Possible Sulphate Attack

jamie0691

Hoping someone has had this problem before, well in the nicest way possible.....

History

We purchased the house back in 2010, before we got it, it was a repossesion and before that it was right to buy house. Whereby that tennant had purchased the house from the council.

We got a fully home buyers report done which stated a few minor faults, but nothing major. We got a mortgage through the halifax without issue.

When moving in we noticed that there were cracks in the garage floor, however thought nothing off it as it was the garage and nothing had been noted on the survey.

Current Situation

We put the house on the market and had a buyer within 2 days, he got a valuation report done (through the halifax) who mentioned that the house was suffering from subsidence and movement due to movement in the bricks above the damp course and cracks in the garage floor. The surveyor wanted a bore test done to confirm the foundations were correct, to secure the sale we agreed to pay for this.

Come Tuesday 18th, the buyer pulls out saying he does not like the area anymore. This annoyed me as we are now over £200 out of pocket due to survey and solicitor fees, plus had to pull out of our next purchase. Then on Wednesday we get a call with the results from the bore test, our house has been build on red ash (or one of the other well known words) and is suffering a sulphate attack.

We are yet to get the report in our hands, however would like some advice on where to go next as the solicitor has just said speak to the original surveyor.

I have researched this and found that the building regulations were changed in 1965 which advised the use of DPC membrane, and this was re-iterated in various other versions of the building regulations up until our house was built in 1975.

*Is there any come back on the surveyor, would this issues of just occurred over the last 2 years or will they of been present for some time?
*Would we sue the surveyor or go down the complaints / ombudsman?
*If the surveyor is not at fault, what then? The home insurance does not cover it, would we then go back to the council and the builders of the house since it was a known issue back then.
*Does the Halifax need to know about this, obviously it will massively reduce the value of the house.

It the moment we will most likely look to bring it off the market, but need to know what is the best course of action. If the floors need replaced I do not have a spare 10k lying around and even if I did, should not be me who pays for the work since it was builders at fault!? :mad:

kingstreet

From the late 50s to the early 70s, some areas saw the use of waste material for the sub-floor infill. When this infill is allowed to mix with moisture, the infill expands, causing the foundations/floors to heave and buckle.

A surveyor, carrying out a more detailed inspection at the buyer's expense, should be able to identify the area and build-period and recommend a sub-floor infill test. This samples the infill and establishes if the measured S04 level is high enough to warrant remedial action, such as floor removal and replacement of infill.

If the surveyor did not mention the possible presence of red ash, I would suggest a complaint, in the first instance.

Furts

Hi Jamie; Various points to ponder over
The house had been repossessed - was it empty, did you have a good look, did you not spot movement (bricks, dpc etc), you have owned 2 years so problems likely existed when you purchased, your offer may have been deemed to reflect the faults...not being critical just playing devils advocate.

You have not explained why or how a dpc membrane may be relevant. Bear in mind a membrane goes directly beneath the concrete floor (assuming this is what you have). Hence it is not relevant if you have dodgy fill under the slab.

You mention the garage - if detached it will be exempt from building regs so you have no comeback here.

You had a homebuyers report and not a full structural survey - makes it tricky to get a comeback here.

The original builder, if he exists, did not have a contract with you. Also any warranty would have expired 10 or 15years after build. Hence little joy here.

The local authority will not be responsible - or will deny responsibility. My suggestion - do not go there.

Sorry if these are all negatives. You need to sort the wheat from the chaff and firm up who you are trying to go after. Then, most important, why you are after them

jamie0691

Furts wrote: »

Hi Jamie; Various points to ponder over
The house had been repossessed - was it empty, did you have a good look, did you not spot movement (bricks, dpc etc), you have owned 2 years so problems likely existed when you purchased, your offer may have been deemed to reflect the faults...not being critical just playing devils advocate.

You have not explained why or how a dpc membrane may be relevant. Bear in mind a membrane goes directly beneath the concrete floor (assuming this is what you have). Hence it is not relevant if you have dodgy fill under the slab.

You mention the garage - if detached it will be exempt from building regs so you have no comeback here.

You had a homebuyers report and not a full structural survey - makes it tricky to get a comeback here.

The original builder, if he exists, did not have a contract with you. Also any warranty would have expired 10 or 15years after build. Hence little joy here.

The local authority will not be responsible - or will deny responsibility. My suggestion - do not go there.

Sorry if these are all negatives. You need to sort the wheat from the chaff and firm up who you are trying to go after. Then, most important, why you are after them

Furts, thanks for the reply, appreciate the honesty.

We did have a good look around, visited a few times etc. Never really noticed anything. But then again it was all new carpets and freshly plastered walls etc..... We didn't get a structural survey done as did not see the need when the home buyers report did not pick up anything.

The reason for mentioning the DPC Membrane is that it is meant to sit between the infill and concrete and this stops any sulphate attack from happening, hence if this is not present then this is what is causing the problem and has been a defect since the house was built. Was not aware about detached garages being exempt from building regulations!

In your eyes what is the best way forward, surely the council knew there was a problem with the area when they built there and the builders knew that a DPC Membrane should be used?

Furts

Hi Jamie, I am puzzled or misunderstood a previous posting

If sulphate attack is in your concrete floor slab a membrane may not be of great relevance. The slab needs moisture to activate the attack IIRR so this could wick up from below. But it may be argued if sulphate attack inherent in the slab when laid the membrane is a red herring. (Basically it was going to happen regardless of any membrane being there). If the problem is in the fill a membrane is not relevant. So this needs to be clarified

New plaster, carpets and decorations are always a warning sign of potential problems. But you cannot turn the clock back.

Way forward? read your survey from purchase plus exclusions - I doubt you can go after the surveyor.

Latent defect? I am not a lawyer but the house was built a long time ago. Not good! As I think I said does the builder exist? Do you know who built it?

I wonder if somebody has bodged the slab in more recent years?

You will get nowhere with your coucil IMHO (Personal experience - a long story!)

On balance, I suggest either on your house insurance or get the work done yourself.

Until you have definitive answers to the above It is difficult to suggest further. Keep me informed!