Signs of cavity wall tie failure
Have you noticed signs of wall movement, bulging, or cracking within your property? If so, you might have a cavity wall tie problem.
We have some information that could help you below;
What are Cavity wall ties?
Most homes built in the last hundred years are of cavity wall construction.
The external walls are built of two leaves of brickwork held together with steel ties referred to as cavity wall ties and this makes a warmer and drier home.
Before 1980 wall ties used in the construction of houses were of inferior quality and were inadequately protected from corrosion. Thousands of them are still there and it is when these cavity wall ties begin to fail that they can compromise the structural integrity of the building and if left for a long period, can lead to very costly structural repairs.
Cavity wall ties are metal strips or bars built into the cavity walls with the sole purpose of holding the masonry together. Wall ties are key to the safety and stability of all cavity walls. They are used to stabilise the wall construction and to stop the separate skins of the wall from moving away from each other.
The ends of the ties are designed to lock into the cement bed of the mortar joints in each skin. There is also a design element in the tie (usually a twist or dip) that stops the transfer of moisture from the outer leaf to the inner leaf of the wall construction.
Signs of a cavity wall tie failure
The problem is, that it is difficult to know when the cavity wall tie has failed and how much damage it has caused until it can be visually seen on the wall.
The most common sign of wall tie failure is that there will be horizontal cracks on the outer walls of the building.
External visual indicators of wall tie failure are listed below:
- Horizontal Cracks
- Bulging walls/brickwork -caused by snapped wall ties that have corroded
- Lintels sagging
- Bowing walls
- Cracks or separation of the window reveals
Cavity wall tie survey
To establish the extent of the wall tie repairs and replacements required, our trained and qualified surveyor will inspect the property, load-bearing walls, outer leaf and inner leaf walls, and mortar bed, locating the position of existing cavity wall ties, and their condition.
Our Cavity wall tie specialist will investigate the scale of the problem at hand, and construct a written report outlining the costs involved to repair and strengthen the wall by replacing your cavity wall ties.
Installing the cavity wall ties
The extent of the wall tie repairs and replacements must be first checked by a professional.
Once the condition of the existing wall ties has been identified then the technician will install the replacement wall ties. New stainless steel wall ties are installed by usually drilling from the external leaf and fitting replacement wall ties in a pattern to match current building regulations.
The existing ties are isolated and extracted to prevent further corrosion with the new ties inserted in their place.
Our wall tie replacement and structural repair services are backed by our guarantee.
Give our friendly team a call today to discuss further on 0191 4159471
