Help! Advice needed on roof deflection/distortion

Jojomarie

Hi all,
I am buying a house, first time buyer and just had the surveyors report back.
There are Two things I really need advice on, and I'm not sure where to turn.

1. There is evidence of some deflection and distortion to the main frame. The original roof plane has deflected slightly over the gable end. This is probably due to failure of timber gable ladder and will need to be monitored. Also the roof slope has sagged slightly between rafters.

It is a dorma bungalow with two bedrooms upstairs in the roof space, Does anyone know if this is a urgent serious concern? It was flagged as yellow - will need repair at some point, but I am worried that the roof could come down on my daughter, what is the worse case scenario?

2. The garage - detached from house, is red:

There is cracking to some of the walls and supporting columns which will need repair. Similarly the brickwork is poor in places.
There are signs of a woodbeetle infestation to the roof timbers. It has likely spread to other concealed areas.

My question here is does anyone know if there is a high risk of woodbettle spreading to the house roof/rafters, how far do these pests travel? Does it sound as if the garage roof is in immediate structural danger and is it easy to eradicate woodbettle and repair the beams?

Thanks in advance
JO

G_M

Ring the surveyor on Monday and discuss it. He will explain.

Davesnave

The yellow for the roof means that it is not in imminent danger of collapse. It might need some repair eventually, but it is probably some years away, so you can move in and get a roofer to look at it when you're ready.

Sagging or slightly wonky roofs are quite common, as you'll notice if you start looking at properties 40+ years old with a really critical eye. I bought such a property and fixed the wonky bit last year, 7 years after purchase. Structurally, it would have been fine for another decade, but a straight roof looks better.

My garage also had woodworm. It's common in outbuildings where the builders didn't bother with the expense of treated timber. Again the structure of mine was fine, because wood boring beetles like slightly damp new wood, so they clear-off after a few years, unless the building itself is damp.

It sounds as if the garage has a few issues with its walls, but the surveyor will explain what he/she thinks is causing the cracking.

Surveyors are more likely to be candid when reporting verbally, rather than formally in print, for obvious reasons.

Hoploz

While I do agree with Davesnave I would take the roof sagging and deflection a little more seriously in this case - because the loft is converted and therefore the original roof structure will have been altered. Therefore more problems here -
1) the roof needs attention
2) It's all covered up rather than being in an open loft
3) you're trying to live in it at the same time

Re the outbuilding - you need an expert to determine whether the infestation is current or historic.

martindow

If there is a loft conversion, has that been done properly? There should be building regulation paperwork. If there is nothing it would raise questions as to whether the conversion has compromised the roof structure. I would ask the surveyor this specifically when you phone him.

AdrianC

martindow wrote: »

If there is a loft conversion, has that been done properly? There should be building regulation paperwork. If there is nothing it would raise questions as to whether the conversion has compromised the roof structure. I would ask the surveyor this specifically when you phone him.

This sounds the most likely cause. There were probably roof timbers which were "in the way" when the loft was converted, so they were removed without thought to how they actually strengthened the structure.

Davesnave

Hoploz wrote: »

While I do agree with Davesnave I would take the roof sagging and deflection a little more seriously in this case - because the loft is converted

The OP didn't say the loft was converted.

She said it was a 'dorma bungalow,' which I take to mean a chalet bungalow with dormer windows, as were commonly built in the 70's and 80s.

I stand to be corrected by the OP if I'm wrong about that, though.