Foundation wall compromised?

Specific Inspection Topics Structural Inspections
1

The HVAC guy knocked a lot of the wall out…but I think this house settled long before he was there…pics suck…but one of them is funny…the guy wrote on a pier with a sharpie “Accoustic bracing for squeaky floor.” Think that was for my benefit?

There were many many styles of piers and things under “this old house”…cool stuff. The house was definitely slopey in areas…There were 3 main foundation walls…all stone…both sides of home, and down the middle…the middle wall had serious shimming to get support and the outside walls had no shims…guess which way the home sloped eh?

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2

Tony,
Hope you noted all the Romex lying around on the ground in the crawl. Rats/mice/squirrels love to chew on the stuff. It gives them a “buzz”. Looks like some Romex drapped across some of the metal snap-lock ducting too. The wood to earth contact is classic as well. I didn’t think the pics were bad. You should see all the pics I have of my shoe or the floorboard of my truck.

3

Hey, Tony.

At least he labeled it.

4

Did you happen to catch the lead piping?
Larry

5

Larry, I was going to ask the same question. :frowning:
I like the personal touch in the first photo with the arrow on the 4x4 into the deck block.

This looks like cottage type construction.

6

it’s on a drain anyway, on issues with lead drains that i know of. not allowed for supply, because we drink it. after that it’s still o.k. if i ain’t broke…:cool:

7

I don’t see a problem. Monitor annually.

8

On pic 4,
The lump in the piping at the suspension brace - is that from lead pipe and galvanized brace,?
Linda

9

Tony;

This place looks like an abandoned Coal Mine. Where do you find these places?

Do you charge hazardous duty pay for these?
Are some of that debris possibly anthracite ?
ha. ha.

Marcel :slight_smile: :slight_smile: :stuck_out_tongue:

10

Just lucky I guess…sheesh. I think all the people referring me know I’m new and give me that sh*tholes…good experience though…

I can tell you this: When (if?) I see a good house…i will recognize it!

11

I am sure you will Tony, and will probably enjoy the leisure time that you did not have before due all the report writing of the dungeon areas. ha. ha. Have a beer on me. Good work.

I would check my referrels and ask if they send more of those sh@t holes your way, that the prices are going up. :stuck_out_tongue:

Marcel :slight_smile:

12

I just raised prices across the board $20 dollars…$20 more next month…and so on…:wink:

13

That’s the NACHI spirit.

Marcel :slight_smile: :stuck_out_tongue:

14

Man… I love basements in New England.

I might run into 1 crawl space a month.

15

David;
I hope they don’t all look like Tony’s.
I could not keep up buying ink for my printer.

Marcel :slight_smile: :stuck_out_tongue:

16

Linda,

That bulge in the line, near the joist is a bulb joint in the lead pipe.

Dead giveaway for lead pipes. Ok for drain.

17

That lump on the piping is a joint for lead pipe. It’s called a “wiped joint” where a ball of lead is used to connect sections of lead pipe, as the material is too soft to thread and can’t be soldered/brazed … and is a classic indicator for that type of piping.

Lead piping is a significant defect if it’s water supply piping, and for waste piping (which that appears to be) at least an indication of very old piping that may be at or beyond the useful life. For water supply piping it’s more commonly found for the buried service pipe, which is then transitioned to galv steel distribution piping inside the house (at least around my neck of the woods).

Hope that helps explain the mysterious pipe buldge … :wink: