Chimney Leans Outward and Pulls Brick Veneer With It GENERAL INFORMATION Date and Time of Fact-Finding Inspection: May 16, 2001 @ 9:30 a.m. Weather Conditions: Sunny, 75° Name of Homeowner(s): Mr. and Mrs. John Smith When did the condition(s) first occur? Mrs. Smith told me that she first became aware of the settlement in the front porch slab about 1½ years after moving into the house. She said that the ground sunk in next to the chimney foundation about 2 years after they moved in. She indicated that the brick separation and other problems appeared about this time. | Top | Table of Contents | BACKGROUND The major defect is the separation of the brick veneer around the chimney. In addition, the chimney is probably leaning outward. According to Mrs. Smith, problems with the brick began to appear about two years after they moved in. Gaps developed between the window and doorframes and the brick. Mrs. Smith suspects that the cause of the problems has something to do with the sunken ground around the base of the chimney. Apparently, water from a roof downspout discharged next to the chimney and seeped into the soil, causing the ground to sink in about 2'. According to Mrs. Smith, Mr. Smith filled the hole in with concrete and rerouted the roof drain about a year later. The Builder verified Mrs. Smith's account. | Top | Table of Contents | DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPERTY All directions in the discussion that follows are in relation to a person facing the front of the house. The house is a wood-framed, single story structure, approximately 1600 sq. ft. in size. It does not have a garage. The exterior walls are clad with brick veneer. The ground slopes about 6' from left to right. The left 2/3 of the house is on a crawlspace foundation while the right 1/3 has a cellar. The two areas are separated by an 8"" concrete block wall. There is a large chimney in the rear of the house. It is located in the crawlspace area, about 1.5' from the basement area. The chimney bricks are interlocked with the brick veneer. The house has an open front porch with a slab-on-grade. There is a bay window on the front elevation. The roof is supported with 2 x 4 roof trusses that rest on the front and rear walls. The interior walls and ceiling are sheetrock. | Top | Table of Contents | METHOD OF INVESTIGATION At the beginning of my investigation, I interviewed Mrs. Smith about the history and location of the reported conditions. Mr. Howard was present during the first ½ hour, then left. I inspected the exterior, interior, attic, cellar, and crawlspace. I focused most of my attention on the rear wall and chimney. Using a 4' carpenters level, I measured the plumbness of the chimney at several places along its height. After returning to my office, I spoke with Mr. Howard about his ideas of what was causing the problems. | Top | Table of Contents | OBSERVATIONS There is a missing brick on the front porch steps and several loose bricks. The concrete slab has settled 2"" or more in some places as indicated by marks on the exterior wall of the house. The brick veneer on either side of the chimney has pulled away from the wood structure creating gaps of up to 5/8"" between the window and door frames and the brick veneer. There are also gaps up to 1/2"" between the fireplace and interior walls. In addition, the exterior door by the chimney binds slightly. I held the 4' carpenters level against the chimney in three places between the ground and roof eave. The measurements indicated that the chimney was leaning away from the house slightly. There also appeared to be some bowing in the center of the chimney. The outward lean is not severe, since it is difficult to tell whether it is plumb or not when you stand off and look at the chimney. There are no cracks between the chimney and brick veneer. If the chimney is leaning away from the house, it is taking the exterior brick veneer with it. There is evidence of a past sinkhole at the base of the chimney. The sinkhole has been filled with concrete. The ground in the crawlspace slopes severely towards the corner of the basement and crawlspace. Since this is where the chimney is located, water inside the crawlspace would tend to seep into the ground next to the chimney. The bricks where the chimney attaches to the foundation wall are turned sideways, interlocking the chimney with the brick veneer. There is a 5/8"" gap between a concrete pilaster supporting the foundation wall and the 8"" block wall between the basement and crawlspace. This is an indication that the brick foundation wall is pulling away from the house. Mrs. Smith showed me several places where there were minor cracks in the walls, ceilings, door, and window frames. I did not feel that any of the defects were out of the ordinary or related to the problems described above. | Top | Table of Contents | FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The concrete deck on the front porch has settled due to the soil under the concrete slab not being compacted properly when the house was built. The method of repair involves removing the slab, re-compacting the soil, and pouring a new slab. I feel about 90% certain that the problems with the exterior brick veneer are caused by the chimney leaning away from the house and pulling the brick veneer with it. Usually, chimney leaning is caused by too small a footing, poor soil under the footing, or the footing being undermined with water. In this case, there is some evidence that the footing may have been undermined. There is about a 10% chance that the chimney has not moved and the defects were caused by not having enough brick wall ties to secure the brick veneer to the wood framing. The only way to know if this was the cause or contributed to the cause is to remove sections of the brick veneer to expose the ties. I did not observe any structural defects in the wood framing, and I cannot think of anyway the problem could have been caused by something wrong with the wood framing such as rot, termite damage, or undersized members. I recommend that a transit be used to measure the plumbness of the chimney from top to bottom. This would be a very accurate way to tell if the chimney is leaning and, if so, how much. The chimney is not leaning enough to tell definitively that it is using a 4' carpenters level. | Top | Table of Contents | LIMITATIONS The observations described in the report are valid on the date of the investigation and were made under the conditions noted in the report. We prepared the report for the exclusive use of AIC and their successors and assignees. Criterium-Stanton Engineers does not intend any other individual or party to rely upon the report without our express written consent. If another individual or party relies on the report, they shall indemnify and hold Criterium-Stanton Engineers harmless for any damages, losses, or expenses they may incur as a result of its use. The report is limited to the visual observations we made during our inspection. We did not remove surface materials, furnishings or equipment, undertake any digging or excavation, or perform any destructive or invasive testing. Accordingly, we cannot comment on the condition of systems and components that we could not see. In addition, we are not responsible for conditions that were not within the scope of our services at the time of inspection. We did not assess the stability of the building or the underlying foundation soil since this effort would require excavation and destructive testing. We did not perform any computations or engineering analysis as part of this evaluation, nor did we conduct a comprehensive code review. This report should not be considered a warranty of condition, and no warranty is implied. | Top | Table of Contents | William A. Stanton, P.E. | Top | Table of Contents | | Structural Inspections | Residential & Commercial Services |