BRAND NEW Home Build... Major Settling Issues & Concrete Worries!! (floor, foundation)
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I live in Idaho Falls, ID & wanted to share some pictures of issues that are developing with my new home build that is just barley ~3 months old from a local building contractor here in town.
As you can see from the pics, severe settling issues are occurring all around the home.
Adjust your gaze to the huge VOID space under the garage floor that extends over 6ft into the garage & has already sunk 9 inches or so... verified by the tape measure.
Would the floor not have to be removed to make sure this hasn't occurred in other areas of the garage & completely be redone & compacted correctly?
I am no expert... but cannot believe that much movement is already occurring all over the place.
It's idaho... I heard of settling but... really?!?!
AND yes... that is ~ a 2ft sink hole going on in the picture with me standing in it.
So who knows what other damage is occurring or will occur in the next months to years.
What should I do?
Have them jack hammer out the whole garage floor & do it right?!
Have them dig all backfill out & properly compact everything...?
The contractor is saying as far as the settling goes... “That’s what we want to happen before we go in & backfill & do final grade & compact”.
He says it’s normal.
As far as the garage floor, he wants to look at it & possibly inject foam under the floor to solidify & harden.
That won’t fix the root cause will it.... compaction issues still under the garage floor slab... right?!?
Won’t it settle further even with the foam injection?
Hell...then you’ll have foam in the air & a void space under that.
Should I walk away from this deal...??? ...or am I just being overly skeptical?
This whole thing has me freaked out & I am losing sleep.
They are stating that they will do things right & want us happy.
However, things with them have not been so transparent, straightforward & intentionally vague.
Hasn't been the warmest fuzzy...
Lastly, they say the foundation is covered... whatever that means... but not cracks etc from settling issues.
The garage floor takes a dump after I move in... not even sure this is covered?
Should I have them give me a written commitment in the form of a 5 yr warranty or something?
Anyways, I hope some independent professionals & contractors will chime in &offer advice.
Thanks for any input & help... greatly appreciated!
Last edited by Chopperz4Life; 04-22-2020 at 10:14 AM..
The back-fill around the foundation is normal. It's not compacted when placed, so time is the answer. By the time is ready for a final grade it should be somewhat stable.
If there's any issue (can't determine from pics), it would be that the initial grade/back-fill wasn't draining water "away" from the foundation- this is usually accomplished by "over-filling".
The garage- ???
With the slab already in-place there's no way to see how the pad was prep'ed, if there are support structures, and grade beams. If those are in place, the concrete can be self-supporting for the most part. But seeing a void at the garage opening doesn't necessarily constitute a failure.
Looks like surface water related "wash out". Not the worst I've seen, but certainly a concern. Has the building agreed that it needs to be addressed before installation of driveway / patio / final grading?
I partially agree with KBldr in not being able to determine if the earth has settled underneath the concrete slab? If so, than there’s no way to guarantee or predict what is yet to come.
Regarding the exterior, if the builder chooses to allow the exterior to compact naturally, by rainfall, it should have been done so in multiple lifts and without any mechanical compaction, it’s amateur hour in my mind.
Perhaps he used the same technique or lack thereof with the garage slab?
Glad to hear back-fill around the foundation is somewhat normal & should be somewhat stable.
I didn't realize or even think of this...
"if there's any issue (can't determine from pics), it would be that the initial grade/back-fill wasn't draining water "away" from the foundation- this is usually accomplished by "over-filling".
As far as for....
"The garage- ???
With the slab already in-place there's no way to see how the pad was prep'ed, if there are support structures, and grade beams. If those are in place, the concrete can be self-supporting for the most part. But seeing a void at the garage opening doesn't necessarily constitute a failure."...
We unfortunately didn't see them prep or pour the garage floor... I am not sure about prep & support structures & grade beams to be honest???
Other than the builder mentioned that they used rebar...???
Hopefully its not a failure then.
What should be the next course to fix the issue?
For the...
"Has the building agreed that it needs to be addressed before installation of driveway / patio / final grading?"...
We haven't heard back from them yet.
We let them know those concerns &....
They haven't come out & said that this will be addressed first but...
I appreciate it & will definitely make sure they address it before they start anything you mentioned!
I'm worried about future damage to those other areas if they don't resolve it first!
**This of course is my 1st home build so never expected any of this.
From what we understand...
He said so far they are allowing it to compact naturally, by rainfall etc.... & no mechanical compaction.
Said they are waiting for final grade & our house hasn't had it yet.
As far as the multiple lifts...???
Not sure.
Here's some pics before & after garage floor pour but.... all we have.
That settlement around the outside indicates a complete lack of compaction. The backfill was likely just pushed back in place in one huge lift. This is not the right way to do it, and his response makes me question the whole building process. That backfill should be done in lifts of 12" to 18" and compacted to whatever the geotechnical engineer specifies (usually 95%). It will continue to settle for quite some time on its own. It should be dug out and done right.
The garage slab is a bit more perplexing and concerning. Your pictures show the house dried in before the slab was poured, so water infiltration isn't the issue. Again, with that kind of settlement, it's obvious that it wasn't properly compacted. I'd start with an independent soils engineer, core drill some holes around the slab, and check what's going on underneath. Best case scenario would be the subgrade is stable and the voids could be filled with foam or grout. but this fix only works if the base is stable. Worst case it to rip it all out, excavate to undisturbed material, backfill and compact in lifts, then replace the slab.
These problems make a great case for hiring your own independent inspector during the construction process. If you plan to continue with this build, you should hire one immediately before the walls are sheetrocked.
That settlement around the outside indicates a complete lack of compaction. The backfill was likely just pushed back in place in one huge lift. This is not the right way to do it, and his response makes me question the whole building process. That backfill should be done in lifts of 12" to 18" and compacted to whatever the geotechnical engineer specifies (usually 95%). It will continue to settle for quite some time on its own. It should be dug out and done right.
The garage slab is a bit more perplexing and concerning. Your pictures show the house dried in before the slab was poured, so water infiltration isn't the issue. Again, with that kind of settlement, it's obvious that it wasn't properly compacted. I'd start with an independent soils engineer, core drill some holes around the slab, and check what's going on underneath. Best case scenario would be the subgrade is stable and the voids could be filled with foam or grout. but this fix only works if the base is stable. Worst case it to rip it all out, excavate to undisturbed material, backfill and compact in lifts, then replace the slab.
These problems make a great case for hiring your own independent inspector during the construction process. If you plan to continue with this build, you should hire one immediately before the walls are sheetrocked.
Thank you JW!
I appreciate all of the information!!
Everything at least upstairs is sheet rocked.
We have been inspecting during that whole process... luckily!!!
Had a few buddies come & check it out too before the sheetrock was up so...
We just did not see the backfill & garage slab of course.
Wow... from what you said makes complete sense & almost mirrors what we are getting from him.
Just pushed it in w/o compaction & let rain water take its course!
Ugggggggghhhhhh…
That"s kinda what I figured about the garage floor... if it isn't stable then more issues down the road... & sounds like they want to pump it full of foam.
Guess I should also clarify.... the basement is unfinished.
Just finishing the upstairs for now.
Last edited by Chopperz4Life; 04-22-2020 at 04:44 PM..
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