Outbuilding in garden

tizzle6560

Hi all,

Some advice if poss - we have in our garden a fairly large brick outbuilding divided into two rooms with a brick wall dividing them.

The roof (wooden joists in metal brackets + felt top) over one of the rooms has collapsed possibly from damp ingress over time or possibly just wasnt secure enough considering the weight of the joists etc.

As a result of this, or possibly some ground movement(?) the brickwork on 3/4 walls now has gaps in some places where the building has shifted.

My question is - would we be foolish to simply re-grout the holes to try to add some strength back into it, or wiser to tear whole thing down?

Cheers

Hoploz

It depends what you want to use it for. If it's little more than a solid shed for storage, just do the minimum, repair the roof and see how it goes for a year.

If you are using it as additional accommodation then it might be worthe doing a better job.

Davesnave

If the building's walls have 'shifted' in some way, adding mortar to the joints probably won't save it.

As in all these kinds of questions, a picture or two would really help. Without sight of the issue, one is just guessing.

tizzle6560

Davesnave wrote: »

If the building's walls have 'shifted' in some way, adding mortar to the joints probably won't save it.

As in all these kinds of questions, a picture or two would really help. Without sight of the issue, one is just guessing.

Quite right to ask - links below show some pics

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ndjha54oq1iewbu/Photo%2002-06-2015%2C%207%2036%2025%20pm.jpg?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/kwyjmwjgc9fn5uv/Photo%2002-06-2015%2C%207%2038%2011%20pm.jpg?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/9yw2a9mh18e9g9t/Photo%2025-03-2016%2C%2012%2034%2048%20pm.jpg?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/kihdc6vrxnppv0p/Photo%2025-03-2016%2C%2012%2035%2050%20pm.jpg?dl=0

Any advice much appreciated

tizzle6560

Those are the only pics I have right now. The 'crack' you can see in the photos is on the left side wall and that is probably the most severe gaps.

The back wall made of breeze blocks also has some gaps but not quit as large as that.

Cheers

Davesnave

It looks as if you have already filled the mortar joints since they were photographed open in March. The amount of movement then looks quite severe, and the left of the building as we look at it in the overall photo seems to be leaning as a result of subsidence.

More experienced members may have other advice, but I would certainly consider taking down the end that looks dodgy. The other part, looks OK.

tizzle6560

Davesnave wrote: »

It looks as if you have already filled the mortar joints since they were photographed open in March. The amount of movement then looks quite severe, and the left of the building as we look at it in the overall photo seems to be leaning as a result of subsidence.

More experienced members may have other advice, but I would certainly consider taking down the end that looks dodgy. The other part, looks OK.

Nope we haven't refilled anything, this is how it looked when we purchased the property. Front wall with door frames, right side wall and most of back wall seem to be fine, so yes maybe just rebuild the left side wall.

Although surely the whole thing would be prone to more subsidence?

MeredithTThomas

some parts still look good to me. You can save those. then work on the areas that needs most repair. But, make sure you check the cost. Sometimes, building a new one is more cost effective than repairing most parts of the structure.