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• All villas were built on untreated wooden blocks (excluding larger stately homes which were generally built on stack brick piles)
• We have replaced thousands of wooden block foundations
• All were rotten due to untreated wood embedded in damp or wet ground
• Perimeter piles generally rot first due to rain exposure

Most villas have uneven or out of level floors due to original wooden pile settlement

Villas have been repiled over the past 90 plus years with mainly shallow founded concrete block piles, concrete block piles with a concrete base or in the last 40 years with tanalised timber piles embedded in a poured concrete base.

Most villas in our experience have been repiled out of level or are out of level due to shallow founded concrete piles continuing to settle

Before fitting expensive bathrooms, kitchens or remodelling the interior of the house, floors should be levelled or a minimum, foundations should be checked and replaced if necessary (a trap that many people over look before renovating)

• All bungalows were built on shallow founded concrete pile foundations (excluding larger stately homes which were generally built on stack brick foundations)
• We have replaced thousands of shallow founded concrete pile foundations due to settlement
• Perimeter piles generally settle first due to rain exposure
• Shallow founded concrete piles are very weak and we recommend all shallow piles be replaced, especially before internal refurbishment

• Repiling to relevel a house can cause expensive repairs to refurbished or renovated interiors.
• An inspection is necessary to discuss pitfalls before repiling

Foundation bracing and retro tie down connections are essential to ensure lateral stability of the house (earthquake etc)

• The cause of foundation settlement can be due to a variety of reasons, depending on ground conditions etc,
• Stormwater run-off undermining foundations
• Dry seasonal conditions causing expansion/contraction in ground around and under foundations
• Foundations not seated deep enough on firm natural ground
• Foundations seated in filled ground
• Unstable ground (ground creep)

• Cracks in exterior bricks veneer, concrete block and concrete base walls are due to foundation settlement
• Cracks in interior walls, doors, windows not fitting squarely, sticking or binding in frames and out of level floors are generally due to foundation settlement
• Exterior concrete foundations need underpinning
• Underpinning is installing new pile foundations under existing concrete footings