In most instances, damage to a property from escape of water will occur slowly over time. It is in fact very rare that damage will manifest itself in a more sudden manner. Generally, such damage is related to a water supply leak where the volume of escape is much more greater.
And this is the case for this property in Co. Kilkenny where a ‘sink hole’ and other structural damage occurred overnight due to a leaking water supply. A mains water supply was running through the rear extension and a leak had occurred on the saddle connection between the water main and the service pipe. The leak was repaired and the area made safe by a contractor working on behalf of the utility provider.
The damage to the property was extensive, particularly in the vicinity of the leak. Category 3 cracking, doors and windows sticking and floors sloping were all evident. Notwithstanding all that, damage to the extension warranted a complete rebuild. The requirement for demolition in subsidence claims are extremely rare.
Substruck Ltd. was employed by the insurance company to design an underpinning solution to address the damage. Site investigation was required which included trial holes and ground investigation in the form of dynamic probing.
The proposed solution was a micropile supported raft needled through the rising walls of the primary structure. This would protect both the walls and floors of the property. And the rear extension was to be provided with a new micropile supported raft foundation.