Damage to brick wall pillar Hi all,
Just hoping someone can shed a little light for me.
We had a ducted gas heating (underfloor) system installed today and the guy who put it in had to knock a hole in the outside brick wall through to under the house in order to get the heating duct from the outside heating unit to under the floor.
In the process of knocking out bricks he managed to take out half of one the brick columns on the under house side of the brick wall. He replaced that section with a length of 4x4.
My question is, is this likely to be a problem? Just wondering if I should follow up with the company, or if it is not worth worrying about?
Thanks a lot for any advice (because I am totally clueless...)
Cheers
Red
ps. might be worth mentioning that that entire side of the house has cracks through the brickwork already from the block moving over the years and the house will need to be re-blocked at some stage soon. Not sure if this damage today will add to the issue or what?
Hi,
You mean one of the brick piers supporting the floor? It should be repaired, as timber will not last in direct contact with the ground, with no moisture or termite barrier in between. If you have not already paid in full, insist it be repaired properly.
Cheers
Hey Geoff, thanks for the reply.
The part of the pillar damaged was from a quarter of the way up to about a quarter of the way from the top, so the wood is only in contact with brick.
My main concern is that I would expect wood would compress under weight more so than the brick column and because of the existing movement in the house I don't want anything undermining the structural integrity of the house any further.
I think I will take it up with the company before finalising payment, and see what can be done.
Cheers
Red
Wood is likely to be OK and strong enough (ie: will not compress), but that's not the issue - the issue is that the damage was done and the company needs to repair it to original specs at its cost. It's that simple.
Advice from me on this forum is general and for guidance based on information given by the member posing the question. Not to be used in place of professional advice from people appropriately qualified in the relevant field. All structural work must be approved and constructed to the BCA or other relevant standards by suitably licensed persons. The person doing the work and reading my advice accepts responsibility for ensuring the work done accords with the applicable law.
Thanks Bloss. I have the owner coming around to inspect the damage today. Will see what they have to say...
Cheers
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