dodgy repair to dodgy wall

[brightspark]

dont inherit someone elses cockup it will come back and bite u on the bum and u have a job for life repairing it free

 

[the snooper]

to it looks like the bricks were staggered as should be but the have cracked and as bb stated the builder tried to repair it
also if the foundations were there did anyone dig down the side to see if they are actually foundations for a wall or just a line of concrete to stop weeds / grass growing un and through the fence

 

[Kent]

to it looks like the bricks were staggered as should be but the have cracked and as bb stated the builder tried to repair it
also if the foundations were there did anyone dig down the side to see if they are actually foundations for a wall or just a line of concrete to stop weeds / grass growing un and through the fence

the term builder keeps being used inappropriately here, if that was his clever thought then he most defiantly is a bodger all the same.

The cure is a sledge hammer, skip, a load of new block a pick a spade, maybe a kango if there is a slab or poor fotting to break. A mixer few bags of sand / cement / stone. Some plasticiser, frost proofer if it gets colder and a trowel,level and brickline. Most importantly to add to that is "someone who knows what the heck they are about on the job"

 

[the snooper]

the term builder keeps being used inappropriately here, if that was his clever thought then he most defiantly is a bodger all the same.

The cure is a sledge hammer, skip, a load of new block a pick a spade, maybe a kango if there is a slab or poor fotting to break. A mixer few bags of sand / cement / stone. Some plasticiser, frost proofer if it gets colder and a trowel,level and brickline. Most importantly to add to that is "someone who knows what the heck they are about on the job"

he is the builder as he built the wall so its not inappropriate use of the word but he's not a good builder.
most people seem to think that because someone uses the term professional it means they are great at their job when all it means is that they do it for a living, the guy that built the wall could well be a professional builder doing the same bodges everyday, doesn't mean he does it right

 

[BrokenBiker]

well, I text the customer saying I had spoken to a few people about the problem and everyone has said bin it and replace with either a properly built wall or a fence. wasn't expecting a reply tonight but have got one saying they cant afford a new wall or fence, can I still attempt a repair, they are aware it may crakc again but they want to try and make it last a bit longer.

not sure if im going to yet, will probably tell them I am not comfortable patching up such bad work, its either I rip it down and arrange someone I trust to come in and replace it, or I put up a fence in its place. they may not be ablet o afford that, but its better than the wall coming down which ever way it falls if someone is in its path.

 

[DanielW]

Pin and brace it with two longish metal flat bars for the cheapest option.

Now we know why the other builder did a bosh job,they have no money for doing the proper job,not the builders fault if he couldn't get the money out of them.

 

[Wallace]

Drill through and bolt some support plates in making sure one is big enough to engrave the builders name & phone number onto it!

 

[BrokenBiker]

Pin and brace it with two longish metal flat bars for the cheapest option.

Now we know why the other builder did a bosh job,they have no money for doing the proper job,not the builders fault if he couldn't get the money out of them.

when it was built (thrown up) they had the money for it to be done, they originally asked me to quote them but i don't do structural building stuff like walls, i gave them some names of some guys i trust and recommend, they decided to go with the guy i (and many others) told them to avoid.

how do i know how bad his work is? he is my uncle (whom i have discussed on here before now). i used to work for him as a sparky doing final test and inspection on his other leccies 'work'. i walked away after endless failures due to incorrect cable size, inccorect installation methods, incorrect rated MCB's etc, and the just plain crap workmanship he put into all of his jobs. ive been back to a few places he has worked on to repair things, replace things etc for people who have moved in as new tenants etc. i warn everyone i can against using him, but some people just don't listen until it is too late. he charges top money and uses cheap/used/damged materials to keep his costs down, he cuts every corner possible and more, and would rather do a job badly and quickly than take an extra hour to do it properly. how he still gets work is beyond me

anyway, enough of that. i am firm in my decision now, im not fixing it, i will make it safe, but i am not making a repair and i will be writing something up along the lines of the customer understands that i have only made the wall safe in order for another person to fully rectify the problem, i am not liable for any further damage caused to or by the existing wall etc. cover myself for any backlash from that idiots work. i have some inch x 3/8 flat bar at my fathers house so will cut some sttips and take them with me, suggest that i am allowed to bolt them into the wall both sides and only charge for that.

 

[the snooper]

if they aren't going to replace it the best they can do is a repair to keep water out over winter and see how much more it moves, it may not move again then again it may move another half inch and stop, it could do with the foundations looking at to see what is moving and why and maybe beef up the troubled section

 

[Pete.]

Why do they even want to repair it if they aren't doing it properly? Unless it's leaning it'll probably stand for 30 years with that crack in it.

 

[brightspark]

the cheapskates havent even put coping slabs on the top tell em its a bit like patina only its rustic instead

 

[Kent]

I fear the braces might be a mistake, if it comes down it could hurt someone or kill. So what if they cant afford, not being cruel but cant pay and wont pay are two different things. If its a cant then the wall needs coming down not bodging
You could well carry the can on this for sake of a tiny bit of work, walk away as there is very little that can hold a wall up that's in that state! All you might achieve is it dragging more over with it and becoming hence more dangerous when it finally goes

 

[Jan]

As implied; if the rest of this abortion is as bad as the bit you photo'd then any decent repair done here will just move the stress point(s) sideways to other part(s) of the 'wall' which will then crack up in much the same way. Adding steel supports to this one part also means that if it does give way in future, the result will be a whole section coming down onto any child attempting to climb over it - which they are very likely to do - rather than just one or two bricks. Even if the customers don't blame you, you're going to blame yourself. Can you live with that? I couldn't.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

I'd stay well clear of getting involved in putting someone else's rubbish job right, esp when the 'customer' by-passed you to get a cheapie done - as ye sow, so shall ye reap......

Given that folk will sue you at the drop of a hat in these litigious times, you could end up liable in law for any future disaster(s).

Step away from the wall.......

 

[MattF]

anyway, enough of that. i am firm in my decision now, im not fixing it, i will make it safe...

If you'd actually paid any heed to most of the responses, you'd realise that what you're proposing to do likely won't achieve that end, however, and once you lay a finger on that wall, you're just as liable as the original bricky in case of accident.

How often do you complain about clearing up after crap work done by other sparkies? What you're proposing here is no different. Leave well alone and let someone who knows what they're doing sort it. If the customer wasn't constantly trying to get work done on the cheap, they likely wouldn't be in this predicament to start with, and you having a piece of signed paper theoretically exempting you from liability/blame isn't worth a jot, legally.

I'm guessing though that all of the above will again disappear into the unuttered advice ether which seems to exist....

 

[chunkolini]

I would never get involved in sorting out somebody else's cockup.
Sounds like a can of worms waiting to be opened.

 

[BrokenBiker]

the wall is no more. They agreed in the end that a repair was pointless so 2 hours with an sds drill and a sledge hammer put it right. They want a short fence put up.

the foundations of the wall are solid and deep. The brickwork however was not, certain parts didn't take much effort at all, some of it I pushed down.

 

[mr migwire]

best outcome for all really....

 

[bigegg]

please tell me that next step is getting a refund from original bodge-the-builder (can he XXXX it? - yes he can!)

 

[Alister]

Thank God they saw sense. Dodgy walls and small children are a bad mix. Someone would could have been killed by that.