: 12
That would be difficult to prove that it was actually bowed in 4" 2 years ago
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Old 06-10-2016, 09:58 PM
 
Location: Phoenix, AZ
2,653 posts, read 3,046,764 times
Reputation: 2871
OP, I truly feel your pain. Soil problems in metro Denver are pervasive and often difficult to fix (or prevent.) I'd be so angry at the engineer if I was in your shoes.
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Old 06-10-2016, 10:23 PM
 
23 posts, read 26,120 times
Reputation: 12
Can't really change the past now no matter how much I'd like to. The question is stay and hope repairs fix the problem (house was built in the 70's) or move.
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Old 06-10-2016, 11:05 PM
 
Location: Betwixt and Between
462 posts, read 1,173,473 times
Reputation: 424
Ugh. Bentonite clays swell terribly when they get wet and can exert enormous pressures on foundation walls, enough to cause wall failure as you well know. A tie back system will work if properly designed and if you have the room for it. Not sure how big your lot is but basically, anchors are set into the ground and holes are drilled through the foundation wall. Tension rods are connected from the anchors to the wall to prevent it from moving any more. Your wall is failing in tension. So another option would be to drill in anchors on a grid system on the inside wall that is unstable. Then connect a grid of rebar to the anchors and form and pour another concrete wall over the grid. So, basically, you have a new wall connected to the old wall. Because of the location of the surface bonded rebar grid, it is well placed to resist tension. Also your new wall will look straight since it's new. If it were my house, I would also excavate the soil outside the failed wall and replace it with a non-expansive soil (sand and gravel). If excavation of existing soils is not feasible, you have to figure out a way to keep that clay dry. Options include geo-textiles (fancy plastic sheeting that keep the soil dry), regrading, drainage systems (french drains) and obvious stuff like making sure that your rain gutters don't drain on that side of your house. Water is your enemy on that side of the house. I did structures and geotec in my undergrad. Good luck
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