Common Causes
Subsidence can be caused by many factors. But the most common causes of Subsidence are trees within 3 meters and leaking drains.
Let’s look at the effects of trees first…
You may be looking at a house which has a boundary with established trees or a tree may have been planted in the garden as a feature.
Trees send out their roots searching for water and this takes moisture from the ground as the roots extend and the trees grow.
The larger the trees get and the closer to the house they are, they will absorb more and more water from the ground around the foundations.
This localised absorption causes the soil to contract and if the tree is located near the corner of a property the foundation can crack and begin to move.
Sometimes the movement is only millimetres, but this movement will be evident in the brickwork or blockwork of the house, with the crack initially following the joints in the masonry but as the movement continues cracks will show in the middle of bricks and blocks.
The main trees to be concerned about are: Oak, Ash Sycamore and Willow.
Part 3 next week looks at subsidence due to leaking drains.
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