cavity wall ties

erind

Can anyone tell me how much it costs, approximately, to replace wall ties. I have a standard 3 bed semi detached. We are in the process of moving home, and our buyers wish to do checks as some propertys in the area have had problems with wall ties. Our property was renovated by the previous owners about 10 years ago. He basically rebuilt the house and rendered it. Im assured by my neighbour that he did use double strength ties (means nothing to me). We probably have nothing to worry about, and all will be well when checked. I just wondered what the cost implications would be, should there be a problem.

withabix

Best thing to do would be to get a survey done using a fibre-optic camera - inserted via a small drilled hole in the wall.

Don't know what a 'double strength' wall tie might be!! Double the strength of what?? Sounds like B@llox.

Wire butterfly ties aren't used any more - they were the ones which used to rust and fail. They were a bit like a bent wire coathanger.

Virtually all wall ties are now stainless steel, to avoid this problem.

Replacement of wall ties can be a fairly expensive job. There are various methods around.

Visit this website for info:

http://www.wtif.org.uk/pri.php

weekendwarrior

replacement Wall Ties are much easier to fit these days. A few years back they had to drill the wall from one side and inject resin into the hole that has been made in the brickwork on the other skin, then insert a stainless steel tie and then inject more resin into this hole, so that the resin hardened and held the wall tie in place.

Modern replacement wall ties are mechanical and have a piece of rubber at both ends, a hole is drilled , like with the resin method and a wall tie is inserted. Then a cordless drill is used to tighten up a nut and this causes the rubber to expand and grab the holes.

They can be installed from inside or outside, if they are done from inside you can cover the holes and re-decorate, if they are done from outside it can look a mess, as the holes for the ties are hard to conceal.

I had this done on a 4 bed house in Liverpool, on the back wall and it cost £200

erind

Thanks for the replies. I was thinking that it would cost a couple of thousand. Hopefully the ties will be ok. The surveyer didnt see any evidence of wall tie failure when he did the survey. The only thing he did say, was that there were a few hairline cracks on the rendering that may, or may not be associated, and as a precaution he would recommend that our buyers have them checked. Are hairline cracks in rendering quite common?

erind

Hi,

Had the wall ties checked this morning. It seems that the previous owners of the house did put in some new wall ties, but they also left some of the older ones in there as well which we've been told,need replacing. He said it would cost £1'600.The house is an average 3 bed semi. Does this price seem high?

weekendwarrior

erind wrote:

Hi,

Had the wall ties checked this morning. It seems that the previous owners of the house did put in some new wall ties, but they also left some of the older ones in there as well which we've been told,need replacing. He said it would cost £1'600.The house is an average 3 bed semi. Does this price seem high?

Sounds a bit strange to me?

Is the surveyor saying that the last owners only had one wall replaced? and that the other two require replacing?

Who has checked them, was it a surveyor ar a wall tie company?

Have you had more than one quote?

where abouts in the UK are you?

erind

Hi Weekend warrior,

Our buyers instructed a wall tie company to come and inspect. He said that he could see that some new wall ties were inserted around each of the three walls, but there were also some old ones left in. So he said that he would have to replace them all. I suppose they wont give a guarantee unless all the ties have been replaced. Im going to get a couple of quotes, free ones if possible. Im in the West Derby area of Liverpool. I hate taking someones word for it, when I dont know much about the subject. I just dont want to get ripped off. Our buyers paid 3k over the asking price for our house, so Ive no doubt that they are going to try and get us to lower the price.

weekendwarrior

erind wrote:

Hi Weekend warrior,

Our buyers instructed a wall tie company to come and inspect. He said that he could see that some new wall ties were inserted around each of the three walls, but there were also some old ones left in. So he said that he would have to replace them all. I suppose they wont give a guarantee unless all the ties have been replaced. Im going to get a couple of quotes, free ones if possible. Im in the West Derby area of Liverpool. I hate taking someones word for it, when I dont know much about the subject. I just dont want to get ripped off. Our buyers paid 3k over the asking price for our house, so Ive no doubt that they are going to try and get us to lower the price.

It sounds like he is trying to pull a fast one!

The old wall ties are always left in, there is no need to remove them!

The company that installed the replacement wall ties should of put a new wall tie every square meter (approx), so either they have not done this, which is unlikely or the surveyor is trying to get a £1600 job out of you that does not need doing.

Get the quotes off two more firms and post back here.

It would not suprise me if the other firms say that they do not need replacing, unless they are all rip off merchants!

Good luck

erind

Hi

I agree. I think he's trying to pull a fast one. I've arranged for another firm to come out tonight. So I'll let you know what they say.

dotcouk

I notice that many of the companies that install new wall ties also offer free surveys to see if you need them replacing. In that not a bit like asking a double-glazing sales man if you need new windows?

What is the best way to get a survey carried out to find out if you really need them doing? Can anyone suggest an honest company in the West Yorks area?

weekendwarrior

The last time I had them done the guy drilled a hole through the brickwork and pushed an endoscope into the cavity. You can then see the wall ties on a monitor. They should be every square meter or so. If it looks like many are missing on the monitor then they may need replacing, if there seems to e plenty of them, perhaps they are trying to sell you something that you do not need!

I am lucky because I know a guy that does it for a living and is 100% genuine, I found him when he was working for a specailist company and when he came for the survey I asked if he did foreigners for cash and he did. I saved £500 and still got the guarantee's etc.

Since then he has done 3 houses for me, wall ties and DPC.

As with everything get at least three quotes, if possible