Horizontal crack on dpc level of conservatory

Sam3636

Hi

We have discovered a credit card gap on the dpc level of our drawf wall for our conservatory this is a horizontal line and not the whole length of the conservatory. It has not effected the house at all does anyone have any ideas what this could be ???

Davesnave

Is it a single or double-skinned wall? What sort of bricks/blocks were used and how long has it been there?

It sounds as if the mortar used didn't bond well to the DPC material, which can be a problem when it's laid too dry. Conservatory companies aren't renowned for skilled building work below the superstructure, so who was contracted to do the foundations and walls?

It would be more of a problem if you were to begin seeing vertical cracks as well, I think. Did you get any guarantee? Often conservatory companies guarantee most against water ingress and everything else is somewhat secondary.

Don't let water and the frost get into this crack, Cover it up, keep monitoring and recording what you see: dates etc. Approach the builder of the wall when nothing else happens and they will probably do a cosmetic fix. If it develops further, you are into more serious territory.

Sam3636

Thank you for your help. The conservatory has been up since 2002 we purchased the house with the conservatory already attached. No crackes have appeared inside the conservatory just this on the outside and it seems to be half the length of the conservatory getting thinner and thinner as it moves a long. We understand that the house is on piles but believe the conservatory isn’t.

Davesnave

Sam3636 wrote: »

Thank you for your help. The conservatory has been up since 2002 we purchased the house with the conservatory already attached. No crackes have appeared inside the conservatory just this on the outside and it seems to be half the length of the conservatory getting thinner and thinner as it moves a long. We understand that the house is on piles but believe the conservatory isn’t.

Ah, my bad, as I was assuming it was of fairly recent construction.

At 16 years old, you'll need to deal with this yourself, possibly injecting something into the crack to prevent water and frost action making it wider. Hopefully, others will advise here as I'm not sure whether silicone or some other product would be best.

This doesn't sound like subsidence, because that would have shown-up long before this, unless something in the ground conditions has recently changed. For example, the felling of a nearby tree might alter water content in the soil,.

For many consevatories, 16 years is 'late middle age,' so it could just be age-related deterioration. Unlike houses, they're not regarded as permanent structures. I replaced my 2004 cheap n'cheerful model last year.

Sam3636

Thank you, no trees or anything have been removed we where hoping it’s just a age related thing with it being so old.