Bouncy Victorian ceiling ....

lucypilates

So I'm in my new house - built 1892 - and trying to get to know all it's various quirks and foibles etc, having come from a fairly sturdy 1960s built house.

The main bedroom is huge - 5m x 3.9m roughly - and when I walk over it, the chandalier (Lovely old thing left from previous owners!) in the lounge below, jingles and jangles and makes a bit of a racket with all the movement .... 

The stairs & landing creak like mad when you go up them, especially when near the top and now I'm paranoid that the upper floor is just about to fall down ... 

I know, all very dramatic, but that's just how my brain works! 

Who should I get in to check whether anything needs propping up or strengthening or changing? A builder? A structural engineer? A surveyor?

Incidentally, I did get a surveyor round before I purchased. However, I chose an independent elderly surveyor who forgot to check so many things, made quite a few administrative errors and generally didn't provide an adequate surveyor service, that we agreed I wouldn't pay his bill and I then didn't get another surveyor in.

Any advice please?

[Deleted User]

Old houses do creak and groan, cheapest starting place would be ask a builder, he may then suggest that you do or don't need anyone else to look at it and if any work might be needed.

joe90mitch

Certainly not saying to stop looking into it and I'm sure you'll end up getting some really useful replies on here, but if it helps me and my partner moved into our first house, built in 1893, and in the first few weeks I worried about every creak, groan, crack, not plumb wall/window/etc. Then I learnt that this is just the way it is in a Victorian house and the thing has been stood here successfully far far longer than I have. I think three months later I've learnt to relax about it all. And our landing creaks like nothing else!! It's a racket at times.

Apodemus

venison said:

Old houses do creak and groan, cheapest starting place would be ask a builder, he may then suggest that you do or don't need anyone else to look at it and if any work might be needed.

I wouldn't let a builder anywhere near it!  Most builders will find no end of work for themselves in an old house, the bulk of which would be counterproductive.

OP, relax!  It's been there for nearly 130 years.  The chances of it falling down on your watch are infinitesimally small.

FreeBear

A 5m by 4m room is pretty large - Is the lounge of a similar size ?

The first thing I would ask, is have any internal walls been removed on the ground floor ?

If so, look to see if adequate supports have been put in place. If it is all original, then just get use to it. Even with slightly smaller rooms on a marginally newer build, I have creaks & groans from the bedroom floors.

lucypilates

FreeBear said:

A 5m by 4m room is pretty large - Is the lounge of a similar size ?

The first thing I would ask, is have any internal walls been removed on the ground floor ?

If so, look to see if adequate supports have been put in place. If it is all original, then just get use to it. Even with slightly smaller rooms on a marginally newer build, I have creaks & groans from the bedroom floors.

The lounge is slightly smaller as it has the entrance hallway/lounge under the main bedroom ... there is a crack in the plaster ceiling but it itsn't a big one ... 

I will take some pics next time i'm down and i will try to relax a little - yes it's been standing for a while so i'm sure it won't just collapse in the next couple of weeks .. but i won't be doing any jogging in the bedroom just yet lol.

GDB2222

IF there’s a problem that has to be fixed, it’s not going to be an easy job. It might be worth taking up a few floorboards to allow a surveyor to have a rummage, mainly for reassurance.

If there’s woodworm or rot, the sooner you know about it the better.

Is the downstairs ceiling ornate plasterwork?

stuart45

If I was getting anyone in to look at it, it would be a Chippie. Sometimes on older the houses the joists are slightly under sized, or if they are built into solid walls the ends can suffer. It's probably OK but if you are really worried get one in to have a look.

David713

Don't forget to make sure that if you or a builder has to remove the chandelier for any reason, both the people down below and the person up top undoing it are both working on the same fitting:
Del and Rodney Smash the Chandelier - Only Fools and Horses - BBC - YouTube

lucypilates

GDB2222 said:

IF there’s a problem that has to be fixed, it’s not going to be an easy job. It might be worth taking up a few floorboards to allow a surveyor to have a rummage, mainly for reassurance.

If there’s woodworm or rot, the sooner you know about it the better.

Is the downstairs ceiling ornate plasterwork?

No it’s just a plain ceiling but as I am getting new carpets put down in June, it seems a shame not to go in through the floorboards! 

My plan now is to go down at the weekend and rip up the old carpet and lift a couple of boards to see what the joists look like .., I know hope to do herringbone bracing now so if I can’t get someone in, I reckon I could give that a go myself!!!

lucypilates

UPDATE: on returning, it’s much less bouncy than I imagined tho the chandelier is definitely jiggled when someone walks over - I took a video but can’t post it sadly.

anyway, I’m thinking of changing the chandelier instead for something more contemporary and not glass!!! 

But I don’t think the ceiling is anywhere near collapse now .. that’s the result of being away from the property with a vivid imagination!! 

Thanks for all comments though