What to do with cracks in walls for house on clay All manner of questions and solutions to problems and issues surrounding the subject of brickwork, blockwork and stonework

[raydona]

Hello, I am looking to buy a property. However, there are some structural issues with house. The seller says the house, built around 1920, is constructed on clay. There is ground movement which is causing walls to move unevenly resulting in cracks in walls. Please see image. Seller says building engineer has said the problem can be fixed by using "pins" to hold the walls together. I would like to know what this involves and is the solution permanent, will it stop the cracks getting wider forever or are the "pins" just a temporary solution? Will be grateful for all replies.

[stoneyboy]

Hi raydonna,
The surveyor is probably referring to stainless stitching bars which are built into the courses across the crack.
This would involve hacking off render 300mm+ either side of the crack, raking out the existing mortar, fitting stitching bars in epoxy mortar, then re-rendering.
It is highly likely that another crack will appear in the same area if we get another very dry spell of weather.
Regards S